By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com
A neglected horse will be under the care of the Humane Society Serving Crawford County for the foreseeable future after the owner forfeited the animal in Crawford County Municipal Court Wednesday.
Municipal Court Judge Shane Leuthold heard probable cause testimony in the civil case Humane Society Serving Crawford County v. Benjamin Lowe. Humane Agent Tami Rike was the only witness called by the county to testify in the case. Lowe declined to make a statement in his defense.
The Humane Society was alerted to the possible neglect of a horse at the Red Rose Stables, 4428 Stetzer Rd., Bucyrus, earlier this month. Rike arrived at the boarding facility with a member of the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office and took pictures of the 21-year-old horse in question. The horse was covered with a blanket but did not have any food or water in its stall.
“You could tell it was very malnourished,” Rike said.
Rike proceeded to obtain a search warrant signed by Leuthold and executed the search on Jan. 8. Some corn was found with the horse at the time of the search warrant but Rike said the horse’s rib bones, spine, and hip bones were prominent, along with a sunken in face and a coat matted with manure.
“It’s a very poor candidate of a horse. It appears to be starving,” Rike said as she presented photos taken of the horse. “It would have to be at least six months (since it had proper food).”
The Humane Society determined the horse – named Rudy – was in a neglected state and removed it from the property. It was examined by a veterinarian after it was seized by the Humane Society. In the report, the veterinarian scored the horse’s body condition 1.5 out of 10.
According to the Henneke Horse Body Condition Scoring System, an ideal horse would have a score between 4 and 6, which indicates a proper balance of feed and exercise. A score of 1 shows a horse that is extremely emaciated with no fatty tissues that can be felt and noticeable vertebrae, ribs, tail head, withers, shoulders, and neck.
Leuthold determined there was probably cause for the Humane Society to hold the horse.
“This horse was in very poor health,” Leuthold said. “What probably disgusts me the most is there’s a picture of his horse with a child . . . it appears at one time this horse was in good health.”
After consulting with Rike on the cost of the care for the horse while a forfeiture hearing is set within the next 30 days, Leuthold set bond at $1,500 – or $50 a day for 30 days to board and feed the animal. Leuthold informed Lowe that even if the horse is forfeited, the county has the right to pursue him for the maintenance costs until a home could be found, which Humane Society Director Victoria Carmean said could take up to a year as they worked to get Rudy back to optimum condition.
Lowe was very quiet during the hearing but finally spoke up as the hearing came to a close.
“I forfeit the horse over to the Humane Society,” Lowe muttered quickly after realizing the cost. “Money-wise, I wouldn’t be able to.”
Leuthold disposed of the $1,500 bond but chose not to make a decision at the time on the cost of the care of the horse. He also advised Lowe that animal cruelty charges could still be brought against him.
“(The horse) is probably about one of the worst I’ve ever seen,” Carmean said after the hearing. “The veterinarian put him at a 1.5. When I first looked at him, I put him at a 1. Not too good – not on a scale of 1 to 10.
“It is a good feeling to be able to take a horse out of a situation that had him almost starve to death. Hopefully, with the proper care and feeding, we can put this horse back on the road to recovery, and possibly a useful life down the road,” she said. “He’s only 21-years-old. He’s got a lot of life left.”
The Humane Society contacted an equine nutrition specialist for the proper care of the horse. The specialist provided them with instructions on re-feeding a horse that was starved down to that kind of state.
“It’s a very slow process,” explained Carmean. “A lot of variables are combined here: not only his nutritional needs but also the needs of him being an older horse. Then also the needs of bringing him back so that he could possibly be comfortable.”
It also comes down to the littlest things, Carmean added.
“The water has to be right, the feed has to be right. He has to have proper turnout. He has to be blanketed because he has absolutely no body fat to help keep him warm. There’s a lot of variable at play right now; he’s not out of the woods yet,” Carmean said.
Putting weight back on will not be a quick fix. Caregivers will have to feed him small meals four to six times a day.
“Just very slowly building him back up and hoping that he makes it through this,” Carmean said. “We’re hoping that within a month we can say he’s out of the woods as far as any problems, but we don’t know what kind of long-term effects this starvation may have on him.”
Rudy will be stabled at a foster farm that is very knowledgeable in the care of horses.