The RSPCA has declared a 'horse crisis' in Bexley after officers have had to rescue several horses from patches of land in the borough recently.

Erith, Thamesmead, Sidcup, Abbey Wood and Belvedere have been described as areas where "free-grazing" of horses - which leaves them on any available piece of land - is most rife.

Free-grazing can see horses left on footpaths or side roads, wasteland and sometimes even recreational areas.

In the last week, police in Sidcup said they had been called to reports of abandoned horses in the area, some of which were malnourished. After calling RSPCA officers, four horses in total were rescued and taken into care.

The RSPCA believes an increase in land development has fuelled the problem of free-grazing, which causes owners to move their horses to any patch of land available.

RSPCA inspector Nicholas Wheelhouse, who covers south London, said: “We find some people who have horses and have just kept them on undeveloped land, but as the developers are now snapping up these sites, the horses are being moved on.

"The knock-on effect is that with a shortage of greenland we are finding that the owners are then tethering their horses on the side of the roads or keeping them in very poor makeshift enclosures, not even fields."

He added that, although most of the horses kept in the area are well cared for, some owners are not doing enough to make sure their horses are properly fed.

"It’s an issue that I as an inspector am seeing on the increase, as sadly, if the horses are not attended to well enough, welfare problems can start and that's when we become involved.

"I’ve seen horses in places you wouldn’t ever expect them to be and many in really built-up areas," he said.

The RSPCA has also accused some horse owners of "breeding indiscriminately" which leads to them dumping horses that are considered of no use.

Ellen Thompson, an RSPCA inspector for south east London, said: "The problem is getting so much worse, and the RSPCA is constantly being called to deal with sick and dying horses, and young horses who have not been wormed and are emaciated and are suffering from very serious health problems as a result. Their basic needs are just not being met.

“I hope that by highlighting the crisis people will understand that there is a very real issue in relation to equines up and down the country.”

Other issues the RSPCA has highlighted are tethered horses, which are tied to a piece of unfenced land by a rope or a chain, and fly-grazing, where horses are left to graze on land without the landowner's permission.