A dog-walker was horrified to find a dead pony in a field on an outing in the Harefield countryside.
The carcass, believed to be a six-month-old foal, was found among several ponies, including it's mother which was calling out in distress.
The dog-walker was 'incensed' and in tears at the sight, on Springwell Lane in Harefield, after reporting the the same ponies to the RSPCA several times.
The animal lover told getwestlondon : “It was only born six months ago – still a foal.
“She was a tiny little thing as her mother's only a pony.
“The day she was born we all saw her and she was no bigger than a dog and she kept falling over so we called her Whoops-a-daisy. She must been been six months and and to see her like that... it's just not necessary.”
“We have to walk past this field with these poor little ponies in and you want to feed them but that's not the answer. They have a very small patch of grass and there are six ponies in there now.
"They're always waiting at the fence hoping someone will feed them.”
Neglected horses have been reported elsewhere in west London in recent months, with RSPCA inspectors visiting some in Hillingdon in October .
Poisonous plants
The small field in Harefield, in which the ponies are being kept, has ragwort growing in it - a plant highly poisonous to horses if eaten.
The dog-walker continued: “I rang the RSCPA because when I first saw the ponies I thought 'Oh my god'.
“The RSPCA previously put a sticker on the fence asking the owners to feed them but it's poisonous plants that I think killed this pony.
“Ragwort grows in the field and needs to be pulled out and managed and because they've got nowhere else to go – horses will eat ragwort when there's nothing else and it poisons them.”
The concerned dog-walker called the RSCPA again to inform them of the carcass but was told by them to ring the council to have it removed.
“That really shocked me," they said. “I went down yesterday and they'd dug a big hole and buried it.
“I don't know what to do, I want to do as much as I can to get these ponies removed, they don't make any money out of them, they don't feed them, they just keep breeding. They keep a stallion in the field with all the mares, so they all get pregnant and have foals.
“I've contacted the British Horse Society (BHS) as I've given up on the RSPCA – it's supposed to be prevention of cruelty to animals but if they'd done something about it this pony wouldn't have died."
The dog-walker thinks the only consolation to the horrid situation is that the ponies are near a road where a lot of people walk past and see them.
They added: “ All I want is for people to realise that this is happening.
“When you see in this day and age – ponies just left to die - it's outrageous.”
'Upsetting'
An RSPCA spokesperson confirmed a member of the public called the RSPCA raising concerns about a number of ponies in an area of Harefield in October this year.
The spokesperson said: “An inspector attended the location and checked the animals but there was no evidence of any suffering.
“A member of the public called our national call centre on December 1 to report a dead pony in a field in Harefield. A member of staff advised the caller to report it to the council, which is responsible for disposing of the pony’s body.
“We are saddened to hear of the death of this pony and understand the sight of the body must have been very upsetting for members of the public.”
Anyone who wishes to report their concerns over an animal’s welfare can do so 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, by calling the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999.
* The owner of the foal has contacted getwestlondon to deny the accusation any of her animals were neglected.
