The annual festival in Appleby-in-Westmorland, Cumbria, is billed as the largest gathering of travellers in Europe and is expected to attract around 40,000 visitors from across the UK over the weekend.
Travellers attending the Appleby Horse Fair have been warned 'no BB guns or catapults' as members of the gipsy, Romani and travellers community come together for the third day of festivities.
A young lady takes her horse into the river. People from across the UK visit the fair Rosina Phillips, 71, of south Wales who was visiting the fair with her border collie Bronwen said: 'It is a magical atmosphere. It is so beautiful seeing the horses' RSPCA chief inspector Rob Melloy said: 'The horse's temperature was very high, and he was covered in rubs. He had been worked until he dropped. This was an inexcusable act of cruelty. This person has let themselves, their family and of course this poor horse down, who undoubtedly suffered before he died.'
The beer flows freely in Appleby-in-Westmorland. Local residents in the town which normally has 3,000 people have mixed feelings about the event which effectively takes over their town with streets being blocked off and one way systems set up While some profit from turning their fields into £10-a-day car parks, others have become fed up with the disruption, and many leave the town for the duration of the fair.
Chris Wilson who runs the Sugar and Spice sweet shop said: 'We love the fair and I have no problems staying open. Davina Osman, 78, who runs the Collectable bric-a-brac shop in the town, said: 'I personally have a good time with the fair here. There are older members of the travelling community who enjoy old things and like to come in.'
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