Ash Rescue Centre have had a tough week when four ponies went missing last week.

On Thursday of last week, four elderly Dartmoor ponies went missing from their field at Fletcher’s Combe in Harbertonford.

Ash Rescue Centre who rescued the four elderly ponies in January after finding them starving on the moor said they were very eager to find them as soon as possible.

The ponies went missing from Fletcher’s Combe, Harbertonford the previous night.

A spokesman from the rescue centre said in the morning the gate to the field was open and the latch was further into the field making it look like someone had driven into the gate.

The four ponies were missing from the field which led to the rescue centre sending out a search party around the local roads and informing the local farmers.

“All the ponies are elderly and usually stick together so we don’t imagine they could be very far away” added the spokesman.

She said the day before the ponies went missing some males had been spotted around the field acting suspiciously which was reported to the police. Fortunately the ponies were found in a field quite far away at a farm at Curtisknowle where they spent the next three days with the consent of the farmer while the rescue centre awaited transport.

However, on bank holiday Monday, the rescue centre got a call to say two of the ponies had escaped and covered a huge distance. They were found in someone’s yard.

The rescue centre then thought the drama was over before the ponies ran into the village of Harbertonford where fortunately some lovely villagers rounded them through the gardens and into the church grave yard.

Volunteers tried to catch the ponies but when this didn’t work, Ruth from South Moor vets came over to help. She put sedative in the ponies food but this was also unsuccessful.

The only solution was a dart gun tranquilliser. So, Andrew Goatman picked up the gun from Paignton Zoo and a few hours later there were heavily sedated ponies in the lorry heading back to their field.

Ash Rescue Centre said: “We really wanted to thank Ruth from South Moor Vets, Dave Dormer transporters, Andrew Goatman, the Church House Inn in Harbertonford and all the lovely villages who kept an eye on them and helped so much to get them back.”

The ponies are now back happily grazing.