Please credit RSPCA
Loving Retirement Home Found For Horse Found Without Food Or Water
12 months ago 
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National pet charity Blue Cross has found a loving home for a neglected horse who was left without food and water in his previous home.
20 year old bay gelding Maddison was found in poor bodily condition, without food and water and taken in by RSPCA.
After care by the team, they transferred the horse into the care of Blue Cross at Burford, Oxfordshire, who found him a lovely new retirement home as a companion horse.
His new owner Michelle said: “He’s only been with us for a few months and is doing amazingly well. He’s getting on so well with our other two horses and is loving being pampered, he really is the sweetest guy in the world.
“He absolutely loves his food, which is not a surprise given his history, and doesn’t have a bad bone in his body, he honestly is one of the sweetest horses I’ve ever met.
“He does have really worn down teeth which the dentists has said would have been due to Maddison having extremely short grass for a long time. It doesn’t affect him in any way but we have to cut up apples and other things for him as he struggles to bite them in half.
“I’m happy to say he’s now in his forever home with us and will only know love and a full belly from here on out. I hope others reading his story will consider taking on an older companion horse as it’s so rewarding.
“Because our other two horses live at our house and only have each other it was an absolute nightmare trying to even just ride as they would get extremely stressed being left alone. Having Maddison has changed all of that as they always have a friend with them. It’s been a game changer.”
Clare Bevins, Horse Welfare Supervisor at Blue Cross in Burford, said: “Maddison is a sweet gentleman, and we were happy to find him a loving retirement home following his ordeal.
“We regularly work with organisations such as RSPCA and Redwings to help to find new homes for horses in need.
“We’d always urge anyone who is struggling to care for their horse to get in touch with a charity for help sooner rather than later. With the cost of living crisis we have never been needed more and are helping a number of owners who can no longer care for their horse.
“We can take horses into our rehoming centre or can also help to find new homes through our Home Direct service, where the animal stays in their home until we find a new owner.”
RSPCA inspector Tina Ward, who investigated for the animal welfare charity, said: “After such a horrible ordeal, to see Maddison thriving in his new home means the world to me - it's the very reason I get up every day to do my job. Caring for horses is a huge responsibility and it is never acceptable to leave an animal to suffer. Sadly, the worsening cost of living crisis means we and other animal welfare charities are likely to going to see many more cases of neglect like this, but by continuing to work together, we will do everything we can to be a voice for animals."
2022 is the 125th anniversary of Blue Cross, originally ‘Our Dumb Friends League’. The charity originally formed to help pets and their people through difficult times and today has never been needed more. From finding pets loving new homes, running a network of pet food banks and providing essential vet care, Blue Cross supports pet owners looking for help. To donate to Blue Cross this Christmas visit www.bluecross.org.uk/support
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