Siobhan and Whitney Diacono desperately want their stolen horse float returned so pony Shadow can continue his medical treatment.
By Rebecca Fraser
A NARRE Warren family fears their beloved pony will go blind after the float they used to transport him to the vet was stolen last Friday.
Christine Diacono said she felt sick to the stomach when she realised the float had been taken and pleaded with the people responsible to urgently return it.
Her teenage daughter Siobhan has owned 13-year-old Shadow for the past two years, and the animal was recently diagnosed with an abscess to the left eye.
Ms Diacono said the well-loved pony needed medication twice daily and needed to be taken to the vet every five days to avoid the loss of vision in one eye.
She said the float was on loan from a friend and was believed to be worth $3000 to $5000.
Ms Diacono said she would struggle to reimburse her friend for the loss of the float and said no questions would be asked if it was returned.
“We just want it brought back. We do not care if it comes back in the middle of the night,” she said.
“We don’t want anyone charged we just need it back.”
The pony was being agisted on the corner of Heatherton and Jacques roads in Narre Warren North, and Ms Diacona said the incident must have occurred between 7pm Thursday night and 7am on Friday, when she came to administer Shadow’s medication.
“I did not notice that it was gone to start with. The gate was open but I just thought that someone must have left it open,” she said.
“Then I noticed that they had bolt-cut the chain and the float was gone.
“It left me with a sickly feeling. Then the reality hit that we would not be able to take him to the vet.”
Ms Diacono said the family’s veterinarian was only around the corner in Narre Warren North, but she was too scared to take the horse on foot for fear it might get startled and rear up due to its present eye condition.
She said Siobhan had been devastated by the theft and was very concerned Shadow would lose his sight.
“The critical thing is that he gets to the vet as we desperately need to save his sight,” Ms Diacono said.
She said both her daughters were “horse mad”, and 15-year-old Whitney also owned a horse.
Ms Diacono said it would cost between $60 and $80 to hire a float and this would be in addition to the already costly vet bills.
“The girls wanted horses for years so I saved up and we finally got them,” she said.
“They visit and ride four to five times a week. There are not many days they miss.
“It is very upsetting. People have never had problems here before and we just want the float returned.”
