Winning racehorse left to die
SILVER Fun was once a star on the racetrack, but chronic neglect left the 11-year-old gelding teetering on the edge of death.
RSPCA officers seized the emaciated former champion, who bagged more than $88,000 in winnings, from a Mt Molloy property.
RSPCA regional inspector Cameron Buswell told The Cairns Post that Silver Fun's downward spiral happened over six months and it would take that long again to restore his heath.
"After his career ended in 2007, he had someone look after him well, but unfortunately the people that took him on next didn't treat him well," he said.
"When we discovered him, he was basically emaciated and at a suburban block that did not have a proper area for a horse.
"They normally graze for 22 hours a day and if they don't have access to grazing, then they are totally reliant on hard feed.
"He did go through periods where they were supplying hard feed but it was not regular and it was not sufficient."
The RSPCA was contacted by a concerned Mt Molloy resident and on the organisation's scale of neglect of 0-5, five being obese and being "skin and bone", Silver Fun was rated a 1.
Mr Buswell said if Silver Fun had lost any more condition and was not rescued, then there was a strong possibility he would have died.
"I think he has a big heart and is a battler but he would have felt a lot of hunger and he would have been in a lot of pain," he said.
"The body starts eating the muscles and major organs just to survive."
The extent of the neglect has created a raft of health problems and issues for Silver Fun, with colic being a major risk, but he is expected to make a full recovery.
"It is going to be a slow process to get him back to a suitable conditions," Mr Buswell said.
"We will have to slowly introduce him to different types of food."
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Road to recovery: Life for Silver Fun has gone from winning form at Warwick Farm racecourse to being rescued from neglect on a Mt Molloy property.
In racing prime: Silver Fun (right) winning with top jockey Chris Munce in the saddle at Warwick Farm in 2005.
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