ERF were contacted by the DDSV in dept. 86 to intervene in a sad welfare case where the owner of 2 horses had been taken into hospital, terminally ill. The horses, 2 lovely French Trotter mares, had received very little care for many years. The evidence of this was shockingly revealed to us when a representative for ERF initially went to visit the horses last Monday. She found the mares wading around in a yard of stinking mud and manure with horrendously overgrown feet, looking very sorrowful.

10 yr old Lily's hooves

16 yr old Marcy's hooves

When we went to collect the girls last Thursday we were greeted by 2 very timid mares who were wary of having any human contact, understandable seeing as they hadn’t had any for such a long time….that was heartbreaking to see. Once we managed to catch them, we had to walk them out of the manure filled yard they knew as home, into the trailer, it was obviously very painful for them having to manouvere on a hard surface but they both behaved so well. They then came back to our  Charente yard where the mares, now named Lily and Marcy, could settle down and relax in a warm straw bed.

This past weekend the farrier visited to cut back many years of neglect to their extremly overgrown feet. He too was very shocked at how long their feet were and also at the layers of caked on manure he had scrape off of the hoof wall. They were so patient and obliging, almost knowing that what we were doing for them was for their own good. To see them with trimmed feet afterwards was a big releif and we were soon able to turn them out onto some grass, something they hadn’t done for a very long time. Seeing them able to trot and canter around a field once more was very emotional for us, it’s what makes our sometimes very difficult and tiring job all the more worthwhile.

How tragic that these horses, who had once been cared for and had a trotting career behind them, had been left for so long without even the basic of care given. The road to recovery has now started for Lily and Marcy, but we will have to spend out many more euros on them in future farrier visits, vaccinations,worming, also Marcy needs a large hanging sarcoid removed from her chest…this is without taking into account hay and feed for the winter. The mares will never now be parted and will eventually be rehomed with an adoptive family.

If you can, please help by donating a few euros towards the care of Lily, Marcy, Mimi or Leon..all of who are cared for by ERF’s team voluntarily.

Watch their video here….

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Lily and Marcy, French trotter welfare cases