UPDATE: Horse owner says ‘animal is not abandoned’

Jane Wild (left) with Eileen Mayes and the abandoned horse in Ford SUS-140826-140808001

Mark Joans called this morning (Thursday, August 28), claiming the animal had not been abandoned and that he visited three times a day to check it and feed it.

He said the animal was in the field for health reasons and that it couldn’t stay in its normal stables based near Angmering.

Mr Joans said the horse did not belong to any travellers.

His comments follow concerns raised about the horse’s welfare by Jane Wild, of the West Sussex Wildlife Protection.

She said: “This is so cruel. Just to up and go and leave a lovely animal like this to fend for itself is dreadful.”

An ever-increasing number of people, who had been concerned about the animal, have been regularly feeding it with carrots, apples, fresh hay and other ‘goodies’.

However, Mr Joans said the horse was well-fed and cared for.

He explained that the eight-year-old stallion needed to be isolated from other animals to ensure that it does not become overly excited and cause further injury to one of its legs, which is swollen.