ONE horse had to be put to sleep and another needed more than three hours of life-saving surgery following an incident while out on a ride in Thingwall. 

Two teenage girls were out on a horse ride on Barnston Road, near the Bassett Hound pub on Saturday afternoon, when one of their horses became spooked.

The affected horse reportedly bolted into a post. The horse sadly later died as a result of its injuries.

During the incident, one of the girls moved her horse in the middle of the road, in an attempt to control the spooked horse which in turn has frightened her horse.

It was reported that she signalled to traffic approaching her to stop, but a silver Volkswagen car allegedly sped past, causing her horse to bolt, causing her 16-year-old rider, Megan Ashton, to be thrown off and the horse to sustain critical injuries. 

The two girls suffered minor injuries. 

Megan's horse Leo had an emergency operation and more than 100 stitches (see pictures of Leo in recovery, below). 

Wirral Globe:

Wirral Globe:

Sadly, the other horse involved, Rio, which had been ridden by Meg's friend, had to be put to sleep.

Merseyside Police are investigating the incident and have launched an appeal to find the vehicle's driver.

Meg's mum Melanie told the Globe: "I thank God alone that both my daughter and her friend are not dead but I will not stop until someone is held responsible for this avoidable accident.

"The vet treated our two horses at the scene, to the best of her ability, additionally in an emergency situation.

"I have a heart-broken daughter and I have just watched an innocent horse be put to sleep."

Melanie continued: "Thank you Hatty from Lehurst for saving Leo, we have had him since he was four, he will be 12 in March and very much a part of our family.

"I am so proud of my daughter Meg, so proud.

"To come off your horse on the main road watching them both bolt off one with a rider still mounted must of been petrifying.

"To then deal with all of the above at 16 years of age and hold it together (for the most part anyway) Just really proud.

“Well done Megs Leo is a lucky boy having you as his owner"

Appealing for witnesses to come forward, inspector Stuart McIver said: "This was a tragic incident involving the death of one horse and the serious injury of another.

"We are keen to speak with anyone who was in the Barnston Road area on Saturday who may have witnessed the incident and could have useful phone, dashcam footage or private CCTV. 

"We are particularly keen to speak with the driver of a silver Volkswagen who is reported to have passed the girls.

"I would like to remind all motorists to be careful around horse riders, particularly when overtaking.

"As it states in the Highway Code, you should always pass horses wide and slowly, look out for riders’ signals, heed riders' requests to slow down or stop and treat all horses as a potential hazard.

"Observing these rules at all times will make our roads safer for everyone and prevent avoidable accidents."

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Merseyside Police via DM on Twitter @MerPolCC, ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ on Facebook or call 101 with reference number 21000033484. 

You can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information