Rescued mini horses recover after severe neglect in North Carolina; gain 40 pounds each
By Justin Berger
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POLK COUNTY, North Carolina (WLOS) — Warning: This story describes and has images pertaining to animal cruelty that may be disturbing.
Four severely malnourished mini horses that were surrendered to Polk County Animal Control in April are on the mend.
Dr. Emily Setlakwe, a veterinarian at Tryon Equine Hospital, examined the four minis just a few days after the animals were surrendered at The Sanctuary at Red Bell Run.
“They had just arrived and they were all very, very, very thin, just a rack of bones,” Setlakwe said. “They had heavy lice infestations; they had some overgrown feet that were infected and overall were just in really bad shape… all of them had some degrees of sand in their intestinal tracks and this can be a reflection of they didn’t really have much else to eat at that time.”
Setlakwe said the four horses, named Opal, Quinn, Butterscotch and Griffin, have come a long way. All four of them have put on at least 40 pounds.
“The overfeeding or improper feeding can lead to metabolic issues and sometimes can actually result in death of the animals when they’ve been emaciated for many, many months,” Setlakwe said.
Mary Adams founded The Sanctuary at Red Bell Run, where the minis have been for the last five months; it’s an equine facility for animals with special medical needs.
“When these animals came in, everybody was in tears,” Adams said. Quinn, the worst off of the four has made an astounding recovery, but still thinks sand is food. That’s why the always walks on mats, to prevent her from accessing the sand.
But there’s good news too, Quinn has actually gained so much wait that she needs to lose five pounds.
Butterscotch is a dwarf and will eventually move to a specialized sanctuary to address her ongoing medical issues.
Adams said the sanctuary has spent $22,000 in direct medical care for the four minis.
“Ninety percent of the animals you see on this sanctuary were in that shape when they were first rescued so we’re very experienced at it,” she said.
Maddisonrose Quiles, AKA Sprinkle and Jabin Sprinkle were convicted in Polk County District court on Wednesday of four counts, each, of Misdemeanor Animal Cruelty charges. Sprinkle and Quiles were sentenced to a year of supervised probation, and they must get a license for their petting zoo.
Polk County Animal Control’s Patti Lovelace estimated they still have about 150 animals and will be conducting the first welfare check next week.
“I’m glad that we got the truth out about these people, I understand there’s been complaints for years,” Lovelace said. “We’re going to come in unannounced, and they have to be ready for us when we get over there so hopefully, they will be.”
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Kevin Harrington7-9473
