I find myself in direct conflict with our nation of Gypsy traders. One often hears of coloured colt foals being abandoned on wasteland thus, sadly, we get used to hearing these stories of animal abandonment to the point where we become slightly hardened to it.

This being so, I have just rescued a tiny colt foal abandoned in the Cottingham area. It had been wandering aimlessly around for a few days in grief, searching for his mother and feeling desperately vulnerable. Dog walkers had rung the police, the Council and the RSPCA over a few days but to no avail.

George meets Ziggy

In his desperation, he ended up following some horse riders home through the busy traffic and bus lanes in Cottingham. They stabled him up and called out for help. I collected him up and brought him to my yard in Skidby. This poor little might is barely 3 months old, far too young to have been ripped off his mum and carrying a vast worm burdon. He is suffering emotional distress and separation anxiety at losing his mum and being alone out there. There is also a poor mare somewhere desperately grieving the loss of her foal too. The whole situation makes me feel sick to my core. The Traders just want filly foals so they keep breeding 1000’s of Black and white horses’ country wide. It is a national problem, epidemic in proportion. The lucky ones fill up our Rescue Centres to capacity and might get rehomed while the unlucky ones fuel our huge meat trade to Europe through the sales rings.

Toby looking after young George

Somewhere along the lines, this out-of-control breeding of Gypsy horses must either stop or be regulated in some way. The emotional fall out to any abandoned animal is bad enough to deal with but the reality of the vastness of the situation UK wide is utterly incredulous. We have banned puppy farming, skin/fur farming so now this must be high on any Government or public agenda surely?

If all local and area councils had a zero tolerance of fly grazing horses, as they do in Wales then that would force these mare owners to rent land so therefore have less horses. It would be a huge start to a huge problem. Being born a colt foal should not be such a disadvantage.

We named him George