Horse owner says 'lazy' dog walkers tying poo bags to fences could kill her horse
A horse owner says poo bags being tied up to fences in Gloucestershire by "lazy" dog owners could be "deadly" for her animals.
Kathryn Bell says she has seen more poo bags tied up to the fences surrounding the fields where her horses are since lockdown began.
Kathryn, who is from Brockworth, fears horses will mistake the plastic bags for treats and eat them, causing the animal to choke a horse or its insides to get clogged.
Kathryn, 41, said: "It's something you see all the time now. There's always poo bags hung on a fence or on a bush.
"The horses hear the rustling of the bag and they think its a treat.
"They associate it with you getting a carrot or a polo out of your pocket.
"Curious horses will go and investigate the bags, but the sad thing is that if they eat the plastic then it could kill them."
Kathryn, who runs her own horse clothing business, sees the bags tied up on fences around Painswick, Cranham and Brockworth fields on a regular basis.
She said: "It's definitely increased since lockdown. We've seen a lot more walkers around our field and a lot more poo bags because of it.
"To think that the people that are doing it are dog owners so you'd think they'd be animal lovers, yet they don't give a toss about the animals in the field that could ingest it.
"I don't know if its just laziness or they put it there to remind themselves to throw it away on the way back. I don't know why they do it."
The RSPCA has previously explained why throwing dog waste bags in public fields was so dangerous.
A spokesperson said: "Grazing animals such as horses, cattle and deer can choke on them or some smaller animals and birds may climb inside bags and suffocate, or become entangled in plastic can holders."
Her advice was to make sure the waste bags are securely tied before disposing of them in the bins provided.
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