The horse was one of four brought to the Ojai shelter Tuesday by humane officers, who removed the animals from an Oak View ranch.
Humane officers brought four emaciated horses to the Humane Society of Ventura County Tuesday, after removing them from an Oak View ranch. Two were full-sized geldings. The others were mini horses — a mare and a colt, possibly mother and son.
“It’s shocking that anyone could do this to an animal,” said Humane Society shelter director Jolene Hoffman.
Using the Henneke System of Body Conditioning, which is used to rate the condition of a horse from one to nine, Hoffman said these horses appear to be a one, the worst.
According to the scale, a horse with a body condition score of one is emaciated and in most cases is in danger of starving to death. Healthy horses have a body condition score from four to seven.
The horses came from an apparent boarding facility that contained about 50 other animals that did not appear to be in bad shape, according to humane officers, who responded to the property after receiving an anonymous call. The officers spoke to the alleged owner of the property, Hoffman said, but as of Tuesday afternoon, officials had been unable to track down the owner of the impounded horses.
“The ranch owner claimed they weren’t theirs,” Hoffman said.
While the horse owners could be charged, it is possible, Hoffman added, that the ranch owners could be charged as well. “We will press for felony charges. These people who did this need to spend time in jail.”
The four animals brought to the Ojai shelter Tuesday were found with bones protruding, eyes sunken into their sockets and feet badly infected, Hoffman explained. They were led into individual enclosures to await the arrival of a veterinarian.
To help care for the horses, a donation of 15 bags of John Lyons senior grains came in from Noreda Seymour, owner of Ventura Hay Company. However, the horses’ care will be costly. “This is going to be long term, up to nine months to get their weight up — if they survive,” said Hoffman. “We need all the help we can get.”
Anyone with information on this or any other animal abuse case can contact the Humane Society of Ventura County at 646-6505 or 656-5031. Visit their website for more information or to submit an abuse report form online.
Donations toward the care of the horses can also be made on the website or by calling the shelter.
Editor’s Note: The name of the Oak View ranch is not being released by the Humane Society of Ventura County, pending an ongoing investigation.
(Ojai Valley News - September 11, 2012)
