The number of horses being abandoned is growing to “crisis” levels as costs to keep them skyrockets, animal charities have warned.

Roleystone horse sanctuary in Westfield Lane, Wrose, has had a record number of enquires from cash-strapped horse owners unable to afford grazing and stabling costs during the tough economic climate.

Dianne French, chairman of the charity’s trustees, said the number of horses needing homes was fast becoming a “crisis.”

She said: “There are a lot of cash-strapped people about and we have had an awful lot of people this year calling us to ask for us to help them out.

“The price of horses is what it was 30 years ago and you can’t make any money by buying and selling them at the moment, but it is costing too much to keep them.”

She said horses were being sold for anything between £120 and £200, with foals costing as little as £10. However, she said rising costs for stabling and grazing meant it was now more expensive to keep a horse for a month than to buy one.

She said: “We are hearing reports from people who go around the sales and, if a horse hasn’t been sold, they just leave them or give them to the meat wagon.”

Cruel horse-owners who can no longer keep their animals are neglecting them or leaving them to starve, the RSPCA has said.

Equine rehoming officer Sally Learoyd said the number of calls it receives about abandoned horses, ponies and donkeys has risen year-on-year for the past three years.

To report abandoned or neglected horses, ponies or donkeys, contact Police Horsewatch on 0845 6060606 or the RSPCA on 0300 1234999 info@rspca-bradford.org.uk or horses@bradford.gov.uk.

Read more on this story in today's T&A