NEED TO KNOW
- A video of a horse experiencing his freedom for the first time after being left neglected and malnourished is going viral
- In the video, the horse named Thunder runs around an open pasture, where police brought him to be rehabilitated
- The homeowner responsible for Thunder and several other animals found on the farm was arrested and charged by Polk County Sheriff’s Office in Florida
A young horse is free after living his life in horrific conditions.
Officers from the Polk County Animal Cruelty Investigations Unit in Florida received a tip that two undernourished horses were seen on a farm in Lake Wales, according to a press release. A video of one of the horses — named Thunder — jumping for joy after being rescued is going viral.
“This is his first time ever experiencing a pasture and being able to run free (well somewhat free) and he is loving it,” the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) wrote in a June 3 Facebook post. “He was kept in a very small stall in a dark barn and never turned out to pasture.”
Upon the 2-year-old Paso Fino horse’s rescue, he was taken to a wide-open pasture and stable, where Thunder was relocated to rehabilitate him back to health.
Police found Thunder in an “extremely skinny” and “malnourished” state with his bones protruding, according to the press release. The other horse, found on the farm about 60 miles east of Tampa, died.
“Another was laying on the ground in its own feces, unable to lift its head, and barely breathing — this horse succumbed to its severe neglect and was deceased by the time detectives arrived,” the press release read.
Detectives found six other horses, 11 goats and two sheep also living in the horrific conditions.
“Piles of solid waste, including rotting household trash, scrap metal, waste wood, 23 tires, hundreds of flies, and broken appliances, were scattered about,” per the press release. “Detectives also located a trough filled with a mixture of antifreeze and gasoline, leaking into water that the animals were then drinking.”
Police arrested the homeowner Joemanuel Nunez-Suarez and charged him with felony animal cruelty.
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Nunez-Suarez claimed that the three horses living in inhumane conditions belonged to a friend whom he told to come pick up the animals three months ago because it was too expensive to provide them with food.
Two suspects were charged with environmental crimes, two others were charged with resisting arrest and “all of the animals were seized by PCSO and will be rehabilitated,” the release stated.
“We appreciate the tipster who alerted us to the deplorable conditions on this property,” PCSO Sheriff Grady Judd said in statement. “It’s a shame we were unable to save one of the abused horses, but we will make it our mission to rehabilitate all of the animals that were subjected to this filth and neglect, and ensure these suspects are never again allowed to own animals.”
Read the full article here
