A woman has been banned from keeping horses after Facebook users spotted pictures of her riding a skeletal ex-racehorse online.

Charlotte McPherson, who took a selfie with the malnourished animal, was reported to the RSPCA after horse-lovers spotted images of her on the animal at a public event in March.

WARNING: Some readers might find images below distressing

She had covered the horse's hindquarters with an exercise sheet, designed to keep the horse warm, but it also prevented event organisers from seeing the horse's protruding bones.

But after official photographs of the event were released on Facebook, dozens of people reported her to animal charities.