Who owns the grazing animals?
Lots of people think that the grazing animals in the Open Forest are wild. In fact they are owned by people with common rights attached to their properties. These rights go back nearly 1,000 years to when the New Forest was a Royal Hunting Forest and governed by ancient laws. There are around 500 commoners living within the National Park. There are five common rights including the practice of lawful de-pasture of ponies (as well as cattle, pigs, donkeys and sheep) upon the crown lands and adjacent commons.
