Michigan: Frankenmuth Carriage Company cleared by animal control after complaints of neglect

MICHIGAN -- Saginaw County animal control provided a clean bill of health for local horses after questions arose about their condition following social media posts.

The posts stemmed from a former employee of the Frankenmuth Carriage Company who expressed concern that, in her view, the horses were being mistreated.

TV5 was there on Friday when animal control inspected the horses. Officers concluded they found nothing wrong with the horses.

Animal Control Director Lisa Stoffel said she would document the case because of the recent public uproar.

Patience Atwood worked for the Frankenmuth Carriage Company from September 2016 through December 2016 and again from June 2017 through August 2017.

She took to Facebook on Dec. 28, 2017 with her allegations for how the company treated its horses. Her post garnered quite the reaction from the Mid-Michigan community, but has since been taken down.

 

 

Atwood insisted the horses were being overworked for their age during her first stint with the company. Her allegations were discredited by animal control on Friday.

She said she and her coworkers took their concerns to the Frankenmuth Chamber of Commerce, but were told there was nothing that could be done.

Atwood said the worst problem she saw was cracked hooves on the horses, which she said is extremely painful for the horses to be on concrete all day.

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At least four former employees at Frankenmuth Carriage Co. have made accusations, including one in a detailed Facebook post Thursday.

Gabrielle Ohearn is one of the former employees who worked there from August 2016 to October 2017. She claims the owner did nothing when employees voiced their concerns of abuse and neglect.

"Most of them are videos and pictures we had sent to the owner to tell her that they were lame or this was going on," Ohearn said while showing videos and pictures of the horses. "And, some were acknowledged and some were just blown off."

 

She alleges the horses have poor living conditions, cracked horseshoes and chronic pain.

Ohearn took a photo of a horse's hoof that appears to be missing about half of its shoe. Other photos show sores and cracks on the horses' hooves.

"Usually just whenever somebody threw a shoe she'd have to wait around and call a farrier, where most people, they're on a set schedule, usually 6-8 weeks depending on how fast the horse's hoof grows," she said. "But it depends on the individual horse."

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The owner of the Frankenmuth Carriage Company, Katrina Canfield, said her horses are healthy and in good condition. She had animal control come out to verify her horses were in good condition, an assertion animal control confirmed on Friday.

I don't think this issue has been resolved. Animal Control officers have a certain specialized knowledge, but they are not experts in everything. 

Animal Control, to put this issue to rest, should have involved a veterinarian to examine each animal, find out their work schedule, rest schedule, speak with the veterinarians who treat and examine these animals, to determine if they are being overworked - or not. 

Note: I'm definitely NOT discounting the important job that animal control officers do, but I am saying there are limits to their knowledge and in a case like this, regarding a business that relies on a lot of tourism dollars, I think a licensed veterinarian needs to make the determination regarding the allegations since so many (at least four) former employees have spoken up. 

I also don't have a problem with animals being utilized for businesses like this - as long as the animals are properly being cared for. Most of them are, but there are cases in which owners are possibly having financial problems and so the animals get a bit less food, or the farrier comes less often, or the animals are working double shifts, etc. In those cases, it's neglectful but not necessarily criminal in which animals need to be seized. It may be that the animals are checked, the owner put on notice to properly care for the animals, and then everything is fine after that. If continued complaints come in, authorities have a paper trail to show a pattern of neglectful behavior... if it should come to the point of them charging the owner for criminal neglect.

Hopefully, with the attention brought to Frankenmuth Carriage Company, owner Katrina Canfield will ensure that her animals are well care for so that her business is seen as "one of the good ones". 

Is this the same Katrina Canfield of Frankenmuth,

Michigan, owner of Frankenmuth Carriage Company

(WNEM - Dec 29, 2017)