Horse neglect alleged
Hutchinson, KS (US)

Incident Date: Wednesday, Apr 8, 2009
County: Reno

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Lindasue Adams

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

A Hutchinson woman accused of neglecting her horses appeared in court Wednesday morning, where she pleaded innocent to the misdemeanor charge.

Meanwhile, county officials are checking up on the woman's herd. Out of the 15 horses on her land, the health of at least four horses has been called into question. By Wednesday, the four horses had been put in their own pen with their own bale of hay, and hay bales had been provided for the rest of the herd as well.

The owner, Lindasue Adams, said she has been feeding the horses all winter on her six acres at 3725 E. 69th Ave. north of Hutchinson. She said she had not put out hay this winter as a way to save costs, instead feeding a mix of commercial sweet feed from the co-op, along with alfalfa pellets and alfalfa cubes.

Deputies had also reported that the grass in the horse pens was gone. Adams said that was intentional - she had let the grass get grazed down last fall and had intended to re-seed this spring, but had not yet been able to because of the unfavorable weather.

Reno County Sheriff Randy Henderson said the county's veterinarian, Dr. Ronald Keeler, had inspected the herd and had identified six that needed to be separated. Adams said the number was four.

Keeler also identified a nutrition plan of hay, as well as specific feed for the horses.

Adams said the four horses in question do have health problems - but not because of lack of care.

She rescued one of the horses from an acquaintance who could no longer care for the animal because of health problems. Adams said the horse was malnourished when she got it, but it had slowly been putting on weight.

Another horse, a mare, had distemper when she got it, Adams said, and despite frequent vet checks had been having a slow recovery.

A third horse experienced health problems after giving birth, and the fourth horse was that mare's mother, who Adams said had always been a "hard keeper" (to keep weight on.)

The older horse had also turned surly, evidenced by nip marks from her fellow horses, Adams said.

Adams said the concerns probably came from a mid-February incident in which a neighbor showed up with her children and asked to feed the horses.

The 13-year-old daughter was nipped above the eye while feeding one of the horses, Adams said. Eventually, the Reno County Health Department required that the horse be quarantined as a precaution for several days.

Before that, a deputy had called her in January after receiving a report expressing concern that the horses weren't being fed. Adams said after discussing her nutrition plan for the animals, the deputy seemed satisfied and did not call back.

After the February incident, Adams said she received a notice in the mail around April 1 regarding an arrest warrant for the misdemeanor charge of cruelty to animals. She went to the county jail, where she went through the booking process and was notified of a court date.

The most recent troubles came Sunday morning, Adams said, when she caught another neighbor climbing over the fence panels into the pasture. After getting into a disagreement with the woman, Adams said she called deputies.

Henderson said he did not know enough about horses to comment on whether their condition was due to ongoing health problems or not. He said Keeler determined the animals in question were 100 to 200 pounds underweight.

Henderson said deputies would continue to monitor the situation as they patrol that area.

A hearing has been scheduled for April 28.

Case Updates

References

• - April 10, 2009
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