Male stallion found with hole in his forehead was suffering unnecessarily

An Anglesey woman who caused unnecessary suffering to a male stallion who was found in a thin condition and with a hole in his forehead has been handed a six month suspended jail term.

Andrea Parry-Jones of Carreg y Gad, Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, Anglesey, attended Caernarfon Crown Court on Thursday 27 March for sentencing.

She previously pleaded guilty to two offences under the Animal Welfare Act. They all related to a black male stallion named Ross.

The offences were that she failed to provide veterinary treatment for an obvious facial fracture and failed to provide veterinary treatment in respect of rain scald.

She was sentenced to six months of custody suspended for 12 months with 20 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement Days.

Costs of £2,000 were also ordered to be paid. In mitigation it was heard Parry-Jones had genuine remorse.

A written witness statement, provided to the court by RSPCA Inspector Mark Roberts, said it was on 14 February 2024 when he was asked to visit a pony found by Anglesey Trading Standards in a very poor condition.

Bones

Inspector Roberts said the dark bay stallion had a “very quiet temperament”.

He said: “He was wearing a headcollar and was double rugged. However, it was very clear that the pony was thin even under the double rug. I slid my hand under both rugs at the shoulder and could easily feel the bones there. The pony also had a hole in its forehead just left of centre and looked to be about half an inch deep and was scabbed over. Some yellow discharge was observed coming from the left nostril of the pony.”

A vet arrived and removed the rugs to reveal a “very thin pony” and completed a veterinary certificate stating that in her opinion the animal was suffering and should be moved from the location to a place where it could receive proper veterinary care.

Police in attendance then took the pony into possession under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The pony was then transported to a private equine boarding establishment for him to receive any treatment.

At the boarding establishment a specialist equine vet attended to examine Ross. Blood and faecal samples were taken and X-rays were taken of the pony’s skull to determine the depth of the hole in its head.

The vet gave Ross a body condition score of 0.5 out of five (with zero being emaciated and five being obese, three being ideal).

The vet in her statement, said: “It had a prominent spine, ribs, pelvis, shoulder and caudal tail head. There was marked muscle wastage under the tail and the neck was very narrow. In my opinion, it has taken a minimum period of eight weeks for this horse to become so poor but likely longer. This has caused suffering for a minimum period of four weeks.”

Put to sleep

Inspector Roberts said: “The injury site was cleaned by the vet and bubbles could be seen coming from the hole between the pony’s eyes as it was breathing.

“The vet recommended that the pony should have a CT scan to determine exactly what was going on in the pony’s skull. A hard lump was found under the left lower jaw bone and the CT would be used to confirm what it was.

“The pony was also found to be suffering from rain scald on its back and lice. This area was clipped back and then the pony was given a warm wash down to remove dead skin and mud.”

The pony was transported to Leahurst Equine Practice at the University of Liverpool for the CT scan. Unfortunately surgery was needed – to try and rectify the chronic condition of the wound in the pony’s skull – but this came with an uncertain outcome, and also came with risks due to the pony’s current condition with a poor prognosis for recovery.

Therefore it was decided by a veterinary expert that to prevent further suffering Ross would be put to sleep. This was agreed by the owner Parry-Jones.