From neglect and abuse
posted in Issues, Mission, Neglect, Rescue | Friday, February 11th, 2011
Neglect and abuse can take many forms. Most people think of neglect as starvation, and abuse as hitting a horse with a 2×4, but there are other forms that neglect can take, such as leaving a halter to grow into a horse’s face, failing to deal with an injury, neglecting hoof care until the horse is debilitated by lameness, or keeping a horse in a tiny enclosure with no exercise, change of scene, or friend for company…not even the horse’s guardian.
Neglect is not always willful. It can be the result of ignorance, or economic hardship.
To rescue a horse from neglect, the first step is to call the Sheriff’s Office. Our county has an Ag Deputy who investigates neglect calls. Sometimes neglectful owners can be educated to take better care of their horses…and that’s a win for the horse! Other times, they can be convinced to sell or surrender their horses to a rescue, as in the case of Raven and Arroyo’s surrender to Fresh Start in February of 2010.
The next thing you can do is report the neglect to the local animal shelter, humane society, or horse rescue. In our area, we have no legal right to seizure of horses, no matter how badly off they are. Only the Sheriff’s Office can do that. But we can sometimes communicate with the owner, and we can call the Sheriff too. Being informed of horse neglect situations in our area helps us to maintain a sense of the scope of the problem while we seek a means to take positive action toward rescue.
Other people, diligent guardians who love their horses, but for physical ailments or economic reasons know they won’t be able to care for them any longer, will seek placement before they become guilty of neglect. When we have room for new admits, we happily accept surrenders of this kind. Examples are Tinkerbell and Angel.
In our agricultural area, where livestock are generally considered to be creatures with no rights, a neglect situation must be very extreme to warrant seizure of the animal. Horses that are considered abandoned are usually impounded at the livestock auction, where after the brief impoundment period, they are sold. If you live around here, and your horse has wandered off and you can’t find her for a few days, be sure to keep calling the livestock auction until you have found her, in case she has ended up there.