Multiple agencies have been involved in an operation to reduce the number of ponies living on Gelligaer and Merthyr Common in South Wales in an effort to help improve welfare in the herd and ease the burden on the land.
It is believed there are around 250 semi-feral ponies living on the common, most of which are unowned, and the project is reported to be having a positive effect, with Redwings receiving fewer welfare reports over the winter.
“This winter, since the removal of these ponies, we have noticed a decline in the number of welfare reports to the charities,” confirmed the charity’s head of welfare and behaviour, Nic de Brauwere MRCVS.
“Reports we do receive are about individual cases, as opposed to large numbers of the population, which is what we had experienced in the past, in the 20 years that Redwings has been working on the commons in South Wales alongside our partners.
“This project sees us embrace the challenges in a much more structured way to achieve long-term change.”
Unchecked breeding
Last November, more than 40 staff from RSPCA, Redwings, World Horse Welfare, The Donkey Sanctuary, British Horse Society, Blue Cross, HorseWorld and Bransby Horses worked in partnership with the Gelligaer and Merthyr Commoners’ Association to remove 30 ponies from the common into the care of equine charities.
“Commons like Gelligaer are put under increasing pressure each year due to the unchecked breeding of abandoned horses and ponies, and the sheer numbers in the herds, who are competing for resources alongside other livestock,” said Claire Gordon, chief field officer at World Horse Welfare.
“Our collaborative approach to deliver an innovative sustainable solution has the potential to not only help the horses that currently live on the common but also aims to secure the welfare of future generations too.”
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‘Secure the welfare of future generations’
The ponies who were removed last year have all since been offered homes at the charities with the hope that they can be rehomed.
It is believed that the welfare of the remaining ponies living in herds on the common will improve due to numbers being more sustainable for the land.
“This operation forms part of a wider strategic project, working alongside Redwings, World Horse Welfare and the Commoners Association, on a long-term herd management plan that can be overseen and implemented locally, and aims to reduce the numbers of ponies to a sustainable level in a way that supports good equine welfare,” said Roxane Kirton MRCVS, RSPCA head vet (equine).
“This will include cataloguing all the residents and removing those ponies who have a high chance of a good life in a private home.”
Lemon’s new life
November’s two-day operation followed a similar mission in autumn 2023, which saw 66 ponies removed from the common.
Many have since been rehomed, including Blue Cross Lemon, who arrived with a significant parasite infestation.
Lemon was started on a worming protocol and began clicker training to familiarise her with people so that they could groom her and treat the lice.
Following further handling training she has been rehomed as a companion to two mares.
