The Trafficked 20 – life in our care

It’s been three weeks since we shared the devastating news about the ‘Trafficked 20’ – the group of horses on the brink of being trafficked to an unknown fate.  

We too feel the frustration and heartbreak that many others are feeling about this horrific situation and we’ve been completely overwhelmed by how our supporters have stepped up to stand alongside these abused and exploited horses. 

Eight of the horses, including a pregnant mare, a pony battling a severe skin infection, three foals, two Irish Thoroughbreds and a riding pony are in the care of our team at Hall Farm in Norfolk whose first and foremost priority is nursing these horses back to health and starting their rehabilitation journey. 

We caught up with Farm Manager Sue Hodgkins to find out about the group’s arrival and how they are getting on. 

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It’s really frustrating that one year on from the ‘Dover 26’ horses arriving, we’re seeing virtually the same thing again. It just goes to show that the ban on the live export of horses to slaughter urgently needs to be followed up with secondary legislation, as well as a fully digitalised ID and traceability system, to stop the illegal trade in horses that we are seeing. 

The eight horses from the ‘Trafficked 20’ group that have come into our care arrived late one afternoon. We started to unload them, and it soon became very clear what a mixed group of horses they were. Our main priority was to check them over thoroughly as they had been travelling in a horse box for a few hours – checking for any injuries but more importantly, for any clinical signs of disease. We unloaded each of the horses individually, and one little cob stood out as he was covered in skin lesions, open sores and wounds.  

Once they’d been checked over thoroughly, it was then important for us to be able to turn them out to give them some much needed downtime in the field. We monitored them over the next few days, checking for any clinical signs that might arise and making sure they were remaining sound and comfortable in the field. 

It was then time for us to invite our specialists in to examine them in more detail so, on the Tuesday after they arrived, our vet and farrier came in.  

Our vet wanted to give the group a really thorough clinical examination, checking for any signs of disease. She wanted to check their heart rate, their rest rate and their pulse. She also wanted to take bloods and check their microchips and passports. It was important to find out whether any of these horses were already microchipped, and it was important for us to check the passports that had arrived for some of these horses against the horses that stood in front of us. 

The farrier wanted to check whether the horses were sound and to examine the condition of each of their feet. Very soon, he realised that the Connemara mare had already got front shoes on, and the two Irish Thoroughbreds had racing plates on which led us to believe that those Thoroughbreds had been in work quite recently.  

We suspected that the bay mare may be in foal so the vet decided to carry out a rectal scan just to determine whether she was and if so, how pregnant she might be. Now, unfortunately, when the vet carried out the scan, the foal was laying quite far forward and very low down, so it was difficult for her to determine how old the foal may be. But equally, our vet also struggled to get a reaction out of the foal, so we will re-scan her in a couple of weeks to determine whether the foal is still alive. 

One of the frustrations for the team here is knowing that some of the horses may have been clinically ill during the transportation process. Many were too sick and weak to travel but they had been crammed into a lorry. Some of them were showing clinical signs of strangles when our Field Officer saw them at the holding yard, so should never have been travelling in the first place or mixing with other horses. And, when you unload a little cob, who is clearly suffering from a skin condition you ask why? Where has he come from? Why has that skin condition not been picked up on? Why is that not being treated? 

The little cob called Kevin was in a miserable state. He was underweight with overgrown feet and was suffering from that severe skin condition which covered almost half of his body and he had bitten himself raw from the relentless itching, causing painful, open sores.  

When he arrived, Kevin was shut down and nervous of us all but we have been patiently working with him and treating his skin while showing him that he can trust us and we’re here to help. After careful clipping, bathing, and medications we’re pleased to see improvements in his skin, but his recovery isn’t just physical. He needs time, patience, and kindness, as all the horses do. 

Our grooms will continue to assess the horses and treat them on a daily basis, delivering any care that they need. But in the background, our investigation team back at head office are digging a little bit deeper into where these horses have come from and why they happened to end up on this particular transporter and where their final destination was meant to be. 

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The case of the Trafficked 20 is complex and our investigations are still ongoing. Thanks to your support we can not only help these horses who have suffered so much, but also campaign for policies and legislation to protect all horses. 

As ever, we will continue to keep you up to date with the progress of the Trafficked 20 and about our work to protect the welfare of all horses, ponies, foals and donkeys, regardless of their role in society. 

If you would like to help us today with a donation to the Trafficked 20 appeal, please visit our donation page. Whatever you can afford to give promises to change a life. 

Read the full news story about the Trafficked 20 which includes a video about their rescue.