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NEGLECTED HORSES RESCUED

By Anita Reding/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Thursday, December 22, 2005 12:11 PM CST

Three horses have been placed in the care of the Blue Bonnet Equine Humane Society after the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department was notified that the horses had been neglected and appeared to be malnourished.

According to the incident report, Deputy Jason Wood said he was contacted Monday by Dr. Teresa Miller, a veterinarian, about the neglect of three horses at 438 St. Raphael Road.

Wood said he observed two horses “that had been neglected and appeared to be undernourished. There was also a male colt that was underfed and appeared to have no nourishment.”

The report states that the next day Wood contacted Valerie Lowe (also known as Valerie Washington), the caretaker of the horses.

Lowe told the deputy that the horses were left in her care and she had been feeding them off and on. She said she had taken a bale of hay to the property about a month ago and had not been back, the report states.

The veterinarian said that the horses needed immediate attention or they would not survive the winter, and “that it took several months of no food to reach the condition the horses were in,” the release states.

After speaking with the deputy and the veterinarian, Lowe said she would feed the horses.

Wood stated in the report that on Wednesday morning, Deputy Darrell Ray told him the colt was lying on the ground and could not get up. When Wood returned to the property, he found the colt in a weak condition. Also, the horses apparently still had not been fed.

When contacted by the deputy Wednesday, Lowe said she would give the horses to Blue Bonnet.

“In this type of case, the issue is always going to be whether or not there is evidence to show that the animals were allowed to reach a deplorable condition,” Chief Deputy Mike Hurst stated in a news release.

“Violation of the cruelty to animals statute subjects an offender to the possibility of a fine and imprisonment. This law was amended in 2001 to provide for a psychiatric examination of a person found to be in violation, if the court so orders.”

No arrests have been made and no charges have been filed in the case, but Hurst said the Criminal Investigation Division is conducting an investigation.

Tina Shalmy, Arkansas representative for Blue Bonnet, said Wednesday afternoon that the colt was receiving IV fluids and was in critical condition.

If there are no complications within the next seven to 10 days, the other two horses should recover, she said.

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