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| Judge(s): | Scott Eickelberger |
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CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #17395 Rating: 2.0 out of 5
Thursday, Feb 10, 2011
County: Perry
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 1 files available
Defendant/Suspect: Cindy Boyce
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
Humane agents and sheriff's deputies raided a Perry County home Thursday, finding nine malnourished dogs and four horses living in filthy conditions.
The home is in a rural area near Somerset and has been under investigation for two years.
John Price, humane officer with the Perry County Humane Society, said neighbors were concerned about the dogs and horses living on the property.
Conditions inside where something rescuers said they've never seen before.
"It's bad. It's really bad. It doesn't look like those animals have been outside for a long, long time," said Beverly Price, president of the Perry County Humane Society.
"There was a great deal of clutter, disarray in the house, a large amount of animal excrement on the floor. The animals have been tearing up anything they can find to tear up in the house," John Price said.
Agents said every room was the same story and conditions weren't much better outside.
Agents said the horses were left without any food and their water was frozen in the trough.
Rescuers said the horses were underweight, not groomed with unattended leg injuries, and their hooves were split.
"We have watched horses in that barn deteriorate with no water in 90-degree weather," said Tabitha Hamilton, a neighbor.
Hamilton said the conditions have worsened over 16 years.
"This is awesome. This is a great day, to see these animals finally taken out of here," Hamilton said.
The Painted Acres Animal Rescue took custody of the animals to provide treatment and care.
If you suspect a case of animal cruelty or neglect, you are urged to contact your local humane society.
The humane society said they are going to charge the homeowner, Cindy Boyce, with animal cruelty.
Case Updates
Cyndi Boyce was ordered to spend 30 days in jail and is not allowed to have any animals for two years in a Perry County Court this past week.
Boyce entered no contest pleas to three counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty. Boyce was charged earlier this year with 15 counts of animal cruelty after the Perry County Humane Officer served a search warrant at her home at 10439 Township Road 57 in Roseville and removed horses and dogs from the home.
Visiting Judge Scott Eickelberger ordered Boyce to pay a $900 fine and do 50 hours of community service.
A restitution hearing for the animals' vet fees and care is scheduled for Sept. 29. |
Source: zanesvilletimesrecorder.com - Sep 2, 2011
Update posted on Sep 2, 2011 - 9:42PM |
Cyndi Boyce raised her dogs and horses from birth, and while they were seized by the Perry County Humane Officer, she maintains she never abused or neglected them.
And she said she missed them.
"I can't tell you how bad it's been for me to be without them," said Boyce, who has been charged with 15 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty.
Boyce, of 10439 Township Road 57 in Roseville, entered not guilty pleas Tuesday to the counts in a Perry County court. The charges were filed after the Perry County Humane Officer served a search warrant at Boyce's home in February and removed the animals.
After the court hearing, Boyce said she fed the animals once every day and made sure they had water. Yet when Humane Officer John Price arrived at her home with the warrant, he did not find any food or water for the animals.
One of the dogs, a Weimaraner, was found chained to a pole in the basement of the home.
"I had to chain him down there while I was working," Boyce said. "He had separation anxiety, and if I hadn't, he would have wrecked havoc on my home."
The dog was underweight, Boyce said, because he was not neutered.
"My vet told me the only way that dog could gain weight was to be fixed," Boyce said.
Price started investigating Boyce after receiving repeated phone calls about the condition of the animals. Price said he went to Boyce's home on Jan. 25 and observed a gray gelding with a wound on its left hind leg. A veterinarian who was called to examine the horse said the injured leg could not be saved, and the horse was euthanized.
Price said at that time he also observed the tank in the horse field did not have any water and contained horse feces. The field was littered with debris and broken fence pieces, and only empty grain sacks were found in the barn. A small round bale of hay was on the ground, Price stated.
Three dogs were found outside without any food or water and inadequate shelter, Price reported, and he stated he could hear barking coming from inside the home. A Great Pyrenees dog was seized that day, and Price left Boyce a notice.
But Boyce said she had tried to give the horse medicine for the leg and never knew Price was concerned about the dogs.
"I gave my animals food and water each day," Boyce said. "I was having a round of hay delivered once a week and sometimes twice a week. It's just that the horses went through it. The water situation, well, I was having trouble with my pump and was having to haul water in. It was really cold at that time and the water froze quickly. It was a hard winter."
Boyce said when she got the notice from Price, she did try to call him, but he never returned calls.
"Then the next thing I know is he's at my house taking my dogs and horses," Boyce said. "I told him I would get another home for the horses and had several friends offer to take them. I never knew he was going to take my dogs, though. He never said anything about the dogs."
Boyce said she misses the dogs every day.
"Especially the little Jack Russell, Roudy," Boyce said. "I loved all my dogs, but him the most. He would go everywhere with me."
Boyce has surrendered the 10 dogs and four horses to the humane society, and they are now at Painted Acres Horse Rescue in Zaleski. The animals are doing better, said rescue owner Barbara Booth.
Boyce said she has cleaned up her home, which had trash and debris including animal feces throughout at the time of the search warrant.
"I've got it painted and new furniture," Boyce said. "I'm really trying to turn my life around."
Boyce was released by retired Fairfield County Common Pleas Judge John Luse on a $11,250 own recognizance bond and no pretrial date has been scheduled.
If convicted of all charges, Boyce faces up to 90 days in jail for each count and a $750 fine for each count. |
Source: zanesvilletimesrecorder.com - May. 25, 2011
Update posted on May 25, 2011 - 8:46PM |
While the animals taken from a Perry County home in February are recovering, their owner has been charged with 15 counts of animal cruelty.
Cyndi Boyce, of 10439 Township Road 57, of Roseville faces 90 days in jail for each count and a fine of $750 for each count. Animal cruelty is a second-degree misdemeanor. She will be arraigned in a Perry County court Tuesday.
Ten dogs and three horses were removed from Boyce's home in February after the Perry County Humane Officer John Price received numerous complaints about the treatment and condition of the animals. At the time Price called it one of the worst cases of animal abuse he had seen.
Boyce did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Price said he is going to recommend Boyce never be allowed to own another animal and that she pay for all veterinarian fees and treatments.
"I would like to see her fined, too," Price said. "I want people to understand they aren't allowed to treat animals like this. I will be recommending jail time or probation."
Price, according to court records, was at Boyce's home on Jan. 25 and observed a gray gelding with a wound on its left rear leg. A veterinarian who was called to examine the horse said the injured leg could not be saved and the horse was euthanized.
Price also reported the tank in the horse field had no water but contained horse feces; the field was littered with debris and broken fence pieces. Only empty grain sacks were found in the barn, but a small round bale of hay was on the ground.
Three dogs were found outside without any food or water and inadequate shelter, Price reported, and he could hear barking coming from inside the home.
Price seized a Great Pyrenees dog that day and left Boyce an impound notice.
When Price contacted Boyce about the animals, she informed him she had been treating the horse with the injured leg with penicillin shots. Boyce also told Price, according to court records, the water pressure at her home was bad and she would be getting it repaired.
On Feb. 10, Price arrived back at Boyce's home with rescue volunteers with the Painted Acres Horse Rescue in Zaleski.
Again, Price reported finding dogs chained outside without any food or water and the water in the tank for the horses was frozen.
After entering the home, Price said he found the house in "considerable disarray" with trash, urine, dog feces and debris littering the floors of the home.
Mice scattered as Price and his volunteers searched the home, attempting to catch the six dogs inside â€" two Jack Russells, two Papillons, one German short-haired pointer and a Weimaraner that was chained in the basement, he said.
All the dogs and horses were drastically underweight, Price said.
While the volunteers caught three of the horses, a Mustang eluded any attempt to put a halter on him. It took several days before the Mustang could be captured.
Now, three months later, the Mustang and another horse have been adopted, as have several of the dogs.
"It's amazing what love and care will do," said Barbara Booth, owner of Painted Acres Animal Rescue, who took most of the dogs and all the horses that day. "They have all changed so much. Not just are they healthy and gaining weight, but they're happy."
Booth said a friend of hers adopted the Mustang and a mare now lives in Marietta.
"That Mustang, boy, he's something else," Booth said. "He lets you come up to him now and actually let my friend get on his back. He's got quite the personality."
One of the horses, a white gelding, has gained 300 pounds while another brown male has gained 150 pounds.
"They like to eat and they need to eat," Booth said. "None of the horses even look the same."
As for the dogs, Booth said the Weimaraner has a completely changed personality.
When volunteers first attempted to bring the dog out of the house and put him in a crate, it snapped and snarled at anyone near.
"Now he's a perfect angel," Booth said. "He's harmless. He's gained more than 30 pounds and has turned into a real big boy. I don't think he knew what to do when we let him run in the yard at first. I think he had been chained to a pole in that basement all his life. He's just a different dog."
Two of the dogs are receiving heartworm treatments, Booth said.
"They were all so underweight and just didn't know that people could be nice to them," said Booth. "Now they know." |
Source: zanesvilletimesrecorder.com - May. 18, 2011
Update posted on May 18, 2011 - 8:15PM |
References
« OH State Animal Cruelty Map
« More cases in Perry County, OH
