After a few days in the nursery paddock, we decided that it was time to let Hugo onto a small paddock in the company of Prince, a gentle rescue donkey. Hugo was still very wary of humans but immediately formed a close bond with Prince which has been wonderful to watch. The vet has microchipped and vaccinated Hugo (for the first time in his 12 years) - neither of which impressed him at all!

He is slowly becoming less wary of us and can now be approached from the front although strangers are still a concern to him. We are organising a visit from a dentist as it appears that his back teeth are very rough and causing some pain. His feet appear to be in ok condition - presumably the lack of nutrients has prevented too much growth over the past few years. We can lift his front feet (when he is in the right mood!) but cannot get near his hindquarters so we will wait until the New Year before we call in the farrier.   

Welcome home Hugo! (Nov 11th 2007)

ERF would like to say a huge welcome to Hugo – the bay, part-bred Arab gelding who was saved by the kind donations from ERF members and friends. His nose is dented from the constant wearing of a head collar and the weight of the chain which was used to prevent him wandering. Otherwise, he is in surprisingly good health given his recent history, just very thin and lacking condition. He has sad eyes and is wary of humans moving past his head but we hope that his defensive behaviour will subside over the next few months as he regains strength and enjoys his newfound freedom in the paddock with some other rescued equines. Today he was wormed and treated for the lice infestation in his mane before being turned into a small nursery paddock with water.

Over the next week he will slowly be introduced to more grass and we shall start to get him used to human contact again. We believe he has been ridden in the past but we shall have to wait and see what his future holds.

The ERF team would like to thank all of our supporters who contributed so generously to this appeal.       

Sunday 11th Nov, 8pm: Tonight we have managed to secure the release of HUGO - a 12 year old pony gelding. Since ERF expressed an interest in buying him on Friday (see below) Hugo has been chained to a tree in a garden to allow him to eat grass in an effort to quickly improve his condition. Our local ERF representative negotiated to reduce his price and tonight we unchained him and bought him home.        

The ERF team would like to say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all our members and friends who have made his rescue possible through their generous donations and pledges. He will spend the next few days getting used to his freedom and adjusting to his new environment. We will post some photos and details of his progress over the next few days.

November 9th 2007: Last winter a pony and his donkey companion were brought in from a small lawn area to a stable for the winter....

The stable has no daylight, it is pitch black. They cannot see out as it is hidden by trees in a corner of the garden.

There is no bedding, it is piled high with many years of manure and mud.

There is no regular food or fresh water. By some miracle the pony made it through the winter and come the Spring when he was let out for the summer, he was just skin and bones. Sadly the donkey wasn't so fortunate.....we are told he died from the results of malnutrition.

In the middle of October this year, we were told about this pony - he had just been locked back into the stable for the winter. We inspected the pony and took photos. The conditions in which he is kept are appalling and extremely cruel - there was no visible water and only a few crusts of bread to eat. You cannot tell that there is any animal in this stable without a torch and the stench is horrible. We immediately tried to buy the pony but the owner would not sell as he thought he could get more money from the person he bought him from. They looked at him and would not buy him as his condition is so bad. We visited the pony yesterday and his condition is getting critical. He has no water at all, nor any food or bedding. His back bone is now protruding from his withers to his tail as are his hips and ribs. His teeth are black from trying to eat the muck in his stable. He will not survive much longer without food and water...he is wasting away and is very depressed.

The first picture was taken indoors with flash, the second when we gave him some water outside quickly without his owner present.