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Case #11744 Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Horse neglect
Montrose, IA (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Jun 6, 2007
County: Lee
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Michael Jacob Cain
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
Michael Cain of Montrose said he rescued the horses found underfed in a pasture here last month. Others, including one veterinarian sent by an equine rescue organization, said Cain neglected the animals and that authorities need to step in.
Allegations of animal abuse against Cain, 30, surfaced last month after residents of the farm he was renting a pasture from saw what they described as abused, neglected and malnourished horses left without water and food for days at a time.
No charges have been filed against Cain, 30, and the eight horses including one foal were moved from their rented location at what used to be the Blue Grass Dairy here to a pasture near Donnellson.
Numerous reports reached the Lee County Sheriff's Department in June from Carl Schneider, 64, owner of the Blue Grass property, his live-in girlfriend Jane Williamson, 57, their neighbors and some former owners of the horses who claimed that there was no excuse for the animals' condition.
Cain, on the other hand, said this is all a misunderstanding. He said he rescued some of the horses and was trying to put weight back on them.
"One mare that was skinny I bought a year ago," Cain said. " She was skinny, and I did not think she was going to live through the winter. I bought her and her colt, and I'm trying to put weight back on them, too."
But this was not the case, Williamson said.
On May 11, Cain brought the horses to Schneider and Williamson on the agreement that he would pay $25 per head a month to rent a pasture and that he would be responsible for the feed. Cain moved the horses to Donnellson the middle of June.
"I want to give him the benefit of the doubt but those horses went 10 days without any food," Williamson said.
Williamson said that she had to deworm and feed the horses on numerous occasions while waiting for Cain to show up and take care of them, adding that feedings from Cain were few and far between.
She said a person can almost count every bone a horse has just by looking at Cain's horses.
Williamson has sent letters and photos to the sheriff and the county attorney showing the weedy pasture the horses were in, the moldy hay they were eating and the dirty water they had as well as the horses in question. She highlighted deformities in one horse's hooves which she said is caused by poor nutrition.
"This was allowed to happen, and no one did anything about it. I assure you that this will happen again," Williamson said.
On June 11, Cain was arrested for allegedly stealing hay from a nearby barn. He pleaded guilty to the charge and paid a fine.
Sherry Ogh of Fort Madison said she had to rescue a horse she gave to Cain after seeing its condition, which she described as near death.
Ogh said she gave her retired barrel-racing horse to Cain under the impression that the latter would surprise his niece with it for Christmas in 2006.
"My horse was in bad health when I got it back. The ribs are showing, neck muscles are gone, backbone showing, hip bone sticking out, lost most muscle on the legs and chest and lost about 300 pounds," Ogh said.
She said that after a month her horse is recuperating and has gained 75 pounds back.
Cain reiterated that the allegations against him have no basis.
"They're all false. I've had a vet go look, and he says they're fine. I think they're fine, they get hay, they're on pasture, and they've got water all the time," Cain said.
Cain said he checks on the horses every other night to see if they have enough water and feed. He said he follows the recommendations of his veterinarian and is fully cooperating with authorities.
To add to the confusion, three veterinarians sent to examine the animals left with different opinions. However, all three agreed that the horses were underfed.
One veterinarian, Diane Noll of New London, who was sent by the Cedar Rapids-based Iowa Equine Rescue and Awareness League, went a step further and ruled that the animals are suffering neglect and abuse.
She said that although "none except the foal were in danger of dying," that this is still a clear case of neglect on the part of Cain.
The foal examined by Noll has milk coming from its nose and a cleft palate. The birth defect that can prove deadly because the condition makes the foal more susceptible to pneumonia -- which the animal had when Noll was there -- from milk inhalation.
Cain said the foal was born that way and that there "ain't nothing I can do about that." He said he's considering ending the foal's misery.
"I'm going to wait and see if he comes out of it. If he don't, I may have to go ahead and put him down," Cain said.
"This should not have reached this far. It's neglect and abuse when it goes this far," Noll said. "What's upsetting to me is that they ruled (no charges) the way they did."
According to her findings, which were sent to Lee County authorities, Noll described the horses as "feeding on an incredibly poor excuse for hay." The hay, she said, was not suitable for consumption. She reported not seeing salt or mineral blocks either.
She found wounds on two of the horses and lice on three.
But the other experts did not see it that way.
"The days I was there they were in pretty good shape," said Don Shannon, a Fort Madison veterinarian sent by the sheriff's office June 6.
"I have been in several of these (abuse cases), and I know what to look for," he said. "There's no basis for abuse, and there's a lot to look for in abuse."
Shannon said that based on his observation, the animals showed no signs or symptoms of disease and that the animals just needed to be fed more.
"These animals are not in the abuse category. There's no evidence," Shannon said.
Van Buren veterinarian Bill Helling, sent by Cain, agreed.
"They were underfed but not abused," Helling said.
Helling added that he recommended ways Cain could care for and look after the foal.
With regard to the other horses, Helling said, "more hay and feed" is what's needed.
"I have seen worse cases," Helling said. "This is case is more of a neglect issue."
These opinions were sent to the sheriff's department who turned it over to the Lee County Attorney's office.
Sheriff Buck Jones said the equine rescue league has asked him to look into the allegations.
Jones said he had notified Lee County Attorney Michael Short on the findings who in turn decided that no charges are warranted.
"The county attorney won't prosecute," Jones said.
Short was unavailable Friday. He had not replied to an e-mail request for comment.
Lee County Assistant County Attorney Gordon Liles did not return a phone call Friday.
But how can experts disagree on seeing the same set of animals?
"Shannon is not on the same page," said Karla Siebert, president of the equine rescue league.
Siebert said that her calls into the county attorney's office inquiring about a reason for the decision not to prosecute, have not been returned.
"I want to stress to officials there to stop this now," Siebert said adding, that she was notified that the investigation on the matter has seized.
"I don't believe that this is going to be over," she said.
Case UpdatesA Montrose man whom authorities accused of starving and neglecting eight horses and one foal was fined $334 after he pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty.
Michael Jacob Cain, 30, pleaded guilty in Lee County court.
The charge was the result of an investigation earlier this summer into complaints that Cain wasn't properly caring for the horses he was keeping on pasture land he was renting.
Residents complained to the Lee County sheriff's office that the horses often were left without water and food for days.
Cain has moved the horses, which are now kept on pasture rented in Henry County. | Source: Des Moines Register - Sept 8, 2007
Update posted on Sep 17, 2007 - 9:33PM |
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