Sixteen dead horses, a dead donkey and numerous dead dogs, cats and chickens were found in a barn on a Woodford County farm Monday afternoon.
The farm at 1975 Woodlake Road is leased by Cheryll Jeffers, who also goes by the last name Ford, said Sgt. Keith Broughton of the Woodford County Sheriff's Department.
Woodford County animal control officers, the sheriff's office and representatives of the Kentucky Department of Agriculture visited the farm about 3:30 p.m. and found the animals.
Broughton said it was unclear whether Jeffers would face charges.
"We're still in the investigative stage," he said.
Broughton said the animals "were all in various stages of decomposition," including some that were skeletonized or mummified.
"Some of them have been dead for several months," he said.
In addition to the dead animals, there were about 15 horses and "numerous" cats, chickens and dogs on the property.
Broughton said a local farm had donated hay for the horses.
"They probably are a little bit neglected," he said, adding that water was being taken from the house on the property to the horses because there was no running water to the barn.
He said Jeffers had agreed to turn over the dogs to animal control officers, who were taking them to the Woodford County animal shelter.
Broughton said Woodford County Animal Control was in charge of the investigation.
kentucky.com
.
.UPDATE:
Woman Pleads Guilty In Woodford County Animal Cruelty Case
Aug. 05, 2013
A woman accused in a Woodford County animal cruelty case has pleaded guilty.
Cheryl Ford was charged with second-degree animal cruelty after
authorities found 16 dead horses, along with dead dogs, chickens and
donkeys at a farm off Woodlake Road in Midway. Ford surrendered about 50
dogs and cats to authorities.
In the plea deal, Ford pled guilty to four counts animal cruelty
second degree and two counts of failure to dispose of a carcass. She was
sentenced to six months jail time, with 90 days served in jail and the
remainder on home incarceration. Ford's attorney claims she's not
medically able to stay in jail.
Ford's attorney says she's a woman who got in over her head after a
nasty divorce and couldn't care for herself... much less the animals.
Ford will be on probation for two years, and is not allowed to own animals during her probation.
Formal sentencing in the case is set for September.
LEX18
Monday, February 25, 2013
Thursday, February 7, 2013
UNION COUNTY, KY FEBRUARY 2013
UNION CO., KY (WFIE) - 
Two horses were found dead near a creek in Union County late Monday night, and right now, authorities are not sure who dumped them there.
The horses were found in the Highland Creek area, just off Kentucky 360 near the community of Hitesville.
On Tuesday, a member of a local saddle club tells 14 News, many residents are unsure of who to contact when they discover a situation like this one.
"This just, this is awful," Jarrad Rudd said.
Union County resident Jarrad Rudd belongs to a local saddle club and says, Tuesday morning, he was fielding a lot of calls from concerned residents who saw the two ponies, one of those, not completely intact late Monday night.
"People here don't want to treat their horses like this. I didn't understand what happened to them. They looked like they were well cared for," Rudd said.
Rudd tells 14 News that he put in a call to the state veterinarian, but with no animal control in the county, he wasn't sure who was responsible for taking care of the situation.
14 News called Judge-Executive Jody Jenkins who says he hadn't heard about the horses.
"It was obviously careless and reckless on whoever that animal owner was," Jenkins said.
Jenkins tells 14 News that he contacted the Kentucky Department of Agriculture and their employees came to check out the scene.
Jenkins says he's never seen anything like this in Union County.
Animal lovers like Rudd are just hoping nothing like this happens again.
"What's happened here, we don't understand it," Rudd told 14 News.
The judge-executive says if residents see something like this in the future, they can contact his office or the sheriff's office.
14News
Update 02/10/2013:
According to locals, the owner of the two dead horses is known and he currently has another horse starving on his property. Picture that was taken of the starving horse:
Sunday, January 13, 2013
KENTUCKY JANUARY 2013
State senator cited for violating Horse Protection Act
Published: January 12, 2013
— jpatton1@herald-leader.com
A high-profile walking horse proponent and padded horse
rider, Kentucky state Sen. Robin Webb, D-Grayson, has suffered an equine
black eye.
At the North Carolina Walking Horse Association championships in October, Webb was cited for violations involving two horses.
"Senator Robin Webb Busted" read the headline Dec. 4 on an anti-soring blog called "For the Tennessee Walking Horse."
According to the USDA's database of Horse Protection Act violations, Webb was ticketed for violating the "scar rule," which establishes criteria to look for certain scars on the horse that are considered evidence that a horse has been "sored" and is ineligible to compete. Webb, as owner, was cited as a responsible party for two horses, Air Force One and Showstopper.
In an interview last week with the Herald-Leader, Webb denied soring either horse and said she did not see anything wrong with the animals at the time of the competition.
"I don't sore my horses," Webb said. "I love my horses, and my horses love me."
She said Showstopper is a young horse whom she bought not long before the show; Air Force One is a prize-winning horse she has ridden in shows for years without incident, including a week after he failed the inspection.
"They were turned down on a scar rule and sent back to the barn," she said. "The scar rule is very subjective."
She said she did not appeal because she never received paperwork on either violation and, as far as she knows, she was not suspended.
Her trainer, Donald Stamper of Richmond, also was cited. Stamper confirmed Webb has horses in his barn but said he did not recall the incident.
"Where was this at, now?" Stamper asked in response to a reporter's question. He hung up when asked for comment on his role.
Webb also has been a vocal opponent of federal legislation, filed by U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Hopkinsville, to ban the use of pads and chains, called "action devices," on horses.
"The Whitfield bill is extreme," Webb said last week.
Whitfield said in a statement Friday that his bill "eliminates the self-policing system currently employed, allowing for a more uniform enforcement. ... It is far from 'extreme,' which is why it carries the support of the American Veterinarian Medical Association, the American Association of Equine Practitioners and numerous others."
The American Association of Equine Practitioners, headquartered at the Kentucky Horse Park, has said the ban is necessary to end soring.
Dr. René A. Carlson, president of the American Veterinarian Medical Association, said in June that her group is asking for a ban on "the use of action devices and performance packages in the training and showing of walking horses, because they appear to be facilitating soring."
The U.S. Equestrian Federation, also headquartered at the Horse Park, also does not allow the use of action devices in the show ring.
At the annual meeting of the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association in December, Webb criticized the AAEP and other veterinary groups who have called for a ban, dubbing them "agenda-driven entities."
Webb was honored by Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association as its 2012 Performance Horse Ambassador for her participation in USDA discussions.
Last week, Webb told the Herald-Leader that the Tennessee walking horse has been "demonized," particularly in light of a video, shot by an undercover investigator from the Humane Society of the United States, showing top walking horse trainer Jackie L. McConnell abusing horses in his Tennessee barn.
Webb said the footage, in which McConnell was shown striking tied-up horses in the face, was taken out of context.
"You don't know what happened five minutes before or five minutes after. ... These are animals that are very dangerous," Webb said. "Every breed has training techniques that animal-rights groups find offensive."
At the North Carolina Walking Horse Association championships in October, Webb was cited for violations involving two horses.
"Senator Robin Webb Busted" read the headline Dec. 4 on an anti-soring blog called "For the Tennessee Walking Horse."
According to the USDA's database of Horse Protection Act violations, Webb was ticketed for violating the "scar rule," which establishes criteria to look for certain scars on the horse that are considered evidence that a horse has been "sored" and is ineligible to compete. Webb, as owner, was cited as a responsible party for two horses, Air Force One and Showstopper.
In an interview last week with the Herald-Leader, Webb denied soring either horse and said she did not see anything wrong with the animals at the time of the competition.
"I don't sore my horses," Webb said. "I love my horses, and my horses love me."
She said Showstopper is a young horse whom she bought not long before the show; Air Force One is a prize-winning horse she has ridden in shows for years without incident, including a week after he failed the inspection.
"They were turned down on a scar rule and sent back to the barn," she said. "The scar rule is very subjective."
She said she did not appeal because she never received paperwork on either violation and, as far as she knows, she was not suspended.
Her trainer, Donald Stamper of Richmond, also was cited. Stamper confirmed Webb has horses in his barn but said he did not recall the incident.
"Where was this at, now?" Stamper asked in response to a reporter's question. He hung up when asked for comment on his role.
Webb also has been a vocal opponent of federal legislation, filed by U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Hopkinsville, to ban the use of pads and chains, called "action devices," on horses.
"The Whitfield bill is extreme," Webb said last week.
Whitfield said in a statement Friday that his bill "eliminates the self-policing system currently employed, allowing for a more uniform enforcement. ... It is far from 'extreme,' which is why it carries the support of the American Veterinarian Medical Association, the American Association of Equine Practitioners and numerous others."
The American Association of Equine Practitioners, headquartered at the Kentucky Horse Park, has said the ban is necessary to end soring.
Dr. René A. Carlson, president of the American Veterinarian Medical Association, said in June that her group is asking for a ban on "the use of action devices and performance packages in the training and showing of walking horses, because they appear to be facilitating soring."
The U.S. Equestrian Federation, also headquartered at the Horse Park, also does not allow the use of action devices in the show ring.
At the annual meeting of the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association in December, Webb criticized the AAEP and other veterinary groups who have called for a ban, dubbing them "agenda-driven entities."
Webb was honored by Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association as its 2012 Performance Horse Ambassador for her participation in USDA discussions.
Last week, Webb told the Herald-Leader that the Tennessee walking horse has been "demonized," particularly in light of a video, shot by an undercover investigator from the Humane Society of the United States, showing top walking horse trainer Jackie L. McConnell abusing horses in his Tennessee barn.
Webb said the footage, in which McConnell was shown striking tied-up horses in the face, was taken out of context.
"You don't know what happened five minutes before or five minutes after. ... These are animals that are very dangerous," Webb said. "Every breed has training techniques that animal-rights groups find offensive."
Kentucky.com
Sunday, December 23, 2012
HOPKINS COUNTY, KY NOVEMBER 2012
3 horses die in one of the worst animal cruelty cases in Hopkins Co.
Posted: Nov 26, 2012 5:43 PM EST Updated: Dec 03, 2012 5:43 PM EST
Three horses were found dead at a residence in
Hopkins County, and it's being called one worst cases of animal cruelty
in the county.
31-year-old Daniel Carter of Dawson Springs has
pleaded guilty to six counts of animal cruelty in the case. He'll serve
20 days in jail.
Authorities say Carter neglected dozens of animals on his property, all the way from six horses to a wide range of farm animals.About a year ago, the humane society says they started receiving calls about possible animal neglect at the Carter's home on Nortonville Road in Dawsons Springs. Humane Society Director Charles Gentry says Carter and his wife told them they were an running an animal rescue operation.
"We tried to give them as much time and opportunity to show us that is truly what they were doing. They had several animals that were in poor condition but they indicated to us they received them in that condition," Gentry said.
Over time, Gentry says the condition of the animals worsened.
"We came to realize that it was just blatant neglect," Gentry said.
Officials found three horses had died under Carter's care. They seized the remaining three, but Gentry says they weren't much better.
"Body condition scores of around a two and that's two out of 10. One being probably going to die any second," Gentry said.
Officials say they also found other animals including dogs, pigs, and peacocks on Carter's property.
"We were able to seize all of those animals and obviously protect other animals besides just these horses because they were in the care and custody of irresponsible animal owners," said Hopkins County Attorney Todd P'Pool.
Daniel Carter will serve about three weeks in jail. Both he and his wife are now on probation and aren't allowed to own any animals for two years.
"If you own animals in Hopkins County and you fail to properly take care of them, you will face jail time," P'Pool said.
Carter's jail sentence begins on January 2nd.
As for all those rescued animals, the humane society says they're receiving care at local foster homes and he hopes to put them up for adoption soon.
14 News
Sunday, April 22, 2012
HENRY COUNTY, KY APRIL 2012
Henry County Woman Gets 60 Days In Animal Cruelty Case
Posted: Apr 16, 2012 3:58 PM
Updated: Apr 16, 2012 5:07 PM
A Henry County woman charged with over 200 counts of animal abuse after a variety of animals were found on her property in December living in deplorable conditions has been sentenced to 60 days in jail in the case.
Terri Smith, who plead guilty to one of the counts against her, was also ordered to pay almost $9,500 in restitution in the case. Officials say the animals, including 120 dogs (one of which was deceased living in a cage with live dogs walking all over it), 30 cats, 58 rabbits, 25 hermit crabs, 9 horses, 10 guinea pigs, 6 hamsters, a wolf hybrid, an owl, several birds and three geese were found at Smith's Allyson Lane home in Henry County.
The judge in the case also refused to return any of the animals back to Smith.
Smith's husband, 71-year-old Kenneth H. Smith, committed suicide shortly after their arrests.
LEX18
.
Posted: Apr 16, 2012 3:58 PM
Updated: Apr 16, 2012 5:07 PM
A Henry County woman charged with over 200 counts of animal abuse after a variety of animals were found on her property in December living in deplorable conditions has been sentenced to 60 days in jail in the case.
Terri Smith, who plead guilty to one of the counts against her, was also ordered to pay almost $9,500 in restitution in the case. Officials say the animals, including 120 dogs (one of which was deceased living in a cage with live dogs walking all over it), 30 cats, 58 rabbits, 25 hermit crabs, 9 horses, 10 guinea pigs, 6 hamsters, a wolf hybrid, an owl, several birds and three geese were found at Smith's Allyson Lane home in Henry County.
The judge in the case also refused to return any of the animals back to Smith.
Smith's husband, 71-year-old Kenneth H. Smith, committed suicide shortly after their arrests.
LEX18
.
HENDERSON COUNTY, KY APRIL 2012
Henderson Co. horse owner under investigation for second time
Posted: Apr 12, 2012 6:31 PM EDT
Updated: Apr 19, 2012 6:31 PM EDT
HENDERSON CO, KY (WFIE) - Henderson County Officials were out Thursday, looking into a complaint on the care of dozens of horses and animal control says this isn't the first time they've been out to this Reed, Kentucky farm.
No horses were seized this afternoon on the property on New Road, but Animal Control says they'll be keeping an eye out to make sure some nutrition and cleanliness issues improve.
Thursday afternoon, Henderson County Animal Control, the Sheriff's Office and a veterinarian were all on the scene after receiving their second complaint this year about the care of over 20 horses.
Animal Control says the horses belong to Richard Stallings. Stallings was found guilty in '08 on 50 counts of mistreating horses.
The owner of a horse sanctuary working with Animal Control says Thursday, there are some issues with the cleanliness of stalls and what the horses are eating.
"The conditions are not ideal of what we'd like to see for the horses but you know, it's not something that can't be fixed and we are working with them to make sure that, you know, that they do understand that there are certain things that we are going to expect over the next thirty days to be corrected," said Shelter Operations Director for the Humane Society of Henderson County Joshua Cromer.
Animal Control took some photos Thursday, documenting the horses' condition and taking food samples.
They tell 14 News they'll be back out in 30 days to see if the situation improves. If nothing changes, they say those horses could be taken away.
Related stories:
•Horse neglect: Stallings pleads guilty
•Suspected horse abuser opts for jury trial
WAVE3
,
Posted: Apr 12, 2012 6:31 PM EDT
Updated: Apr 19, 2012 6:31 PM EDT
HENDERSON CO, KY (WFIE) - Henderson County Officials were out Thursday, looking into a complaint on the care of dozens of horses and animal control says this isn't the first time they've been out to this Reed, Kentucky farm.
No horses were seized this afternoon on the property on New Road, but Animal Control says they'll be keeping an eye out to make sure some nutrition and cleanliness issues improve.
Thursday afternoon, Henderson County Animal Control, the Sheriff's Office and a veterinarian were all on the scene after receiving their second complaint this year about the care of over 20 horses.
Animal Control says the horses belong to Richard Stallings. Stallings was found guilty in '08 on 50 counts of mistreating horses.
The owner of a horse sanctuary working with Animal Control says Thursday, there are some issues with the cleanliness of stalls and what the horses are eating.
"The conditions are not ideal of what we'd like to see for the horses but you know, it's not something that can't be fixed and we are working with them to make sure that, you know, that they do understand that there are certain things that we are going to expect over the next thirty days to be corrected," said Shelter Operations Director for the Humane Society of Henderson County Joshua Cromer.
Animal Control took some photos Thursday, documenting the horses' condition and taking food samples.
They tell 14 News they'll be back out in 30 days to see if the situation improves. If nothing changes, they say those horses could be taken away.
Related stories:
•Horse neglect: Stallings pleads guilty
•Suspected horse abuser opts for jury trial
WAVE3
,
Friday, October 28, 2011
HOPKINS COUNTY, KY JULY 2011
Possible horse cruelty case being investigated in Madisonville
MADISONVILLE, KY (WFIE) -
Authorities in Madisonville are investigating a possible animal neglect case. Investigators say they've received several complaints that some horses are being underfed, and need medical treatment.
Authorities in Madisonville are investigating a possible animal neglect case. Investigators say they've received several complaints that some horses are being underfed, and need medical treatment.
Resident Hazel Fell received calls from friends complaining about the condition of a group of horses on a nearby farm.
Several weeks after, Fell went to the farm to check up on the horses condition. She saw no improvement, and took several photos. Fell then filed her own complaint to the humane society.
The horses are owned by Rob and Bonnie Ryder on a private farm off Randall Drive. Fell says the problem is that they live in Canada, and all responsibility to the horses is left to a caretaker.
It's unknown how much the horses are visited, but Fell says she's most upset that nothing was done before her complaint.
Humane society officials say they have been monitoring the situation. In fact, soon after the latest complaint, they sent a veterinarian out to check on the horses and meet with the caretaker. The caretaker now has 30 days to improve the health of the horses.
Humane society officials declined to speak while the investigation is ongoing, but stress the fact that they haven't ignored any complaints, and are working with law enforcement to resolve the issue.
Hopkins County Public Works officials say last month, they picked up one horse from that property that had died, but it's unclear what the cause of death was.
Humane society officials say plenty of food and hay have been donated to the horses while the investigation continues.
Officials say after the 30 days, they'll re-evaluate the condition of the horses, and if there are no improvements, disciplinary action will be taken.
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