Severe horse neglect
Benton, LA (US)Incident Date: Monday, Jan 31, 2005
County: Bossier
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Susie Phillips
A horse, a 24-year-old Kentucky thoroughbred named Times Square, is recovering from an animal cruelty case that authorities say amounted to eight months of starvation.
Times Square, weighed about 500 pounds when he was rescued in February by his owner of McKinney, Texas. Horses normally weigh 900 pounds or more.
Times Square's bones protrude awkwardly through his skin - the beginning signs that flesh is returning to his body after nearly two months of regular feeding. Trainers say it will take as long as a year for him to return to his regular weight.
Investigators with the state Department of Agriculture and Forestry believe Times Square was not given proper feed from last June until late January. "This horse was in dire need of action being taken" when he was found, investigator John Terrell said.
A veterinarian report on Times Square's condition - ranked by a number system of 10 being the best and one being the worst - was a one, he stated.
Susie Phillips, 48, of Plain Dealing, was paid to take care of the horse at Ceder Hill Farm near Plain Dealing. She was booked with a misdemeanor count of simple cruelty to an animal, Bossier Parish sheriff's spokesman Ed Baswell stated.
Times Square started out as a race horse until an injury sidelined him. Rottler bought him and converted him to a jump and show horse. After a long career jumping hurdles and winning prizes, Times Square was retired in 2000.
Rottler said she could have sold him, but because he was her first horse, she kept him.
For the past seven years Rottler paid Phillips $250 a month to care for her horse. But for some reason, investigators believe, Phillips apparently stopped feeding Times Square in June, all the while taking the money that should have paid for him to be fed twice a day and provided him with clean water and cover in the winter.
With her job and the distance from her home to Plain Dealing, Time Squares owner stated she was unable to visit regularly and was oblivious to the situation. On Jan. 31, the owner received a letter from Phillips stating she had moved to Shreveport.
References
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