An Eltham animal-lover has been reduced to tears over the sight of horses "struggling in a bog" in Sidcup.

Pauline Smith, of Well Hall Road, Eltham, noticed three horses in a the field on Saturday, February 21 in Mckillop Way, Sidcup.

The 57-year-old is so devastated she is regularly visiting the animals, along with the RSPCA, but is concerned they could starve to death in pitiful conditions. 

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She said: "I’ve not been able to sleep because of the condition of the horses. 

"It’s appalling - I’ve never seen anything like it.

"They’re basically in a bog, they’ve got bald patches on their heads and you can see their hipbones jutting out. 

"The field they’re in has been so flooded it’s turned into a bog and they’re struggling."

"The skin’s just hanging off them."

Miss Smith believes the owner has given up on the horses.

She said: "There’s no lock on the gate so you can just wander in - I did that to feed them and they were so friendly but obviously starving.

"It really upset me and I haven’t been able to sleep the last few nights.

"I went in to give them a bit of food and they were so grateful."

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She told News Shopper in tears: "I phoned RSPCA several times to inform of the situation, they’ve been down here and have put a notice up for the owners saying ‘feed these animals’.

"One of them had bleeding around its gums and it looked like it had just been worked."

The horses have bald patches in various places, including their lower legs, commonly a sign of poor nutrition.

An RSPCA spokeswoman said: "While the environment is not ideal they are all in reasonable condition and we are satisfied they are being fed. 

"There is flooding but there is enough dry land for them to escape to if they choose to as well as natural and man-made shelter. 

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"We - and other equine charities - are checking on them very regularly and we are planning to check on them again today.

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"The RSPCA has no more legal power than a member of the public and cannot remove an animal without the permission or the owner or the support of a vet or a police officer." 

The spokeswoman said the country is currently in the grip of a "horse crisis", with the RSPCA and other horse welfare charities struggling to cope with the numbers of abandoned, neglected and abused horses.