THREE horses brought traffic to a standstill by running down a busy main road.

Officers were called to Brownhill Drive, Blackburn, just before 8am yesterday after residents reported seeing the animals.

But by the time police got there they had made their way to a play area off Heys Lane, where they were caught and taken away.

The horses, which were wet and muddy but appear to have been well cared for, are now being looked after at a nearby farm, and it is hoped their owner will come forward to claim them.

The two black-and-white horses, along with a brown one, believed to be two females and a male, are around 12 hands, or just over 5ft high.

Farmer Tony Mills, who keeps horses, was called to help control the animals, and took them in.

He said: "The police know I keep horses because I've rung them before when I've had an escape, so they called me to see if they were mine.

"We've no idea where they have come from.

"They are quite long-haired and wet so it looks like they've been out throughout the winter, but they're generally in quite good condition.

"We'd have to get a vet to have a proper look at them to check everything, and until then they are being kept in our stables.

"I brought them back here because they had nowhere else to go.

"It's possible they could have been stolen or abandoned, but I think it's more likely that there's a paddock with a hole in the fence somewhere, and someone wondering where their horses are.

"We already have a few horses and we have had to turf them out of their stables to keep these, so it could be quite difficult, but if no one comes forward we might keep them. We're just trying to do the right thing."

Anyone with information about who owns the horses can call police on 0845 1 25 35 45.