A horse who was brutally beaten and kicked by two men after it collapsed from exhaustion has started a new life in Reading.

The RSPCA received reports that a horse had collapsed on the floor while pulling a cart in Somerset in April 2021.

A passing motorist reported seeing her looking "traumatised", stating that her eyes were "bulging" before she suddenly collapsed.

Describing the horrific attack, the witness said: “The men in the cart were pulling the horse from side to side very aggressively from her bridle.

“The horse’s feet were planted firmly on the floor, legs were straight, head was positioned to the sky and she looked totally exhausted.

“I watched in horror as these two men beat this poor horse. Both were pulling at the horse trying to get her to move and both were hitting the horse and were very angry with her.

"I saw the horse rear up in the air and come down on the road, collapsing onto her right-hand side. The horse stayed on the road, and didn't move. Both males started to kick the horse really hard in the body and head whilst screaming aggressively at her to get up.”

The horse, a six-year-old piebald cob named Daisy, lay "motionless and helpless" before eventually getting to her feet - swaying as she continued walking up the road.

Since the incident, the RSPCA and police launched an investigation which traced Daisy, allowing her to be rescued.

Once in the RSPCA's care she was rushed for veterinary treatment and was found to have a cut between her front legs and a deeper larger cut on the left elbow.

There were abrasions on the corner of the mouth on both sides, bruising on each side of the lower gums and a dark mark and swelling over her ribs on her right-hand side.

Daisy has since recovered and is now enjoying her new home at Checkendon Equestrian Centre near Reading.

Emily Hancock, centre manager, said: “When Daisy first arrived she was obviously still affected by what had happened. We gave her time out with other horses in a field so she could act like a horse and she made lots of friends which was heartening to see.

“In the six months we have had her she has made great progress.

“She is really enjoying life now - and is getting the horse and human contact that she probably never really experienced before.”

Sadly the RSPCA receives around 91,500 calls to its cruelty line every month and investigates 5,300 reports of deliberate animal cruelty.

Dermot Murphy, the RSPCA’s inspectorate commissioner, said: “Right now, animal cruelty is happening in England and Wales on a massive scale and rising. It is heartbreaking that we are seeing such sad figures which show animal cruelty is, very sadly, on the rise.

“Each year, these reports of cruelty reach its terrible annual peak in the summer months – when we receive a report of an animal being beaten on average every hour of every day."