A horse rescue centre is bracing itself for an unprecedented influx of animals in 2009 as the recession deepens.

Canterbury Horse Rescue in Shottenden Road, Badlesmere, is already struggling to cope with the number of unwanted horses and ponies.

Now yard manager Stella King fears the problem is only going to get worse.

“We are completely full and have a waiting list,” said Mrs King. “My phone hasn’t stopped ringing, it has been that bad.

“Financially people are mortgaged up to the hilt or they are being made redundant. What comes first – the horse or the home?”

Some owners are going to extreme lengths in an attempt to find homes for horses they can no longer afford to keep.

Horses have been left tied up outside the yard gate. On a couple of occasions people have actually cut through the fence and abandoned their animals in the charity’s fields.

The charity is also suffering from a drop in donations.

•For full story see this week’s Faversham News, out on Wednesday