10 year ban for owner who allowed pony to suffer in excruciating pain

A 61 year old man from Aberdeenshire has been banned from keeping horses and ponies for 10 years and fined £500 for failing to provide appropriate care to a Shetland pony which had to be put down.

Thomas Totten of Woodton of Auchry, Garmond near Turiff, appeared before Banff Sheriff Court on Tuesday 7th July where he pleaded guilty to a contravention of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006. When sentencing Mr Totten, Sheriff Patrick Davies said he had taken a ‘serious view' of the unnecessary suffering caused to the chestnut mare called Flossie.

The case goes back to January 2009, when World Horse Welfare Field Officer Doug Howie responded to a call from a concerned member of the public who had reported seeing a Shetland pony in very poor condition. When Doug visited the premises in Garmond he was shocked at what he found:

"When I first saw Flossie, I could not believe that anyone had allowed her to suffer in this way," said Doug.