Fly Grazing

Carmarthenshire County Council and Dyfed Powys Police are joining forces to tackle the problem of fly grazing horses.

The county’s public protection department and the council’s executive board member for environmental and public protection are taking up a regional approach to addressing the problem effectively with Dyfed Powys Police and the neighbouring local authorities of Powys, Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion.

There has been significant activity across Wales supported by the Welsh Government to achieve a joined up approach to addressing the issues in recent months.

Over recent years there has been a significant increase in the incidence of straying horses or fly grazing as it has become known.

Since April 2012 Carmarthenshire has responded to eight incidents involving straying or abandoned horses at considerable cost to the authority.

Recent experience has shown that horses are often abandoned on public land and highways, resulting in risks to public safety and leading to considerable demand on local authority and Police resources.

It usually results in the council containing the horses for the prescribed period, providing the necessary veterinary care, as well as pass porting and micro chipping the horses, to find that the horses are often bought back by the owners at public auction for very little cost.

To avoid the horse owners buying their animals back at auction which can result in repeating the problem, the council now also approaches animal charities to rehome the horses. As of February 2012 policy has changed in that horses are not reclaimed, re-homed or are unfit have to be euthanized.

The council’s head of public protection Philip Davies said Carmarthenshire would be working more closely with the police and other councils to tackle fly grazing.

He said: “The intention is that by sharing information and working in a more coordinated way that more targeted resources will result in decreased cost to the authority and that a more effective means of combating the problem results.”

Executive board member for environmental and public protection Cllr Jim Jones said: “We will be taking a regional rather than local approach and I will be working closely with the executive board members for public protection in our neighbouring local authorities.

“It is vital that we use our combined resources effectively to resolve this issue.”