Charity's shock at horse carcasses on common land

The remains of the horses were found on boggy land in this area of the Preseli mountains

Video footage of two horse carcasses on mountains has been described by an equine welfare charity as "shocking".

The footage showed the horses on Wern Common in Mynachlogddu, Pembrokeshire.

It was reviewed by Lluest Horse and Pony Trust, which is now calling for tighter animal welfare laws in Wales.

The carcasses were found by Anita, a local horse rider, in February 2023.

Warning: This report includes an image of a horse carcass that some may find distressing.

Anita discovered the horse carcasses on Wern Common in Pembrokeshire

Anita claims two other ponies were also present on the land.

“I came through on the bridleway and probably within 50 feet was the first carcass, the stink was horrendous,” she said.

Horrified by what she saw, she captured the scenes on her GoPro.

“It’s affected me really badly, to the point where I’ve woken up during the night with nightmares over it," she said.

She claimed she warned Pembrokeshire National Park in 2021 - two years before she found the carcasses - that the land was not suitable for grazing during winter.

Dionne Schuurman, from the Lluest Horse and Pony Trust, said: “If somebody was checking them daily, they wouldn’t still be there, decomposed. They would’ve been removed.”

Referring to the land managers, the charity said: “If they are giving licensing to graze in these areas, it needs to be appropriately stocked, it needs to be suitable for the type of animal that’s grazing there.

"They need to make sure that those people are doing regular health checks to make sure their welfare is right.”

The Wern Common is managed by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority, which said in a statement: “The authority has a long-standing history of working with graziers across the national park and these grazing schemes play an important role in nature recovery.

“Through these schemes, the authority supports the connection between landowners who offer land for grazing opportunities and those who wish to use the land for grazing animals.

“The authority facilitates the initial arrangement, but the welfare of the grazing animals is the responsibility of their owner.

“In the case of Wern Common, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the authority secured the agreement for the grazing during the summer months and as part of this initial arrangement, requested that the animals be moved prior to winter, to ensure their welfare on land that was not suitable for winter grazing.

“The ponies were not moved from the land prior to winter, as agreed, and despite repeated assurances from the owner that their removal was imminent, the ponies remained on site.

“Despite the ponies being the responsibility of the owner, on the advice of animal health professionals the authority took the decision to assist the owner to remove the ponies in the interests of public safety and the risks posed on a publicly accessible footpath.”

In line with data protection legislation, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority could not disclose the owner of the ponies.

The horses are believed to have become stuck in the swamp and starved

The BBC understands that the owner of the ponies which were removed said a vet had confirmed they were healthy, with no sign of neglect. They denied being the owner of the dead animals.

The RSPCA also confirmed its involvement in the case and confirmed that no prosecution was being brought.

According to the RSPCA: “We are so grateful to people who report suspected animal suffering to us and we would like to reassure people we will always look into and, if necessary, investigate any complaints made to us about animal welfare.”

Lluest Horse and Pony Trust called on the Welsh government to take action, and said such scenes were common.

“The government needs to take more responsibility for animal welfare and laws. Charities often pick up the slack and it’s not right,” said Ms Schuurman.

“They could be enforcing the animal welfare laws more tightly.”

The Welsh government said animal welfare enforcement was down to local councils, and it funded officials to strengthen their role.

"If anyone has any immediate concerns about the welfare of a horse or any kept animal, they should report it to the relevant local authority to investigate,” it added.