Lovestruck Shetland Ponies Reunited At The Horse Trust

Piglet and Rosie Piglet and Rosie, two rescued Shetland ponies, have been reunited at The Horse Trust in Speen, Buckinghamshire, after seven months apart. 10hh skewbald mare Rosie has been living at The Horse Trust since July 2010 when she was rescued by the RSPCA. 9hh pony Piglet arrived at the sanctuary in September 2010 after being found abandoned by the police at a busy roadside in Chalfont St Peter. When Piglet arrived, he needed treatment for a number of veterinary problems including an infected eye, severe malnutrition, high worm burden and overgrown feet. Shortly after Piglet's arrival, staff at The Horse Trust decided to put him in the field with Rosie, as they were a similar size and their love affair blossomed. In February, Piglet was separated from Rosie when the charity’s veterinary surgeon discovered that his original castration had been botched (he was a "rig"), so there was a risk that Rosie could end up pregnant. During the operation, Piglet also had his badly infected eye removed. "Piglet was miserable when we separated him from Rosie - he was whinnying for her and galloping about the field getting quite distressed.," said Kate Cutler, Piglet and Rosie's groom at The Horse Trust. "Rosie missed him desperately too - for the first few days, she paced up and down the field, waiting for him to come back." Due to the severity of the infection in his eye, Piglet required a number of weeks box rest apart from Rosie. Staff were surprised to see that when the two ponies were reunited a few months ago, Rosie wasn’t very interested in Piglet. "When we tried to put them together again in June, Rosie didn't want to know. I think she thought he had abandoned her and was a bit miffed with him," said Kate. However, over recent weeks, staff at The Horse Trust have been delighted that the rescue ponies' romance has rekindled. "I think Rosie has realised that he is the one for her," said Kate. "It's been really sweet to watch them back together again. They stand close together in the field grazing and pull faces at each other and their favourite pastime is grooming each other. They've both had a hard life so it's lovely to see them so happy together again." Piglet's veterinary treatment cost The Horse Trust a total of £2,500. To donate to the charity, visit www.horsetrust.org.uk, or contact the charity on 01494 488 464 or [email protected]

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