A cabbie who was filmed whipping his horse after the animal slipped on the tarmac in San Gwann has been cleared of animal cruelty.

A court was presented with enough evidence to show that the 22-year-old mare was in excellent health and had no signs of violence.

Alban Saliba, 36, of Birkirkara, had been arrested after mobile phone footage of the incident, which took place in April, went viral on the social media.

The court, presided by Magistrate Aaron Bugeja, said the fact that the horse had been whipped several times had been proven beyond reasonable doubt. But the charge of animal cruelty required the specific criminal intent to cause the animal to suffer needlessly to be proven.

Animal welfare coordinator Dennis Sciberras said the whipping was “nothing serious,” and that the animal had no visible signs on its body. He said that at the age of 22, the mare was in very good health.

Mr Sciberras told the court that getting a fallen horse up on its feet was not an easy task. Cabbies often used their whips just to make a noise, in order to coerce the animals to stand up.

Veterinarian Vanessa Messina said the mare had probably slipped and was in pain as a result of the fall. However the animal had no external signs of injury or abuse.

Mr Saliba also testified, telling the court that the mare had tripped on a speed hump. He said the animal would have further injured itself if it was left to lie on the ground and he had used the whip to get the horse back on its feet. Mr Saliba said he animal was very dear to him and he would never have hurt it.

Magistrate Bugeja noted that the use of horsewhips was recognised in equestrian circles as an essential tool to control their horses and which could also be used to get a fallen horse back up on its feet.

The court said it could not conclude that Mr Saliba wanted the animal to suffer unnecessarily – in fact his intention was the opposite.

The man had been taking care of the horse for 22 years and was continuing to care for it until it died a natural death instead of putting it down. These were not typical circumstances of animal cruelty, the Magistrate said.

Mr Saliba was therefore cleared of all charges.