Dead and sick horses found on English farm

LONDON, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- Investigators say they found 31 dead horses and donkeys and more than 100 live animals, most in bad health, on a farm in central England.

Three of the horses on Spindles Farm near Amersham in Buckinghamshire were put down after police and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals raided the farm on Wednesday, The Telegraph reported. Others were taken to sanctuaries operated by rescue organizations.

James Gray, the farm's alleged owner, has been charged with criminal damage and assaulting a police officer. He could face additional charges.

The farm came to the attention of police and the RSPCA after a woman reported seeing a dead horse, The Daily Mail reported. Investigators believe that Gray was a meat trader, buying animals extremely cheaply.

Rescuers said that the surviving animals were in miserable physical condition and wary of humans.

"Some of them just won't let anyone near them at all," said Nicola Markwell of Redwings Horse Sanctuary in Norfolk. "We have to put those through a gradual handling program and let them recover before we release them into a herd."