Pony shot in the head in Hawke's Bay

Azra is recovering after being shot in the head on Saturday.

The walkway, which crosses the Hawke's Bay region, is also likely to have led a gunman to the 28-year-old pony. She was cruelly shot in the head on Saturday.

Azra's fate is now uncertain as she fights to recover from the serious wound just below her right eye. The bullet, most likely .22 calibre, is still in her head.

Azra belongs to the Hall family, who have a four-hectare block at Clive. Trevor and Cheryl got Azra as a schoolmaster pony for their 12-year-old daughter, Sam, who has ridden since she was four.

Cheryl said Sam was devastated to discover the injured Azra when she went to get her pony around 4pm on Saturday, at dinner time.

The wound appeared very fresh, Cheryl said, indicating the shooting had occurred not long before.

The police and a veterinarian were called.

"The bullet is still in her," Cheryl explains. "It appears to be lodged just by her ear." The bullet also damaged Azra's sinuses.

The veterinarian cleaned the wound and removed shards of damaged bone. Azra was put on antibiotics and pain relief.

"Realistically, to go any further, to get the bullet out, we would have to take her to Massey [the university veterinary school].

"We haven't got the money for that sort of thing," she said.

Cheryl said the family didn't want to put Azra through that ordeal, given her advancing years. She had few teeth left and was retired from riding last year.

The hope is that the wound would heal with the bullet in place.

Cheryl said the swelling was significant and Azra was proving difficult to feed.

The family was taking it a day at a time, she said, adding that the situation was "touch and go".

Azra has been part of the Hall family for five years. They bought Azra off a woman in Feilding and she proved a great ride for Sam.

"She was very laid back and very cruisey," Cheryl said.

It has been a tough year for Sam.

She lost the riding pony she got to replace Azra in April due to a salmonella infection.

Police are inquiring into the shooting and a story in their local newspaper, Hawke's Bay Today, carried an appeal for any information about the shooting.