Horses faces bleak winter as Covid economic crisis hits hard

Thousands of horses are at risk of being abandoned because of the economic downturn predicted due to Covid-19, the CEO of the RSPCA has said as he encouraged those with money and land to adopt a pony.

During the 'equine crisis' caused by the 2008 recession, the number of horses in care of the charity increased threefold. As the economic crisis hits, along with predicted cold weather, flooding and a potential second wave of the virus, the future for the country's horses is bleak.

The charity warned that for some families, the cost of an equine can be equivalent to a second mortgage - leading to a likelihood of the horse being dumped in difficult times.

Despite all this, horse breeding has continued at the same rate as before the coronavirus crisis, making it more difficult to rehome those which have been abandoned.

The horse rescue sector has warned it cannot cope with increased numbers of abandoned animals, as during the crisis fundraising has dropped by 50 per cent. Last recession saw rescue RSPCA horses rise by almost 150 per cent, from 722 in 2009 to 1797 in 2013.

RSPCA CEO Chris Sherwood told The Telegraph: “We have a perfect storm brewing. We have the recession and the economic pressures that will have on people who own horses, we have a potential second wave where people can’t get out to see their horses if they are quarantined and that leading to people not wanting to have a horse anymore, and we have the potential for a hard winter with flooding and bad weather which will lead to more issues around horse welfare."

He urged Telegraph readers with the time and space to consider adopting a horse, explaining: “Readers should consider adopting a horse if they have the means and the land - we currently have 760 horses in our care and we are in need of those individuals who want to come and rehome from us. We started rehoming equines at the end of lockdown as well in a socially distanced way, it’s very safe.

“There are 7-10,000 equines at risk that might need support and intervention."

Animal rescues have been ignored by government bailouts, he said, with many having to let staff go and close centres.

Mr Sherwood added: “We are calling upon the government to extend support to the equine sector and we have met with ministers to ask for their help on what could be a very difficult winter.”

The RSPCA recently announced it is to make nearly a fifth of its 1,600 staff redundant due to the covid-19 crisis.

Predictions by the Institute of Fundraising (IoF) and Charity Finance Group (CFG) show that UK charities face collective financial losses of £12.4bn by the end of this financial year as a result of rising costs and a steep fall in donations.