Diane Silbaugh, 62, and her husband, Thomas Silbaugh, 58, are both charged in Stow Municipal Court with four counts each of animal cruelty, all second-degree misdemeanors. The charges carry a maximum jail sentence of 90 days, but a jail term is not mandatory.
Both are scheduled for arraignment April 2. Investigators said the horses were in Thomas Silbaugh's name, but that they also belonged to Diane Silbaugh.
Humane agents rescued the animals on Feb. 19 from the Silbaughs' home in the 400 block of West Bath Road.
Agents found the horses had no shelter from record-cold temperatures and had no food or water. They were also kept confined in a small area behind their home.
The horses ranged in age from adults to yearlings. Some had leg injuries that were ignored. Agents also seized five rabbits from the home that were neglected.
The Silbaughs' were evicted from her home and left the horses unattended, humane agents said.
The horses were placed with foster homes across the region and the rabbits are being cared for by PAWsibilities and the Humane Society of Great Akron.
Diane Silbaugh's history includes animal abuse convictions in Medina, Cuyahoga Falls and Brimfield Township, agents said.
Brimfield police raided Silbaugh's Never Rest Ranch in 2008 and found more than 20 debilitated horses. Five horses were found dead in the field. A sixth later died and three others were near death.
Tests showed they died of starvation and at least one died of salmonella poisoning from moldy food.
Silbaugh eventually pleaded guilty in that case to animal cruelty, grand theft and forgery, for falsifying documents to show she owned a horse that belonged to someone else.
Silbaugh was sentenced to six months in jail and 100 hours of community service. Part of the sentence included that Silbaugh not own horses for five years.
(Cleveland.com - March 16, 2015)
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