Plans have been put in place for an upgrade to a "state-of-the-art" south Wales horse hospital. Cotts Equine Ltd has filed an application with Vale of Glamorgan Council to expand its veterinary facility in Cowbridge.
Background and Relocation
Planning documents read: “Cotts Equine currently operate Wales’ only fully accredited purpose-built equine hospital in Narberth, west Wales. They did operate a smaller equine veterinary facility in a unit within the ‘bottom yard’ of Pant Wilkin Stables.
“However the demand for services meant that the facility could no longer operate at the smaller unit and, as such, planning permission was sought and approved for a larger equine hospital at the ‘top yard’.”
According to the application, Cotts Equine took the “very difficult” decision to relocate most surgical procedures and “all the emergency and out of hours services” to Cowbridge, which was “based purely on geographical location”.
Investment and Equipment
The Cowbridge site’s location “has enabled Cotts to invest £2m in the state-of-the-art facility. The hospital has equipment which are not found at any other equine hospital in the UK”. It has been operational since November 2025.
Proposed Expansion Details
The expansion includes proposed erection of stable blocks, proposed manege, retention of isolation pens, proposed car parking associated with Cotts Equine Hospital, relocation of existing horse walker and proposed lunge ring, and associated works.
Some of the larger proposed pens are planned to be “occupied by intensive care patients such as horses suffering from colic, who again must be kept segregated from other horses”. The other stables are planned to be “occupied by horses at pre- and post-surgical stages as well as medical cases requiring hospitalisation”.
Justification and Impact
The justification of the expansion reads: “Without appropriate facilities and adequate stable capacity horses may otherwise need to be transported significantly further distances to hospitals outside of Wales, which could compromise patient welfare, particularly in emergency or critical cases where travel may exacerbate existing conditions or delay urgent treatment.”
It continues: “This is particularly critical in the case for horses living in west Wales with the next nearest equine hospital being based in Gloucestershire, England.”
