A pony who turned up in a grandmother’s back yard has “settled in well” to his new home at World Horse Welfare.
The charity received a call last month from a distressed woman who had found a pony in her paved back garden.
It transpired that her 13-year-old granddaughter had responded to an online advert claiming the pony would be put down if no-one took him. The pony’s previous owner had then “delivered” the young colt to the lady’s home.
World Horse Welfare field officer Rachel Andrews worked with the RSPCA to assess the pony and organise temporary accommodation for him, before taking him to the charity’s Penny Farm rescue and rehoming centre.
The colt has been named Mr Melvin Andrews, after the field officers that visited him, and has already become a favourite among World Horse Welfare visitors.
“Melvin was understandably a bit subdued when he arrived, but he’s come out of his shell a bit and shown that he’s a very sweet little pony who has a bit of a cheeky side,” said his groom, Katie Grimshaw.
“He’s already popular with visitors to the centre — everybody seems to have heard his story and people especially love his name.
“Our first priority was giving him a thorough bath and clipping his hair so we could properly assess his condition and treat him for lice.”
Article continues below…
You might also be interested in:
Young horse dumped in Nan’s back yard
World Horse Welfare fears the incident could be the start of a new trend
She added the pony’s skin was in a “terrible state” and he was very underweight.
“We will be building him up slowly to help him regain his strength,” she added.
“We’re looking forward to working with him over the next few months to get him fit and healthy so that he can find the good home that all horses and ponies deserve.”
Ms Andrews added every equine “deserves responsible ownership”.
“[This] includes responsible breeding, selling and rehoming,” she said.
“We’re just glad that Melvin has settled in well at our Penny Farm rescue and rehoming centre and has already shown himself to be lovely a little pony.
“We hope in time that we can find him a good home.”
For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.
In this week’s edition, out on 24 May, don’t miss our “cob special”, including how to find the perfect cob, meet champion cob Our Cashel Blue and more.
