A Llandillo woman has been fined $700 and ordered to pay $2415.31 in costs after she pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty.
An RSPCA inspector attended a Barnes Road property in July last year in response to reports of a grey pony who had got her leg caught in fencing.
There was no one at the property and the inspector found the pony in a paddock at the rear of the property.
After removing the pony’s two rugs, it became evident the animal was emaciated, with the pony’s ribs, spine and pelvis all clearly visible and quite prominent.
The pony was taken to the University of Sydney’s Teaching Hospital at Cobbitty, where a specialist vet said the mare’s poor condition was most likely due to a combination of worms and poor dental care, leading to reduced nutrient intake, and that the animal would have been in this condition for at least eight weeks.
The pony’s condition worsened while in care and had to be euthanased.
The pony’s owner Amanda Barton said the pony was in poor condition because it was retired and no longer was ridden.
She admitted the animal had not been checked by a vet for at least three-and-a-half years, agreed it was underweight, and said that she did not expect the animal to survive winter.
Ms Barton also said it had been six months since the pony had been wormed.
She pleaded guilty and was convicted when the case was heard in Mount Druitt Court last week.
