One Friday morning I received a phone call from my State equine inspector, Beth Miller, who asked me if I might be available later that afternoon to help with a 6-horse seizure that was planned. I told her that I would make myself available if I was needed. She asked me if I could find a couple of other people who could act as horse handlers. I agreed to make some phone calls. Later that day Beth called me back to confirm that they had obtained a written order by a judge for the seizure and the time and location we were to meet. It was a short distance from my house. The last thing Beth mentioned before we hung up was to be sure that we wore rubber boots because it was muddy.
My two friends and I arrived at the address first and waited down the street until the county animal control and Beth arrived. I wish I had gotten it on video when they made their move. It was quite impressive, watching the procession of law enforcement in action. Though they had an order signed by a judge, they decided to talk the owner, an elderly woman, about relinquishing all the animals, which also included 9 goats. Within 15 minutes she agreed and as soon as the county’s “equine go-to person” arrived with two stock trailers, the evacuation began.
Did I say it was muddy? Muddy wasn’t the word! It was disgusting. The horses were located in what used to be the yard of this run-down mobile home. There was no grass, just deep, stinking mud, everywhere. The owner had to park outside the yard and take a board path that led up to the front porch to get to her house. There were no screens on the windows, which were all wide open, indicating no air conditioning. It was plenty hot, and I couldn’t even imagine how miserable it must be inside.
The county had come in 4 trucks intended to transport the goats. They worked on getting all the goats loaded while we concentrated on the horses. Beth handed halters to my friends and me and we got busy. I sunk up to my mid-calf in mud when I stepped off the board path, which made me glad that I had chosen knee-high boots! It was very difficult to walk because it was so deep. It was hard to imagine horses living in this. As they were caught, we had to lead them outside the fence where Beth was waiting with her clipboard, weight tape and camera.
There was a very skinny paint mare located in a goat pen behind the house. We were told that she had been put there to separate her from the other 5 horses that were taking her food. Of course, it was a mud hole, too, making it difficult to see her feet. Her skin looked like she had mange. It made me sick to think how long this had been going on. As she was led out to the pavement we had an opportunity to see her feet. They were so awful, I knew almost immediately that she would most likely have to be euthanized.
While all the activity of moving goats and horses was going on, we could hear the owner crying to the deputy sheriff who remained on the front porch. She was telling him how much she loved her horses! If I hadn’t seen case after case exactly like this scenario for the past 10 years, I might think I was the crazy one. How does any sane person have horses in this condition and not see it? Crying and denial are normal reactions as far as what I’ve witnessed.
Finally, all the horses and goats were loaded, and everybody disbursed. The horses were taken to a temporary location until the Department of Agriculture’s Equine Division could pick them up after the weekend. I received a phone call from the DOA after the horses were brought into the impound barn and a vet had come out to check them over. The feet of two horses, including the paint, were so severely damaged, they had to be euthanized. All the horses, except one, had large hernias from trying to move around in the deep mud for so long. Estimates from UGA to repair were upwards of $800 each. Of course, GERL has approved the cost of surgery. In the meantime, they are gaining weight and I’m sure, very happy to be out of the mud!
I recently received a phone call from Beth telling me that the case had gone to court and the owner plead guilty. She was charged with 6 cases of animal cruelty and ordered to pay restitution. It remains to be seen whether she ever pays anything, much less the total cost of the mounting vet bills. She was also on a 2-year probation period where she is not allowed to own horses. I have been told that she is looking forward to the 2 years to be over so that she can own horses again! I pray that this never comes to pass, but it wouldn’t surprise me.
And, THIS folks, is why prosecution is such an important part of the Get-Well Plan!
