27 dead or dying animals seized from property
Enumclaw, WA (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Jan 19, 2010
County: King
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Karen Elizabeth Thomas
An Enumclaw woman is facing animal cruelty charges on allegations that authorities were forced to remove 27 dead or dying animals from her property.
Of the 16 horses found by King County Animal Care and Control staff on Karen Elizabeth Thomas' Enumclaw farm, one was dead and another nine had to be put down due to severe malnutrition, according to charging documents filed against Thomas.
Animal control officers were called to Thomas' home in November following a report that her horses were emaciated, according to charging documents. In addition to a dead horse, investigators found 10 dead chickens and a dead sheep.
Though nine of her horses were euthanized and the remains of the tenth were removed, the remaining seven horses were in satisfactory condition and were left at the property.
Officers returned on Jan. 19 to the property in the 23500 block of Southeast 448th Street after a neighbor reported seeing a dead llama near Thomas' barn.
Arriving at the scene, animal control officers found the remains of a llama, a calf, three sheep and a newborn goat. The remaining animals on the property appeared to have begun chewing wooden posts due to lack of food.
"A paddock and pasture that held four horses and three cattle was deep in manure, mud, urine and water," Sgt. David Morris said in court documents.
"The fence boards, posts and construction lumber were heavily chewed on," Morris continued. "The horses stood with their heads hanging low and the cattle bellowed."
Of the horses recovered from the property, four were taken to a horse rescue center while a fifth appeared healthy and was taken elsewhere. All of the dead animals, except for the newborn goat, were found to have been starved.
Speaking with investigators, Thomas allegedly claimed she fed the animals 1 ½-to-two bails of hay daily, about half of what the animals would need to sustain themselves, according to charging documents.
Thomas has been charged with two counts of first-degree animal cruelty. She has not been jailed in the case. References |
