The two horses which were stolen from Codrington Riding Stables, Waterford, St Michael between Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning have been found alive.
But owner Patrick Croney is reporting that the animals have suffered cuts and bruises and he is ready to press charges to ensure the thieves feel the full brunt of the law once they are caught.
He said when he found the animals hidden in a bushy area between Bank Hall and Strathclyde after 7 p.m. on Wednesday they were dehydrated, hungry and visibly shaken by the ordeal. According to him, the alleged thieves were seen running away from the area where the horses were found.
“This is cruelty to animals and persons that do these things to animals should be punished with the full force of the law. These are dumb animals and when you can take them and treat them like this you have no regard for their feelings and it is a sad thing.
“I could have felt it for the horses because when I got to learn that they had them stash out in the bush, there is a call I normally give my horses when I am feeding them so I made that call and I could hear the desperation in the cries.
“It was a cry to come and get me. They were dehydrated, ridden, and put up wet with no water, no feed, nothing, just tied out. I believe the law needs to punish these persons to the fullest so that they would learn,” Croney said.
He told Barbados TODAY that while he was happy that nine-year-old Kangaroojack and four-year-old Cupcakes were back in his care, he is hurt that they have been through such a horrific experience.
“I had to make sure I gave them some feed and water so they could try to revive themselves. They were very frustrated and for me it was crazy but I am glad to see them home. Kangaroojack is very sore like they run them through a lot of rocks and so on, so much so that he lost one of his shoes and now I have to call the blacksmith to put some shoes on him,” he said.
The owner thanked members of the public for responding to the poster on social media asking for urgent assistance in locating the missing animals. Croney said throughout Wednesday he received calls from persons who told him that they saw the horses being ridden throughout their communities.
“I was glad to have gotten the phone call from someone who saw it on social media and I was able to track the horses. Big up to Police Constable Hinds and his team who came down and made sure that I was able to get these horses back home safely.
“It has been pretty tough for me financially trying to maintain them and I am just hoping that some business can come in so that we can continue to weather this storm because this coronavirus has knocked us for six and we are financially under stress,” he said.
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