Pat Raia

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

52 Horses Seized from California Ranch, Multiple Felony Charges Handed Down

October 15, 2008

Three members of a California family have been arrested and charged with multiple counts of felony animal abuse in connection with the alleged mistreatment of horses at their Ventura County ranch. Jane Bor, her son Ernie, and daughter-in-law Read More

Horse Rescue Offers Low-Cost Euthanasia Clinic

October 15, 2008

NorCal Equine Rescue in Oroville, Calif., will offer a low-cost euthanasia clinic on Dec. 17 for owners who, due to economic or other reasons, are unable to care for their horses. Owners will be charged $25 for the euthanasia Read More

Jury Trial for Massachusetts Euthanasia Case

October 14, 2008

Elliot Saffran, the Milford, Mass., man accused of animal cruelty for refusing to euthanize his mare, appeared in Uxbridge District Court on Oct. 14 and requested that his case be transferred to another court for trial before a jury.

"He Read More

Some California Horses Waiting Fire Out at Holding Facilities

October 14, 2008

Horses evacuated from fire zones in Ventura County, Calif. are residing in temporary holding facilities at the county fairgrounds while firefighters battle the latest round of wildfires sweeping the region.

According to Capt. John Alford of Read More

Sport Horse Enthusiasts Eye Thoroughbred Market

October 07, 2008

Tennessee equestrian and horse breeder Lisa Cook wanted a Thoroughbred mare to breed to her Thoroughbred stallion, but perceived high prices always prevented her from buying one at high profile auctions such as Kentucky's Keeneland sale. Bu Read More

SPCA Uses Public Education to Garner Horse Abuse Tips

October 07, 2008

New York's Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) rarely receives more than seven tips relating to horse cruelty per month. But after the agency seized five allegedly malnourished horses from a barn in Read More

Owners React to N.Y. Abuse Plea Deal

October 04, 2008

When she learned that Geraldine Trupia pleaded guilty to two counts of animal cruelty for neglecting horses at her Steuben County, N.Y., breeding farm, Quakertown, Pa., horse owner Virginia Stack was too focused on bringing her Thoroughbred mare Read More

Plea Deal Accepted in New York Breeding Farm Case

October 03, 2008

Geraldine Trupia, the operator of a New York breeding farm where authorities seized a herd of malnourished horses in August, plead guilty to two counts of Class A misdemeanor animal cruelty under a plea agreement unveiled during her Read More