A LIVERY yard owner from the Borders has admitted causing suffering to a horse.

The 19-year-old stallion was spotted by passers-by near the village of Gordon last year.

A wound to its leg had become infected and was causing the animal distress.

Cruelty officers seized the animal and it required around £5,000 of veterinary care.

This week at Jedburgh Sheriff Court, 31-year-old Ricky Martin pled guilty to not getting adequate treatment for the severe leg injury of the horse which was in his care.

The offence which happened at his yard near Gordon between September 14 and 20 last year.

Jedburgh Sheriff Court told that the Scottish SPCA was anonymously alerted about a horse, called Silver, who appeared to be suffering from an injury and was in a field at Martin's premises.

Procurator fiscal Graham Fraser told the court: "Even from the road it was obvious to the officers that the horse was suffering from an injury and there was some material coming from the wound over the bandage on the rear hind leg."

He said the horse should have received proper veterinary treatment due to the seriousness of the injury and that maggots had infiltrated the wound.

Mr Fraser said after the Scottish SPCA intervention the horse was removed to the Dick Vet at Roslin.

And the cost to the SSPCA in the treatment was £5,000, which had to be met from their own resources.

The fiscal said the good news was that the horse had made a complete recovery.

Defence lawyer Ross Dow explained to the court that his client was overworked at the time of the offence.

He said: "He has taken this prosecution very seriously indeed.

"At the time he had taken too much on.

"At the time when the error was made he had 25 horses and had his own health issues to contend with."

Sentence was deferred until January 11 to await a detailed report from the Scottish SPCA.