The So Often Forgotten Equines (SOFE) horse rescue, located a mile southwest of Plymouth, had animals that were malnourished, according to authorities.
According to Jefferson County Sheriff Nels Sorensen, no charges had been filed as of Monday, December 17 and all information had been turned over to Jefferson County Attorney Linda Bauer. Bauer indicated the case was still under investigation and charges, if any, could be filed in the next few weeks.
According to Sorensen, Lester Zimmerman owns SOFE, a non-profit group.
Epona Horse Rescue of Crete has temporarily taken in some of the animals until a permanent shelter can be obtained.
According to Lin Beaune of Epona, the animals have been suffering from lack of food and proper vaccinations. Dehydration, however, was not an issue, according to Beaune, as automatic water dispensers were in use.
Her major concern right now is getting the horses fed and healthy.
Beaune said the seven horses in the worst shape have been removed from the property and taken to Epona’s facility outside of Crete.
She explained that most of the horses were in ‘mildly bad shape’ while the seven of them were ‘just terrible.’
"We just can’t drop a bale of hay in front of a starving horse like that, there are too many problems. It can kill them. You have to feed them six small meals a day. A lot of the horses we can start to carefully feed and the others we will have to reintroduce them slowly," Beaune said. "They had food, but it was corn stalks. You can’t feed them that and some of the younger horses are not in too bad of shape. Some of the older horses, however, need help."
The horses had not received proper vaccinations this year, according to Beaune’s estimation, and also not had proper dental care, which could have led to many of the malnutrition issues for the older horses.
To help Epona and the horses, call (308) 293-5654 or (402) 826-1044 or contact the Saline County Sheriff’s Office at (402) 729-2284.
(Seward Independent - Dec 18, 2012)
