Horse Abuse Case: Man drags horse with truck

I couldn't believe this:
http://nwanews.com/story.php?paper=bcdr§ion=News&storyid=26410

Trevor McKinley tied a horse to a truck and dragged it until the horse collapsed from exhaustion. The horse had severe dehydration from loss of sweat and the hooves had been worn down to the bones. (!!!!)

This 'man' said that the horse tried to bite his children.
Apparently he bought the horse for his daughter and is claiming "ignorance" (right, like someone can drag an animal half to death and think it's OK...)

A jury will decide whether he is guilty of abuse or if he was just "ignorant" (In my opinion, that's just as bad).

The news story doesn't mention if the horse will live or not, but if an injury is so bad as to have worn away the sole of the hoof, I doubt the horse will make it. Even cases of founder where a horse's bone has come through the sole of the hoof are mostly fatal because the sensitive laminae is easily infected and has a hard time healing. Injuries to the sensitive laminae of a horse's hoof are extremely painful (think splinters jammed under your toenails) and the amount of pain this horse must have experienced is unthinkable. I hope the horse is receiving proper veterinary care.

I've never seen, or heard of anyone, going so far as to work a horse to the point of collapse. It's unheard of. He must have dragged the horse an incredible distance to cause it to be dehydrated nearly to the point of death.

Now, he and his lawyers are trying to claim "ignorance". What kind of an excuse is that?? What kind of a lawyer would take this case? You can't do a thing as barbaric as this man did out of 'ignorance'. You just can't. After a short time the horse would begin to sweat, stumble, and limp as its hooves wore away. A person could never let a horse get to such bad shape unless they were intentionally trying to hurt it.


The sad part is, if he's convicted, he faces a maximum of a year in jail or $1,000 fine or both. Most horses cost more than tha.
If he had done this to another person's horse, he'd be facing several thousand dollars in veterinary bills plus the price of the horse. I just don't see a $1,000 fine being enough.

I wonder what breed/age/sex the horse is (its a male) and if it will live. If anyone has more info let me know. If I find more info I'll post it.

Some people should never have horses.

*rant over*

Teacher Rides to Work

Doesn't sound like a bad idea! Save gas, enjoy your horse, and get some fresh air by riding to work:

Carl McKeeth, a high school teacher in Wisconsin, decided to saddle up and ride to work after gas prices hit $3/gallon. He says it saves him more than $40/week on gas. It takes him an hour and 13 minutes to ride his horse from his home to Arcadia High Shool. The principal allowed him to build a pen to keep his horse at the school.

You might enjoy our newest joke: Save Gas, Ride a Horse