Acid attack pony Cinders named rescue animal of year

A pony badly burnt in a suspected acid attack has been named as rescue animal of the year.

Cinders was eight months old when she was found wandering in agony unable to open her eyes after being dumped in Chesterfield in 2018.

She was cared for at the Rainbow Equine Hospital in North Yorkshire and had pioneering surgery using fish skin.

Her new owner said: "She so deserves this award. She is an absolute hero and a wonderful part of our family."

Cinders was named as rescue animal of the year in the 2020 Daily Mirror Animal Hero Awards.

Her owner, who wants to remain anonymous, said: "I don't know how anyone could have done something so awful to such a trusting and gentle little creature.

"I fell in love with Cinders the moment I saw her.

"She is loving, trusting and inquisitive and has built up a special bond with two little donkeys that share a stable with her. They do everything together."

During Cinders' five-month stay at the equine hospital in Malton, she underwent an operation which involved fish skin grafts, normally used to treat animals burned in wildfires.

It involved a dressing made from the skin of a tilapia fish being applied to Cinders' face to aid the growth of fresh tissue.

A vet from California came to the UK to carry out the procedure and worked with a plastic surgeon from the burns unit at Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield.

That and her ongoing treatment was made possible after more than £17,000 was raised in donations.

Jonathan Anderson, from the equine hospital, thanked everyone who "poured their heart and soul into caring for Cinders over the course of several months and made her life worth living again".

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