A wild horse was finally captured after a 10-hour attempt, despite resisting nine sedation shots during a dramatic chase.

The horse, named Wilson by staff at Galley Hill Equine Surgery in Breach Barns Lane, Waltham Abbey, had been running wild around Waltham Abbey for up to four weeks and was spotted weaving through traffic on busy roads.

The culmination of three rescue attempts yesterday saw teams from the surgery, the Lee Valley Park Authority staff, park rangers, three local horse owners and a marksman armed with sedation darts chase the brown and white stallion through Gunpowder Park.

Five 10ml darts of ketamine and diazepam were shot into Wilson, but he refused to go down before the search was initially ended at 5pm.

Despite several people leaving, vet Susanne Troster said she feared for the safety of the horse and drivers on nearby roads and could not give up.

Four more darts packed with ketamine, diazepam, detomidine and butorphanol were shot at Wilson, who despite wobbling and slowing down, still refused to succumb.

At 8pm, just after the ninth dart, the horse was tackled by Green Spaces manager Alex Farris, who held him still while Ms Troster injected drugs directly into Wilson's veins and sedated him.

Galley Hill Equine Surgery vet, Susanne Troster, who led the mission, put Wilson's ability to fight off more than 80ml of ketamine as well as other drugs down to him gaining strength through living wild.

She said: "I was in shock when Alex managed to tackle Wilson as he has no experience with horses.

"I had tried earlier and he had just got away.

"Despite being injected with over 80ml of ketamine he was still fighting us off.

"I could not give up. What if Wilson bolted onto the road and killed himself and a car full of people?

"We stayed at the scene and he wobbled after the darts and slowed, but not even once did he fall to the ground.

“He was fighting and resisting every time.

"After he was sedated, we loaded him onto a horse truck and brought him back to the surgery.

"He has no wounds apart from the puncture marks from the darts, but I would rather he had those than be hit by a lorry on Sewardstone Road.

"I have checked him over and confirmed he is under two-years-old. He is still a baby.

"An hour after we got back to the surgery Wilson woke up and just stood as if nothing had happened.

“He is a tough one.

"He is doing really well. He put us through our paces to catch him but he is up and eating now.

"I am so glad we caught him, I couldn't have given up."

Galley Hill Equine Surgery is now planning to set up a fundraising page towards the costs of Wilson's food and keep. 

Teams will begin looking for a permanent home for the former wild horse later this month.