Diane Silbaugh, 62, pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree misdemeanor animal cruelty. Stow Municipal Court Judge Kim Hoover sentenced Silbaugh to 90 days in the Summit County Jail and to pay a $750 fine, the maximum sentence allowable by law.
Silbaugh's husband, Thomas Silbaugh, 58, also pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty. He was given the same sentence with the stipulation he serve 90 days on house arrest because of health issues. Thomas Silbaugh appeared at the hearing in a wheelchair.
They both will undergo court-ordered mental health assessments and are ordered to comply with the evaluator's recommendations.
The Silbaughs also agreed to allow humane agents or police to conduct unannounced and random inspections of their home. They are allowed to keep five dogs and three birds that agents said received proper care.
They are not allowed to own any more animals.
The couple also is ordered to pay $12,296 in restitution to the Happy Trails Animal Sanctuary in Ravenna. The sanctuary took in the 14 horses and cared for them until they could find foster homes or were euthanized. The Silbaughs signed over the horses to Happy Trails, meaning the horses can now be legally adopted.
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 the Silbaughs ignored. Agents also seized five rabbits from the home that were neglected.
Investigators said the horses were in Thomas Silbaugh's name, but that they also belonged to Diane Silbaugh.
Hoover peppered the couple with questions at the hearing. Thomas Silbaugh told the judge his health problems prohibited from him checking on the horses. Hoover forced him to look at photos of a horse that eventually needed euthanized.
The photos showed a horse with gaping scabs, raw skin, frozen patches of hair and hooves that grew so long the horse walked on its bones.
"There's no excuse for that," Thomas Silbaugh said. "I never saw them like that."
Diane Silbaugh then looked at the photos.
"I knew they were bad," Diane Silbaugh said.
She denied taking pleasure in their pain at the hearing. Hoover also asked her if she would allow her husband to live in similar conditions as the horses. She said "no."
The judge asked why she allowed the horses to live that way.
"I don't know how to explain it," she said.
Diane Silbaugh's criminal history includes animal abuse convictions in Medina and Brimfield Township.
Silbaugh was sentenced to six months in jail and 100 hours of community service in that case.
Hoover before handing down the sentence asked Diane Silbaugh why she got the horses in the first place.
"I just enjoy them," she said. "I just enjoy being around them."
(Cleveland.com - Aug 26, 2015)
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