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Case ID: 2774

Classification: Neglect / Abandonment

Animal: horse

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Horse neglect, found with sores, 6 inch hooves
Colusa County, CA (US)

Incident Date: Saturday, Oct 2, 2004
County: Colusa

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 3 files available

Defendants/Suspects:
» Sally Keaton
» Clark Friel - Alleged

Case Updates: 3 update(s) available

Felony animal abuse charges have been filed in Colusa County against a Yolo County woman on suspicion she did not provide care for a horse. Sally Keaton, 52, of Dunnigan, was charged with animal cruelty and permitting an animal to go without proper care, according to Pamela Craig, an investigator with the Colusa County District Attorney's Office.

Keaton has not been arrested, Craig said, but the mare was seized Saturday.

"It's really an unfortunate lesson in a severe neglect case," said Cindy Machado, animal services director and a horse specialist for the American Humane Society in Marin County.

The horse, corralled in College City near Arbuckle, suffered from a fly infestation and hooves over 6 inches long, Craig said. The horse also had sores on its hips, which could be due to the horse falling and not being able to get back on its feet, Craig said.

A volunteer with the Colusa County Animal Control Unit inspected the horse and found it with a severe fly infestation. Investigators took photos of the horse and showed them to a veterinarian, who recommended the horse be seized, Craig said.

The county animal control unit received complaints that the horse's hooves were overgrown and curled up and the horse was having difficulty walking, Craig said.

Machado said a horse's hooves grow one-eighth to one-half inch every month and should be trimmed every six to eight weeks.

County officials notified the College City property owner, Clark Friel, but he said he sold the horse to Keaton a year ago and that she never came to pick the horse up despite numerous requests, Craig said.

Friel told investigators that since the horse wasn't his property, he wasn't responsible for her care. Craig said the District Attorney's Office plans to investigate his claim.

Friel told investigators he last saw Keaton visiting the horse about two and a half weeks ago, Craig said.

"It is having extreme difficulty walking, (it's) obviously in a huge amount of pain," Craig said. The horse appeared underweight, she said, and there were no signs of hay bales in the horse's corral.

"I think she was grazing off weeds in the field," she said.

The horse was transferred to a foster home Saturday before it goes today to the University of California, Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital's Large Animal Clinic.

The horse will undergo therapy for up to a year, possibly longer, depending on the damage, Machado said.

"It's going to take the horse time to get normal hooves again, if they can be rehabilitated," Craig said.

Keaton arrived at the corral while investigators were preparing to move the animal, Craig said. Keaton clipped the horse's hooves and in the process caused the horse more pain than was necessary, Craig said.

"Keaton was on scene and kept requesting we release the horse to her," Craig said. Investigators denied Keaton's request. Veterinarians tranquilized the horse and loaded it into a vehicle by forklift, Craig said.

Keaton claimed she attended Porterville Horse Shoeing School and is a trained farrier, Craig said.

Although the horse's hooves are now clipped, it is still having extreme difficulty walking, Craig said.

The cost of care and treatment will be set as a lien against Keaton's home.

The horse's condition isn't fixed simply by clipping the hooves, Machado said. In cases like this, the hooves need to be X-rayed because the bone may reach down into part of the hoof and cutting it off can cause severe problems for the horse, she said.

Also, the horse may suffer muscle pain from a sudden change to its feet. Machado likened it to a woman in high heels changing into sandals.

"Your feet get sore," she said.

In the wild, horse's hooves are naturally trimmed by running and crossing rocky terrain. Domestication, confinement and diet have reduced a horse's ability to trim its own hooves, Machado said.

Despite the suffering she endured, Machado said, the horse is in remarkably good spirits.

Case Updates

References

• - Oct 6, 2004