Pat Raia
Pat Raia is a professional journalist who has covered horse industry and equestrian topics for a number of publications. Her background includes riding, showing, and training Saddlebred horses.
Articles by Pat Raia
Restitution Set in Finger Lakes Horse Abuse Case
December 18, 2008
Geraldine Trupia, the Troupsburg, N.Y., breeding farm owner who pleaded guilty to two counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty for allegedly starving 82 horses in her care, was ordered to pay $45,000 to cover expenses for the horses seized by Read More
Some Wild Mares to Receive Contraceptives
December 16, 2008
About 70 wild mares from the Cedar Mountain herd in Utah will receive the contraceptive porcine zona pellucida (PZP) as part of a joint effort between the Bureau of Land Read More
Washington Horse Rescue Operator Sentenced in Cruelty Case
December 11, 2008
Dean Solomon, the former operator of two equine rescues in Washington state who pleaded guilty to four counts of second degree animal cruelty, was sentenced to 24 months supervised probation and 30 days of community service during her Dec. 4 Read More
Shot New Mexico Horse Gets New Home
December 08, 2008
Miracle, the 24-year-old mare who survived a trek in the New Mexico desert after suffering multiple gunshot wounds to the head, has a new home and could soon join a new adoptive family. Miracle arrived at The Horse Shelter in Cerrillos, N.M., on Read More
Massachusetts Euthanasia Case to Trial in February
December 05, 2008
A long-standing Massachusetts animal cruelty case drew closer to its resolution on Thursday when Worcester Central District Judge Thomas Sullivan slated the jury trial of Elliot Saffran for Feb. 5. Saffran, of Milford, Read More
Walking Horses Get WEG Participation Nod
December 02, 2008
The Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association will get a chance to show the world that their horses are versatile and sound now that officials with the World Equestrian Games Foundation have decided to allow them to perform in Read More
Shot Horse Gets New Home and Name
November 24, 2008
Trooper, the 6-year-old Arabian gelding shot in the head and abandoned in the Deschutes National Forest in Oregon now has a new home, a new name, and a future helping kids in need.
Horse Owners Utilize Low-Cost Euthanasia Service; Castration Clinics Also Planned
November 20, 2008
How would Northern California horse owners respond to a low-cost euthanasia clinic? That was a question Tawnee Preisner, operator of NorCal Equine Rescue in Oroville, Calif., asked herself earlier this year when she offered to organize $25 Read More
Breeder Offers to Establish Wild Horse Preserve
November 19, 2008
Wild horses residing in U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) holding facilities could get help from an influential friend if the agency accepts Madeleine Pickens' offer to establish a lifetime sanctuary for the 30,000 unadoptable horses otherwis Read More
New York Farm Operator Sentenced
November 15, 2008
Geraldine Trupia, the operator of a New York breeding farm from which authorities seized a herd of horses in August, appeared in Troupsburg Town Court for sentencing this week. Now she's speaking out on the circumstances of her case. Read More
Government's Wild Horse Euthanasia Advice Not Unexpected
November 12, 2008
Wild Horse advocate Karen Sussman said she wasn't surprised that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended euthanasia as an option of last resort for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wild horse and burro management Read More
Kansas Trainer Vows Court Fight Over Relocated Horses
November 10, 2008
Kansas horse trainer Tammy Blase vowed to challenge landlord Scott Becker and his family in court on grounds that he violated their lease agreement by ordering the Nov. 4 removal of 59 horses from Mount Bethel Farm in Meriden, Kan., without firs Read More
Washington Hearings Tackle Horse Farm Tax Issues
November 10, 2008
Operators of horse boarding and training farms in Washington state are poised to pack Department of Revenue hearing chambers Nov. 13 to convince the agency that their businesses should be included in statutory definitions Read More
Horses Grab Headlines in Kansas Financial Dispute
November 07, 2008
A group of 59 horses became the subject of a Jackson County, Kan., police investigation this week after they were reported stolen, then recovered, and then revealed to be collateral in a financial dispute between a Meriden, Kan., farm owner and Read More
Former Rescue Operator Pleads Guilty to Animal Cruelty
November 07, 2008
Former equine rescue operator Dean Solomon pleaded guilty to four counts of second degree animal cruelty under a plea agreement entered during her King County, Wash., Superior Court appearance on Nov. 6.
Solomon operated the Pacific Read More
Traps Threaten Massachusetts Trail Riders
November 06, 2008
Police in Lincoln, Mass., are warning equestrians to be on the lookout for green floral wire and strings with hanging mousetraps stretched across public trails, presumably to injure horses and riders. Mounted Massachusetts State Read More
Appeals Court Date Set in Grass Lake Horse Abuse Case
November 04, 2008
Lawyers on both sides of a long-running and controversial Michigan horse abuse case will argue whether or not felony charges against Matt Mercier and James Henderson, Jr., should be Read More
Reward Offered for Information in California Horse Shooting Case
November 03, 2008
Michael and Marianne Rountree, the owners of a pair of tobiano Paint horses found shot and killed in their pasture, are offering a $20,000 reward to anyone with information leading to the capture of the horses' assailant. The couple Read More
Keeping Stalled Horses Happy
November 01, 2008
Angela Riddle gave her barn operators strict orders to turn her Tennessee Walking Horse Amicus Mack out for a full day at least twice each Read More
Wrangler Charged in Oregon Horse Shooting
October 31, 2008
A former employee of an Oregon youth camp faces multiple criminal charges in connection with the shooting and abandonment of Trooper, a 6-year-old Arabian gelding discovered wandering in the Deschutes National Forest with a gunshot Read More
Effort to Match Seized New York Horses, Owners Continues
October 30, 2008
Eight weeks after seizing 85 allegedly malnourished Thoroughbred horses from a Troupsburg, N.Y., breeding farm, authorities with the Finger Lakes Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) are still trying to match the Read More
Trail Horses Included in Resort Bankruptcy Auction
October 27, 2008
Operators of the Double JJ Resort and Ranch in Rothbury, Mich., are hopeful that the resort's 94 horses will find new homes when the company's assets are liquidated at bankruptcy auction on Oct. 30. Owners ceased operations on Sept. 3 after Read More
Oregon Summit Reviews Abandoned Horse Issues
October 24, 2008
U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer Fred Perl came face-to-face with the plight of unwanted horses on Oct. 17 when he assisted in the rescue of Trooper, a 6-year-ol Read More
Reward Offered for Information on Shot, Abandoned Horse
October 23, 2008
An unidentified resident of Deschutes County, Ore., is offering a $1,000 reward for information about the shooting and abandonment of Trooper, a 6-year-old Arabian gelding. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer Fred Perl and a Read More
California Family Pleads Not Guilty in Horse Abuse Case
October 21, 2008
Members of the California family accused of mistreating horses at their Ventura County Ranch pleaded not guilty to 14 counts of felony animal abuse/neglect at their Oct. 16 arraignment in Ventura Superior Court. Wendy Macfarlane Read More
