A gang of teenage hoodies fed a Shetland pony a dope-laced cigarette and wanted to jump on the back and ride another.
The gang of girls and boys were seen messing around in a field behind Arthur Street in Golcar used by Golcar Horse Rescue.
The field has 14 horses and six Shetland ponies including elderly Shetland Samson, who is 35 years old.
A neighbour saw the gang give one of the ponies a drug-filled roll-up while another of the gang said: “Let’s try and get on the small one.”
The horses are looked after by former competition rider Debra Hall, who has kept horses there for 18 years.
Debra said the damage the teenagers could have done was “unthinkable” and added: “Samson is 35 and one of the other ponies is not a year old. If they had ridden either of them they could have done serious damage.”
As it was a neighbour saw and heard what was going on and chased the gang off.
Debra said she was so angry and she wanted to spread awareness. CCTV is being put up around the field as a deterrent.
Debra posted on Facebook: “Please can people around the horse fields at Golcar watch out for a group of idiots trying to ride the tiny Shetlands and feeding them dope please? They were teenagers, both male and female and most with hoods on.
“They were shouted at and ran but they are old enough to know better. I am so mad about this as the damage they could have done is unthinkable. If you are one of those idiots reading this I hope you can run if I find you!”
Debra said a few years ago she had problems with drug users leaving wrappers and needles in the shelter.
Debra also wanted to warn neighbours around the fields not to dump grass cuttings in the field.
“The small pieces can be deadly to horses,” she said. “When they see the grass they are like kids in a sweet shop and they swallow it down and it can become impacted in the gut and cause colic and death. It can happen so quickly.”
