Hervey Bay charity seeks support after stray dogs traumatise therapy horses

A charity that provides therapeutic animal services for people with disabilities has reached out to the community for help after two of their horses were traumatised by stray dogs.

Sparkles and Bonnie. Photo credit: RDA Hervey Bay

A charity that provides therapeutic animal services for people with disabilities has reached out to the community for help after two of their horses were traumatised by stray dogs, greatly impacting their resources and the services they can provide.

Riding for the Disabled Hervey Bay launched a GoFundMe to raise money to cover the extensive vet bills and ongoing costs they have been left with after two of their beloved horses suffered injury and illness.

“Sadly, we’re facing one of the toughest times in our centre’s history,” the fundraiser read.

“In recent months, we’ve had to say goodbye to five of our beloved horses.

“Just this week, two of our remaining six horses were traumatised after hours by roaming dogs that entered our property.”

Vice president and coach Emma Pearson said Sparkles and Bonnie were both left traumatised and injured after coming into contact with stray dogs on the riding school’s property.

Sparkles was found in laying down in a paddock in a distressed state by their team, and the vet thinks she may have suffered a fractured pelvis.

Ms Pearson said she was a very protective animal and believes she was likely injured trying to protect either herself or another horse in the paddock from stray dogs by kicking in a panic and falling on her hindquarters.

Sparkles was a stock horse who took on some of the most physically disabled riders.

Sparkles was found in laying down in a paddock in a distressed state by their team, and the vet thinks she may have suffered a fractured pelvis. Photo credit: RDA Hervey Bay

“She is just an incredible horse that adapts to her riders, no matter what level of ability they have,” Ms Pearson said.

Sparkles loved competing, had gone to state championship and was the stable’s go-to horse for dressage tests.

“To find another horse like her, that is so adaptable and has so much education but isn’t too hot or too forward, it’s really, really hard.”

Their beloved shetland pony, Bonnie, was the smallest of the herd and had not been acting like herself for several weeks, which resulted in her being hospitalised with stress-induced colic.

According to Ms Pearson, they believe the painful condition was caused by the stress of coming into contact with roaming dogs.

“Previously when dogs have been roaming the property at night, we have had horses develop stress-induced colic and we’ve been able to rule out other causes of the colic,” she said.

She said Bonnie is about nine hands tall, which is around the same size as some of the stray dogs they have seen.

Ms Pearson said Bonnie played a key role in training and had been a shoulder to lean on for people who were struggling emotionally.

“She is one of the horses that people go to when they are having a hard time,” she said.

“And she just absolutely takes that on and is so affectionate and loving.”

Bonnie, the shetland pony, suffered from stress-induced colic after coming into contact with stray dogs. Photo credit: RDA Hervey Bay

“Just to see such a sweet loveable pony in so much pain and not wanting to move, completely shut down, it’s just heartbreaking.”

Ultimately, Bonnie’s owners have made the choice to retire her from the program so she can recuperate in her own time and they can enjoy her company more.

This is not the first time the organisation has had horses diagnosed with stress-induced colic after they were spooked by dogs.

In the past year they have lost two other horses who were affected by the illness and it was believed both of their conditions were exacerbated by the stress of coming into contact with stray dogs.

The organisation has had an issue with dogs entering their property for years, however they have noticed an increase in the number of dogs and the amount of time they spend on the property.

“Having dogs roaming the property is something we’ve dealt with over the last few years, on and off,” Ms Pearson said.

“Usually we can resolve the issue quite quickly by putting a call out on social media and asking people to lock up their dogs.

“But recently we have had a lot of dog prints in our arenas and our paddocks. We’ve had droppings and we’ve seen large dogs.”

They often find carcasses or remains of kangaroo, sheep and other livestock animals scattered around the grounds, which appear to have been left by dogs.

This can be a traumatic experience for the staff and the clients, some of which are as young as four-years-old.

The Fraser Coast Regional Council Rangers have been out at the Riding for the Disabled Hervey Bay grounds on Monday, April 28 2025, with one of their coaches, Nadia, to set traps to hopefully catch the dogs that have been terrorising their RDA horses. Photo credit: RDA Hervey Bay

The organisation is working with the council to try and trap the dogs.

As well as the GoFundMe, the organisation will also be fundraising through sausage sizzles, the first of which will be held on Saturday, May 3 at Howard Rural Supplies and Stockfeeds.

The charity currently has 30 active participants but they have an extensive waiting list, with some people waiting years for an open slot.

Unfortunately, they have not been able to increase the number of lessons they offer because they have not had the money to purchase new horses.

Ms Pearson said trying to figure out how to pay all their bills, replace the horses they have lost, brainstorm how to keep the centre open and operating, and figure how to get rid of the dogs had been really hard on the team.

But the outpouring of support they have received from the community has been getting them through the difficult time.

“It’s taking a toll on our team but we are determined to really try because we know how important the work we do is,” she said.

“To see these amazing horses that do so much and touch the lives of so many in our community, not just our riders but our volunteers, our coaches, everybody.

“It’s just heartbreaking and they just deserve better than to be scared and injured or sick because of dogs on the property.”