Warning: This article contains images that some people may find disturbing.
In the expansive area of the Letea Forest in the Danube Delta by the Romanian Black Sea coast, an injured animal stumbled around for weeks until it was finally discovered. But thanks to the careful work of several animal carers, it was rescued from its plight. Ovidiu Rosu, a vet and member of the animal protection organisation «Four Paws» took on the task.
That task involved saving a wild horse, specifically a mare, who was suffering with an iron chain wrapped around her head and eyes. To make matters worse, it had even become embedded in her flesh. On top of this, the vets found the mare in a very undernourished and weakened condition.
The horse was sedated so the rescuers could safely remove the chain. It took quite a while to free it from her head.
Ovidiu said, «It’s difficult to say how the chain got there. It was probably round the horse’s neck initially. Thank God we could remove it and clean the wounds so that now, no more infections should occur.»
But even after the rescue, Ovidiu monitored the mare’s recovery. «We observed her for a few days and were relieved that she was recovering well. It is obvious that, without the chain, she is enjoying her life again,» he commented.
In the following video (in Romanian) you can see more of the mare’s rescue and treatment:
The Letea Forest is home to a large wild horse population that resulted from the collapse of the collective farming system after the Romanian Revolution in 1989. Many horses were set free or brought to the Danube Delta region, which led to a lot of the animals living wild and reproducing at an increasing rate. Today there are roughly 10,000 of them.
But thanks to the work of animal lovers like Ovidiu, even the ownerless animals of the Letea Forest have some selfless guardian angels watching out for them.
