Horse charity HAPPA takes website offline

A Newfoundland charity that was the subject of a CBC Investigates report on Tuesday has taken its website offline.

As of Wednesday morning, visitors to Horse and Pony Protection Association (HAPPA) site were greeted with a message that said Forbidden You don't have permission to access / on this server.

A day earlier, CBC Investigates reported that the website was promoting a horse sanctuary that was shuttered 18 months ago.

The website was also soliciting and accepting donations.

Our organization is a registered charitable organization which operates the Hopeall sanctuary, the websites main page said on Tuesday, before it was taken down.

Our budget is lean and all funds raised through donations go directly to providing care for our horses and ponies.

In an interview last week, HAPPA president Dennis Bishop told CBC Investigates that the group is now handling animal welfare cases in the field.

But former board members are raising questions about spending and accountability at the charity.