Horse left for dead by owners after being hit by car
A horse was left for dead by her owners after it bolted and was hit by a car.
An appeal to trace the owners after the RSPCA claimed the men 'abandoned this horse to die'.
Luckily the family travelling in the car were uninjured but the mare was bleeding profusely due to cut on her chest and front legs.
Up to 100 traditional horse-drawn carriages were paraded through the Black Country on Sunday.
One of the horses bolted as they made their way along in Great Bridge Road, Moxley, near Oxford Street.
She collided head-on with a car and the impact smashed the windscreen and left the mare lying in the road injured and bleeding.
RSPCA inspector Vicki Taylor, who was on the scene alongside police arrived, said the men with the horse had already left – dragging the trap away with them.
She said: “The horse was lying in the road and bleeding where the smashed windscreen had cut into her front and legs.
"This was a shocking sight and she was clearly suffering.
“Thankfully the family who were in the car were uninjured but their vehicle was badly damaged.
“Witnesses provided photos of the owners taking off the trap and leaving the horse in the road.
"It must have been a shock to be involved in an accident like this but these men essentially abandoned this horse to die.
“As they left, the men were pictured trying to hide their faces.
"We are now appealing for anyone who may recognise the horse, or the men in these images, to contact us in strictest confidence on the inspectorate appeal line on 0300 123 8018.”
The seven-year-old mare was also underweight but is now recovering in RSPCA care.
Ms Taylor added: “Thankfully there are no obvious broken bones and the equine vet is positive she will recover despite the open wounds which may take a while to start healing.”
The number of horses rescued by the RSPCA has reached a four-year high, as the horse crisis continues to have devastating consequences.
The charity’s new cruelty statistics reveal that nearly 1,000 horses were rescued by the charity from cruelty, suffering and neglect last year, and a staggering 928 horses are currently in the charity's care.
The national horse crisis, which charities first highlighted in 2012, has since seen RSPCA officers called out to neglected and abandoned horses every day in England and Wales, with many of the animals extremely sick or dying.
