WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |One horse found dead, 2 more malnourished at farm
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By Barbara Czura - bio | email
Posted by Dana Franks - email
GUNTERSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - One horse was found dead and two more horses are recovering after being found by authorities on a Marshall County farm in bad condition. In the meantime, an Arab woman is facing animal abuse charges.
The investigation all started from a tip into the WAFF 48 newsroom from a concerned neighbor, asking for our help.
Wayne Larue lives off Landmark Drive in Arab. He contacted WAFF 48 News when he noticed his neighbor's horses in bad shape.
"They were in pretty good shape when they got them," Larue said. "Kept going downhill and downhill."
Ribs and bones were showing on two horses who were barricaded inside a wooden fence at the location Thursday. With hardly any place to roam, they were knee-deep in mud and feces. They had no water and hardly any edible food.
Larue said he believes a third horse had been dead for several days. He said he thinks the horse tried to break free to find food and died along the way.
"I just hope somebody sees it and gets something done about it," Larue told WAFF 48 News. "Give them a good place to live or whatever."
Larue said he never filed a report, so WAFF 48 News got on the phone and contacted the Marshall County Sheriff's Office. Minutes later, a team of investigators arrived on the scene.
"Animal cruelty is a terrible thing," said Marshall County Sheriff Scott Walls. "We really actively pursue people that are abusing animals. And unfortunately it happens and we have to deal with those things."
Walls' office has ordered the owner to bury the horse in its tracks in 24 hours. The other two horses will be seized and taken to a farm on Sand Mountain to recuperate.
As for the homeowner, Holleigh Andries finally arrived home several hours later. Investigators said she claimed the horses were being fed. WAFF 48 News asked her for an on-camera interview, but she declined.
Andries was taken to the Marshall County Sheriff's Office, where she was charged with first-degree cruelty to animals. Her bond was set at $1,000.
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