Two ponies, who were rescued by World Horse Welfare as part of a case in which two horses died and their owners were banned from keeping animals, have been successfully rehomed.
The mare and foal, named Champs and Moon, were kept in a field next to the horse and pony who died due to neglect but are now thriving in their new homes.
All four equines were owned by Katrina Sullivan and Jamie Middleton from Bognor Regis.
Both Sullivan and Middleton pleaded guilty to two offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 at Worthing Magistrates Court last month following a prosecution by the RSPCA.
Both parties were also given prison sentences – Sullivan received 12 weeks while Middleton was given 14 weeks – which were suspended for two years and were told to pay court costs of £350 and a victim surcharge of £154 each.
Emaciated
In October 2023, RSPCA inspector Rebecca Carter met a field officer from World Horse Welfare at a field in Bognor Regis where they found an 18-month-old Piebald cob filly called Sassy and a three-year-old bay Welsh Arab gelding called Apollo in very poor health.
Sassy was emaciated and was suffering from a tail wound infested with maggots while Apollo had swollen legs and couldn’t stand. Apollo’s spine, ribs and hip bones were all protruding and he was covered in diarrhoea. Sassy passed away while Rebecca was on site.
At the time of the rescue, Moon was just six months old and his mother Champ was only five. Both mother and son were in poor condition.
“Despite their tough start to life, both ponies made a great recovery and have now been rehomed with new owners who each adore them,” said Rebecca.
“We are so happy they are now enjoying life in loving homes, as this was a very sad and difficult case in which two other horses suffered terribly.”
