Malnourished animals are taken from farm

ONE person has been cautioned under the Welfare of Animals Act after a number of distressed and malnourished animals, some of which were dying, were discovered at a property at Temple Road in the Ballinderry area.

Two malnourished horses were taken away in an operation carried out by a Department of Agriculture vet who discovered the animals on Friday.

Two goats, a young calf and a couple of older calves were also found at the property while a number of dead calves, a sheep and a pig were taken away.

Constable Graham Given, who was at the operation, praised the work carried out by Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary.

“Their expertise helps police deal effectively with these difficult cases and ensures that animals receive the proper care and attention,” he said.

“It is always hard to see animals suffering in appalling conditions like that, and the conditions here were particularly bad with some animals already dead and others dying.

“Thankfully for these horses on this occasion we were able to intervene in time to save them. They will now be expertly nursed back to health by the staff and volunteers of Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary.”

The horses were attended to over the weekend by officers from Lisburn and a representative of Crosskennan Lane Animal sanctuary before arrangements are made to have them safely transported to secure units for further treatment.

Lyn Friel, the founder and manager of Crosskennan Lane Animal Sanctuary based at Magherafelt said that they see this sight all too often.

“We see this type of situation on a worryingly regular basis,” she said. “The welfare calls to the charity have increased by a staggering 300% over the last couple of years. We are the only horse welfare and education charity based in Northern Ireland but receive no government assistance or funding.

“The cost of caring for the many abused and abandoned horses that need our care has escalated to such an extent that we fear we have almost reached a point when we will not be in a financial position to help. This is contrary to everything we stand for and we are hoping that someone will step in to support us and to avert what would be a tragedy for the horse welfare situation in Northern Ireland.”