Bransby Horses are the happy recipients of a £25,000 grant from the Petplan Charitable Trust to put towards major equine facility improvements following a challenging year for all charitable organisations.
Founded in 1994, the Petplan Charitable Trust (PCCT) has a simple mission to promote the health and welfare of animals in the UK and beyond. Funding comes from the generosity of pet owners who opt to give a small donation to the Trust when they renew their pet insurance policy with them.
Recognising the difficult 18 months Bransby Horses has been through following extensive flooding of their land in November 2019, followed soon after by the impacts of COVID-19, Petplan delivered the exciting news to the charity today. Upon receipt of this incredible news, Bransby Horses can now look at making the much-needed improvement to their Animal Reception Centre (ARC) in early March.
Jo Snell, Bransby Horses CEO, said, “We’re thrilled to have been awarded such a generous grant from Petplan. The news came after such a tough year for everyone and it will make a massive difference to our rescue and rehabilitation work. Our teams have continued to work tirelessly to provide the best possible care to all our equines throughout the flooding and repercussions of COVID-19 and this grant has lifted everyone’s spirits at a time when it was most needed.”
The ARC is the first stage of an equine’s journey when they arrive at the charity. Newly rescued intakes are assessed by the veterinary team and treated for any immediate ailments in the ARC before a management plan is created to address the individual needs of each equine.
Due to the nature of rescue horses, they often display very challenging or unpredictable behaviour. Bransby Horses requested funding to purchase a fixed metal crush, which allows safe treatment, sedation and veterinary checks to be carried out with minimum risk to horse or person.
Acting Head of External Welfare, Rosanna Elliott Hart, described what this meant for the ARC team and equines: “We really are delighted by this news. The addition of a fixed metal crush at the ARC will mean we can work safely with our rescue equines in close proximity and provide easy access to any equine needing treatment.”
The funding will also pay for the purchase of a compact tractor, which is a vital resource that will allow teams to transport tools and equipment to maintain the ARC paddocks, deliver feed and forage effectively, and carry out essential paddock sweeping. Since flooding left half of their land under water back in November 2019, Bransby Horses have worked hard to increase their land usage to better suit their rescued equines on site, and now provide an average of 1.2 acres of grazing per horse (compared to 0.6 acres in 2019). The tractor is an essential piece of equipment to maintain this grazing ratio.
Head of Equine Care and Training, Rosie Mogford, said “The purchase of a compact tractor will make the essential work we do to look after our rescues so much easier. It will allow us to work more efficiently, directly benefiting our horses, ponies, donkeys and mules, so we can’t thank Petplan enough for this grant.”
To find out more about PCCT and the work they do, visit their website at https://petplancharitabletrust.org.uk/ and find them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PetplanCharitableTrust/
