This is just weird, not to mention sad and infuriating. An Australian vet, Jilie Tilbrook, has been accused of starving her horses, although she blames the ongoing Aussie drought for the horses’ condition. Apparently she was trying to breed for the brindle pattern using progeny of the unusual Thoroughbred stallion Catch A Bird. Although she will likely lose her vet credentials and may be facing jail time, her main worry is that the horses will be dispersed to rescue homes and the breeding program lost. Link

(Aside: what’s weird genetically is that Catch A Bird’s progeny look like true roans [scroll down–not all the horses on that page are his, btw], a gene heretofore undetected in Thoroughbreds, and some have odd coat textures…)

Catch A Bird (Noble Bijou x Showy Countess)

Update: Apparently this neglect had been going on for quite a while, with many people trying to get the authorities involved to no avail. Once people started bringing hay for them, the RSPC of Australia couldn’t get involved because now they were being fed. UNBELIEVABLE.