Fly-grazing is a problem which has been left without an answer for too long. There are currently around 3500 horses in Britain who have been abandoned on other people’s land – including school playing fields and unfenced areas near main roads without permission.

Why is this a problem? Because fly-grazing leaves hundreds of horses without adequate care. It leads to horses suffering from neglect, breeding and dying on other people’s land. The presence of unmanaged horses on open fields near roads can cause terrible road accidents, and neglecting horses in this way has led to many grave injuries. Imagine also the problems incurred by the landowners. Often these landowners know nothing about horses, and then one day wake up to find them grazing, or worse, lying limp and injured on the ground.

Why is this happening? Because it is easy to get away with. Equine charities have been finding increasing numbers of horses being fly grazed without any way of tracing the owner, and the person guilty for this mishandling remains unpunished.

Why is it so easy? Because there is no legislation currently in place in England which makes it easy to take care of the horses left in those conditions. Charities can only do something if there is a serious welfare problem affirmed by a vet, as taking a horse otherwise constitutes theft.

The Animal Welfare Act 2006 provides inadequate protection for the horses who are put in these situations. A report by the RSPCA deems the Act insufficient to counter fly-grazing because it was not designed for mass breaches of law which are taking place, and because it does not protect horses who are just being grazed illegally (and are otherwise well). Issuing ASBOs (Anti-Social Behaviour Order), another measure technically in place, does not resolve the issue either since often the legal owners of the horses cannot be traced.

What then can be done? This January, the Welsh Assembly has adopted the Control of Horses Act, which gives Welsh local authorities the power to immediately seize and impound horses when they are on land without legal consent. The horses can then be returned to their owners (if those step forward, can prove their ownership and pay costs), or sold or rehomed. As a result, local authorities are able to tackle the problem of fly-grazing efficiently, and can help all the horses left to fend for themselves.

When this debate came up in the House of Commons in November 2013, proposals to put forward a similar bill in England were countered with arguments that the Control of Horses Act does not solve the problem – the irresponsible breeding and treatment of horses, that is. It was also suggested that improving and increasing micro-chipping practices and equine passports, perhaps with the creation of a central database, would be more helpful in making it easier to trace the owner. To an extent, this is true, but it must be remembered that it is not objects we are talking about here, but live animals left to suffer. True, the Control of Horses Act doesn’t solve the root of the problem, but it provides local authorities with an effective way of helping the poor horses and preventing them from suffering further neglect. It is a simple change of legislation, and it will help so many equines around the country.

If you think something should be done to help those horses being fly-grazed, please sign my petition. Let’s ensure that horses are adequately protected in England!