THE PLIGHT of Irish horses abandoned because of the downturn in the economy, has touched hearts in the United States and donations have started to arrive at the Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The money is arriving after a report in the New York Timeson December 20th which said tens of thousands of horses and ponies "have been abandoned amid Ireland's financial nightmare".
The report which focused on one of Ireland’s blackspots for abandoned horses, Dunsink tip, said it was “a place that wounds the heart” in a country famed for its love of horses.
It quoted Joe Collins, president of the Veterinary Council of Ireland, as saying there are 10,000 to 20,000 “surplus horses” across the country. “Another leading expert on horses, Ted Walsh, the father of one of the country’s most famous steeplechase jockeys, Ruby Walsh, has said that the number could be as high as 100,000,” the report continued.
Orla Aungier of the Dublin SPCA said donations had started to arrive at the Dublin offices from the US and were “very badly needed”. “There is nothing significant as yet but the report seems to have caught the public attention and people there seem willing to help,” she said.
She said no one knew the real figure for abandoned horses. “All I can tell you is we have 1,500 to 2,000 surplus horses here in Dublin and we are working flat out to do what we can for them.”
She said the problem had come to international attention following an Irish Timesreport published when the global media was in Ireland to cover the IMF-EU negotiations.