Horse 'left to die' is now prize-winning show pony

Woody the rescued horse with his 13-year-old handler Orianna

A neglected horse which was abandoned and "left to die" on the side of a road in the Republic of Ireland is now a prize-winning show pony.

Woody, then a seven-year-old stallion, was in very poor health when he was found lying across a pavement in County Tipperary last year.

An eyewitness reported that the young horse collapsed from exhaustion after being used for sulky racing.

A sulky is a small horse-drawn cart traditionally used for transport and recreation, but sulky racing is illegal on public roads in Ireland.

Gardaí (Irish police) were called to help the stricken animal in Clonmel on 15 October.

Officers then contacted the County Cork branch of the animal welfare charity, My Lovely Horse Rescue.

"I said: ‘Are we going to have a live horse here?’ recalled volunteer Kelly Mellerick, who co-ordinated Woody's rescue.

"Because it didn’t look good."

Woody was found collapsed on a kerb by Gardaí (Irish police) last year

"His ribs were visible, he was very much lacking in muscle tone and he was actually dehydrated and fairly exhausted," Ms Mellerick told BBC News NI.

She explained that the malnourished horse was not fit for the amount of exertion demanded of him by sulky racers.

"The reports to the Gardaí were that the people involved had taken their trap and their harness equipment and they’d run off basically and left him there."

Woody was transported back to the charity's farm in Cork where they started a feeding programme in a bid to nurse him back to health.

"Both of his back legs were very swollen so we had to do a lot of hand walking with him to keep him supple and moving," Ms Mellerick added.

The charity photographed the underweight horse when he arrived at their farm

A new home

The charity depends on a network of foster carers to help look after and rehome abandoned horses.

During his recuperation, Woody was introduced to 13-year-old Orianna, who wanted a new pony.

"I went into the yard and saw him and I thought wow, he’s definitely the one for me," the schoolgirl told BBC News NI.

"He has the kindest eyes and just the quietest nature. He’s a wonderful pony really, and I was grooming him the whole time."

Kelsie Montague, who fosters horses for the charity, helped match Woody with his new owner and is now helping the teenager to train him.

"He’s so well behaved and him and Orianna have just clicked," Ms Montague said.

"She does everything, from mucking out stables to grooming, bathing – just generally spending her days with him."

Woody now lives in a field close to Orianna's family home in County Cork

After months of care and attention from Orianna and his handlers, the horse made a remarkable recovery.

On one of their first outings, Ms Montague said she found it difficult to keep up with Woody's new-found energy.

"He was off like a rocket, loving being out on the roads and nosing in people's gardens and everything like that. He absolutely loved it."

Last weekend, Woody and Orianna entered a pony competition at the Cork Summer Show, and the pair won second prize in their category.

Woody was the runner up in the "In Hand Rescue Pony class" for horses that have been adopted through a rescue centre in Ireland.

"I didn’t really expect to come second, especially as it was my first show and his first show and I think we were both kind of nervous about it," Orianna said.

"But I was thrilled to pieces when she gave me the rosette, I was just so surprised."

Woody posed for a photo with Kelly Mellerick, Orianna and Kelsie Montague

Woody is among hundreds of animals whose lives have been saved by the My Lovely Horse Rescue Charity.

It was founded in 2011 by sisters Martina and Deborah Kenny and their friend Cathy Davey.

The trio of animal lovers were so moved by the sight of neglected horses around Dublin, they decided they would try to help.

As well as horses, they now look after pigs, goats, cats, dogs, hedgehogs and other sick or abandoned animals across their three sites.

The name of their organisation was inspired by the TV sitcom Father Ted.

In one of its most popular episodes, Father Ted writes a song in the hope it will be chosen as Ireland's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest.

Ted's song, My Lovely Horse, was in fact composed and performed by Northern Ireland singer Neil Hannon, frontman of The Divine Comedy pop group.

Hannon is married to My Lovely Horse Rescue co-founder Cathy Davey and he is also a patron of the charity.

"He does a lot of promotional stuff for us," Ms Mellerick explained.

"Him being so famous in his own right, it attracts more people towards the charity."

Neil Hannon helps to fundraise for the My Lovely Horse Rescue charity

And now prize-winner Woody has become something of a star too, with the charity fielding calls from reporters from around the world this week.

After his Cork show success, Orianna and her mentor are teaching Woody to jump fences and say the training is going well.

"He just was an angel from the start, he just didn’t put a foot wrong," Ms Montague said.

"He’s probably been the easiest horse to retrain so far that we’ve had because he just has the kindest nature and he’s really keen to learn and to go and do stuff.

"He’s not the type of horse that wants to be sat in a field just eating grass, he wants to go out and walk around the roads."