Teacher sacked for kicking a horse

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer

Primary school teacher sacked after being caught on film kicking horse​

Footage of Sarah Moulds shared online by Hertfordshire Hunt Saboteurs viewed by millions in November

00:28
Huntswoman filmed appearing to kick and punch a horse – video

Léonie Chao-Fong
Mon 20 Dec 2021 23.05 GMT



A primary school teacher has been sacked after footage of a horse being kicked and slapped sparked outrage on social media.
Sarah Moulds, 37, was initially suspended from her position after the video showed a horse being kicked in the torso, slapped repeatedly in the face and dragged back to a trailer.

The footage was shared online in November by the anti-hunt group Hertfordshire Hunt Saboteurs, who said it filmed the incident while observing the Cottesmore Hunt, based in Rutland, east Midlands.
The clip, which has been viewed millions of times, sparked anger and Moulds was suspended by the Mowbray education trust, which represents seven schools in the Melton Mowbray area.
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The trust has now said she has been dismissed. In a statement, Paul Maddox, the chief operating officer, said: “I can confirm that Sarah Moulds’ employment with the trust has been terminated.
“As a trust, we are committed to ensuring the best standard of education for all of our young people and we look forward to continuing this throughout the 2021/22 academic year and beyond,” the statement continued.
Moulds was also removed from her volunteer leadership position at the Pony Club, which organises horse rides for children.
Her uncle, David Kirkham, said Moulds was a “fantastic person who absolutely loves her horses”.
He added: “I’ve seen the video but we don’t know what the horse had been doing and if it was out of control. But we know it ran out on to the road and she told it off. There was no malice intended.”
In a statement at the time, the Pony Club said: “The welfare of horses and ponies is of the utmost importance to the Pony Club, therefore the lady in question has been removed from her voluntary position as a team organiser for a branch.”
The Hertfordshire Hunt Saboteurs called the footage “shocking”, while the RSPCA described it as “upsetting”. Moulds is being investigated by the RSPCA and the Hunting Office, the governing body which oversees hunting, and Leicestershire police confirmed it would assist the RSPCA with its inquiries.
In response to the video, the Hunting Office said it “expects the highest level of animal welfare at all times – both on and off the hunting field – and condemns the actions taken by this individual, who is not a member of the hunting associations”.
The Cottesmore Hunt said it did not condone the actions shown “under any circumstances”.

just read this on facebook, I could not believe the bile in the comments after the article. And, the article did not say if she was sacked, but how can you terminate someone's employment after a video, I appreciate, if you have a conviction for animal abuse etc there would be grounds for dismissal from certain jobs, but innocent until proven guilty and all that. Our country seems to be completely screwed.
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
I saw that. Yes, it looked like she was having a tantrum. BUT, the horse was being a tit when they tried to load it and appeared to have broken free and was running loose. When they caught it, he had a square up and loaded perfectly afterwards. A firm slap would have done, but if they'd have videoed (& edited) that then it would have been portrayed as similar.

For everyone to have hung her out to dry straight away is shocking IMO.
 
Last edited:

smcapstick

Member
Location
Kirkby Lonsdale
A 60 kilo woman trying to control a 600 kilo horse with no weapons is hardly comparable with a neo nazi?

Of course not.

…but the comment I replied to implied actions outside of work should not influence and individual’s employment. I disagree.

I don’t think for a second this woman should have been sacked. I bet it’s less hassle for the school to sack her than it would be to deal with the hassle from lefty parents, hunt sabs, the Twitterati etc. having a go at them for keeping her on.
 

Ffermer Bach

Member
Livestock Farmer
I was really shocked by how venomous the comments were on facebook, and that they talked about people who enjoy killing animals, I thought hunting with dogs was banned, and hunts were now drag hunting. Personally I have nothing against hunting with dogs, but then I really dislike the whole compassionate conservation thing, likewise I can see nothing wrong with trophy hunting or importing the trophies either.
 

melted welly

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
DD9.
It’s a tricky one, would she of attracted so much attention and been sacked if she’d been……..

An Insulate Britain protestor?
A mayday rioter?
An animal rights fanatic threatening farming families?
Thrown eggs at politicians?
Been filmed fishing?
Emptying a mouse trap?
Putting down salt to keep snails off her garden?
Shooting rabbits?
Slapping and kicking a human man who wouldn’t bloody listen?

Trial by social media resulting in loss of her job isn’t right, it’s weak.
 

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