Why did the Sergeant scold the soldiers?

The Sergeant scolded the soldiers because they were all gathered around Joey rather than taking care of their own duties.

‘What in thunder do you think you’re about, you lot?’ came a booming voice echoing across the court-yard. ‘It’s an ’orse. It’s an ’orse just like the others.’ A huge man was striding towards us, his boots crisp on the cobbles. His heavy red face was half hidden by the shade of his peaked cap that almost touched his nose and by a ginger moustache that spread upwards from his lips to his ears. ‘It may be a famous ’orse. It may be the only thundering ’orse in the ’ole thundering war brought in alive from no man’s land. But it is only an ’orse and a dirty ’orse at that. I’ve had some rough looking specimens brought in here in my time, but this is the scruffiest, dirtiest, muddiest ’orse I have ever seen. He’s a thundering disgrace and you’re all stood about looking at him.’ He wore three broad stripes on his arm and the creases in his immaculate khaki uniform were razor sharp. ‘Now there’s a hundred or more sick ’orses ’ere in this ’ospital and there’s just twelve of us to look after them.