The family of travellers owned Spindle Farm where 32 horse carcasses were found, with some having been burnt on a bonfire.

Horses stood crammed, terrified to move, malnourished and ankle deep in faeces while carcasses of dead horses surrounded them when the RSPCA intervened in January 2008.

In total 114 horses had been subject to neglect at the hands of the family, for which the son James Gray has received an 18-month supervision order and has been banned from keeping equines for a decade.  His father, also named James Gray, is awaiting sentence.

“This case was distressing beyond measure. The smell of rotting flesh was overpowering. It’s really distressing to see dead and live horses together, quite horrific“, said RSPCA inspector, Kirsty Hampton.

In what the RSPCA are calling the worst case of animal cruelty they’ve ever encountered, the 12 week long trial appears to be allowing justice to prevail. It is due to the extreme nature of the case that the court saw fit to lift the anonymity restrictions imposed due to James Gray’s age.

Be kind and keep your horse’s stable environment in tip-top condition, with the addition of a hygiene friendly rubber stable mat. An array of options is available from www.stable-mats.com, but this one’s a firm favourite.

A quality non-porous 100% rubber surface, that’s designed to withstand heavy-duty wear and tear, and is easy to clean and install.

Suitable for stall floors, ramps and stable walkways, the ribbed surface provides additional grip for increased underfoot safety, and offers a comfortable ‘anti-fatigue’ standing surface that provides a supportive environment for horses.

The only way she can run around freely, or at least without fearing death, is by wearing protective clothing and being fed a special mixture of sugarbeet chaff and soya oil, along with 15 anti-histamine tablets a day.

Her owners paid £185 for her rug which was imported from a specialist firm in Sweden and her mask cost £50.

However her owners seem to be missing a trick.  What they should have done is installed some stable runners all around the place.  That way there would be fear of making contact with grass and from a fashion point of view, Pandora wouldn’t be the before-prince charming Cinderella of the horse world.