Pair of Ponies Rescued from Pond

A pair of ponies stranded in a pond have been rescued by firefighters, police and RSPCA in Wolverhampton. RSPCA inspector Vicki Taylor was called to help after the ponies were spotted stranded in neck-high water in a garden in Great Moor Road on Sunday (9 August).

She said:

The ponies had been found straying in Pattingham on Saturday night. Police were made aware and members of the public managed to get headcollars on the ponies and called a vet to see to the filly’s injured leg. They were moved into a secure field while enquiries were made as to where they’d come from.

Unfortunately they then managed to escape and fell into a pond nearby. Staffordshire Fire & Rescue Service attended and called me to help.”

Vicki attended and contacted a vet and transport to come and collect the ponies.

The fire crew managed to get the ponies out using strops. They pulled the ponies out of the water and, thankfully, they weren’t badly injured.

The vet checked them over and we moved them to boarding for the night to bed them down. They were exhausted and relieved to be somewhere safe and comfy for the night, and were fast asleep in no time at all!”

The ponies are now being cared for by staff at RSPCA Gonsal Farm Animal Centre, in Shropshire.

In 2019, the RSPCA received reports of more than 21,000 incidents involving horses and by the end of the year we had nearly 900 in our care, leaving the rescue centres full and funding hundreds more in private boarding. Since lockdown, we’ve received thousands of reports about horses but fear much worse is to come if, as expected, the Covid crisis sparks a UK and global recession.

Vicki added: “If they’ve escaped from their home then we’d love to hear from their owners and reunite them. If you recognise them please call us on 0300 123 8018.”

To help the RSPCA keep rescuing animals and keep our animal hospitals and centres running for emergency treatment and round the clock care through these unprecedented times, please donate whatever you can spare at www.rspca.org.uk/covid.

Suzanne Ashton

Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.