A MUCH-LOVED family horse has died after suffering horrific injuries in an apparent attack by a stallion.

Thirty-two-year-old Rocky had to be put to sleep after being found in his field in Little Barugh near Malton with a catalogue of injuries, including bite and kick marks and a broken leg.

His owner Lesley Salisbury said Rocky was killed by a stallion which had broken through two fences to get into the field. She was called after Rocky was put down due to the extent of his injuries.

“There was my old boy lying in the field, dead. I have never seen injuries like it,” said Ms Salisbury.

“The people who raised the alarm said the stallion had his face in his mouth and was ragging him like a wolf rags prey.

“The last few minutes of his life were pain and distress. I had him 22 years and he was not going to be with us much longer. I did not expect his end to be like this.

“Rocky was a gentleman, there was not an ounce of malice in him. He was a gem of a horse, to think his last moments were in pain and distress is destroying me.”

She said her other younger horse also had bite marks on him.

Lesley, a custody nurse who works with North Yorkshire Police, said she had discussed the matter with the police, but understood there was no legislation to cover the incident.

She said: “If it had been a dangerous dog that had killed another dog they could do something but with a horse, there’s nothing that covers it.

“I feel angry. It could have been a child on a pony.

“I think it’s something that needs to be looked at.”

It is understood the stallion, which was on the land at Little Barugh to breed, has now returned to its farm in the Pickering area.

Reg Bond, of Norton Grove Stud Farm, near Malton, said he had never heard of such an incident happening before.

He said: “Stallions need a lot of strength. They are built up and they are very, very vicious at times. If he has got in from two fields away he is thinking he is the boss. He will be very, very strong. You have to be very careful with stallions.”

Lesley said she wanted to thank people who had sent her messages of support.