Sickening!

Originally Posted by gruntygiggles

They usually will let you know if you call and ask, but they don't have time to call everyone and keep them updated. I agree though, they no doubt went on to live a happy life somewhere.

I suppose I don't have much faith in that many people having the decency to report such cases but then we are (ironically) supposed to be a nation of animal-lovers lol.

[gruntygiggles]

Originally Posted by missyorkie_chris

I suppose I don't have much faith in that many people having the decency to report such cases but then we are (ironically) supposed to be a nation of animal-lovers lol.

Nope......we are like most other western nations. We believe we're better, more caring etc than every other nation, but the truth is, it's always easier to turn to the other way and go on with your day, convincing yourself you care because you give £2 a month to charity and spend a small fortune on your beloved pets.

In truth, it's fantastic to give any amount you can to charity, but is far more helpful to pick up the phone and report abuse. Imagine how many people saw the pony my sister and I took in or the Donkeys that Madness reported before we saw them? It takes months and months on end for hooves to get into that condition and not one other person that had seen them had done anything. I imagine some would have picked some grass, believing a nice feed would help. In truth though, lush grass and overgrown hooves in ponies are a recipe for disaster. They need specialist high fibre, low conditioning feeds to bring them on slowly.

Not everyone knows that and that is not their fault, but why not just pick up the phone? Usually because it is too much hassle and by offering a bit of grass, we make ourselves feel better.

I think the worst case of this belief that we love our animals is in those that treat their animals like children or dote on them. I love my dogs and I've loved the horses that I've had, but they are still dogs and horses, not people. In order to give them a fulfilled and happy life, you have to understand what the animal needs. With dogs, it's simple, feeding once or twice a day depending on size, fresh water, exercise both mental and physical, discipline, leadership and affection. Unfortunately, people don't always think this is enough (it's plenty for the dog, but not enough for them), so they show their love through overfeeding, giving treats, no discipline, lack of exercise etc and you end up with overweight, unhealthy, anti social dogs that have a very poor quality of life, despite the owner thinking they have the best life a dog could want.

It's sad, but most people don;t even know what is poinonous to dogs. Many know that you shouldn't feed them chocolate or nuts, but not so many know that other poisonous foods are potatoes, onions, garlic and so on. Eaten in small amounts as tables scraps or picked up off the kitchen floor will show no obvious signs of ill health, but you will be doing long term damage internally and the dog can have a very uncomfortable life in later years.

If I was going to go and buy a meerkat (just for example), I'd learn all about it before I bought it home. Unfortunately, when getting puppies and kittens and even horses and ponies, some people just think it's easy and straightforward. Shame.

I'll get off my soap box now!!!

[yorkie_chris]

Originally Posted by gruntygiggles

In truth, it's fantastic to give any amount you can to charity, but is far more helpful to pick up the phone and report abuse. Imagine how many people saw the pony my sister and I took in or the Donkeys that Madness reported before we saw them? It takes months and months on end for hooves to get into that condition

I wouldn't know the difference between a healthy and unhealthy hoof if I was kicked in the teeth with it. Would 99% of other people?
Fair enough if it was visibly emaciated but I wouldn't have any idea about what its feet were supposed to look like.

[gruntygiggles]

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

I wouldn't know the difference between a healthy and unhealthy hoof if I was kicked in the teeth with it. Would 99% of other people?
Fair enough if it was visibly emaciated but I wouldn't have any idea about what its feet were supposed to look like.

I think you'd suprise yourself.

http://www.scequinerescue.org/sitebu...es-351x260.jpg

If you saw this, I think pretty much anyone that had ever even seen a picture of a horse, pony or donkey would know that this is not normal.

I did say in my post that mst people don't know what is good or bad, so not their fault. Some things are just obvious though.

[yorkie_chris]

Fook, yeah that does not appear normal. By your early description the difference did not seem so marked.

[gruntygiggles]

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

Fook, yeah that does not appear normal. By your early description the difference did not seem so marked.

The hooves of the pony me and my sis rescued were about 5 inches shorter than those in the pic, but they had still curled round. TBH, most people can tell the difference between what's normal and what's not. If you saw a horse that had 3 normal hooves and one that had a crack going from the ground up to the leg, you'k know that wasn't normal too and this kind of neglect is probably the most common in horses and ponies because they are expensive to keep.

We need more threads like this. It's turning out to be quiet informative and hopefully people will think a little more about their's and other's animals. I for one didn't know about the things that Gruntygiggles posted as being poisonous to dogs. Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to give a dog the life it would deserve at the moment, but when I am, I'll know to do some reading up on what is bad for dogs.

Well the family have been sentenced. James Gray has got a 6 month jail sentence amongst other things. I'm sure he'll be in a cushy low security prison though. He's been banned from keeping equines for life, but the rest of the family are only banned for 10 years, which I don't agree with. What's to stop him mistreating other animals in a similar way? I think thay should have all been banned from keeping any animal for life as they have shown that they are not fit to own them.

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/397/284470.html