Pit Ponies

I recently came across the website for Fforest Uchaf Horse and Pony Sanctuary - The Pit Pony Sanctuary. I was surprised to see that they still had several former pit ponies living at the sanctuary.    I remember learning about Pit Ponies when I visited Big Pit, National Coal Museum,many years ago and I recall seeing the stables underground and being shocked that  horses had worked underground.  Worse still, many pit ponies lived, worked and slept all their lives in the mines. There were stables underground for them, as I saw at Big Pit, National Coal Museum . Most never saw any daylight unless they became ill and had to be taken out of the mine to get better.

As you would imagine, the use of ponies in the mines began in the 19th Century and expanded rapidly after a parliamentary act in 1842 banning women and children from working down the mines.  The RSPCA calculated that there were around 200,000 pit ponies working in 1878.

In Britain, the first legislation governing the welfare of Pit Ponies was passed in 1887 followed by a Royal Commission in 1911 which took evidence about the working conditions of pit ponies resulting in further legislation which made protective head gear compulsory for the ponies.

By the nineteen thirties and forties, the number of pit ponies was in major decline as mechanisation took over and the last pieces of legislation, in respect of the welfare of pit ponies was passed in 1949 and 1956.  These regulated the number of hours a pony was allowed to work amongst other things.  By 1952, there were only 15,000 pit ponies left.

There seems to be a great deal of debate on whether these animals were badly treated or well cared for.  Some people arguing their conditions were significantly better than the men they worked beside.  However, what seems clear is that it was a hard and difficult life, no matter how well they were treated in some respects.  Whilst it is a myth that they lost their sight through being underground, it did take a day or more for the eyes to become re-accustomed to daylight when they returned above ground and many were blinded through injury.  Horses were forced to carry their head low because of the height of the tunnels which often caused back problems.  Many horses were killed in explosions or when tunnels collapsed, serious injuries such as broken legs resulting in horses having to be put down were common and many horses continued to work until they died. In addition to that, the horses natural flight instinct if allowed free rein would almost definitely result in its death underground.  Those that returned to the surface in retirement, like their human companions, often suffered breathing difficulties as a result of the coal dust in their lungs.

However, what shocked me the most was to discover that not only were pit ponies still working in my lifetime but that the last two pit ponies only retired in 1999. And within an hours drive of my home, I would never have imagined that animals were expected to work in these conditions little more than ten years ago.


To learn more you can read "Harnessed: colliery horses in Wales" by Author: Ceri Thompson