ALove4Horses.com » Animal Cruelty Leads to Mass Deaths of Horses in Lassen County CA

Animal Cruelty Leads to Mass Deaths of Horses in Lassen County CA

Joni — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 21:36:16 +0000

This was emailed to me today by Beth Decaprio of The Grace Foundation in California:

Hi, I am writing to you today on behalf of The Grace Foundation of Northern California. We are trying to spread the word about a horrific animal cruelty case that we have been working with. This man has been accused of killing over 25 horses living on his property, Whispering Pines, and neglecting and starving over 50 more. Our rescue took in the over 50 survivors when the bank foreclosed on his property, but now that hes has filed for bankruptcy, if he wins the cases the remaining horses will be returned to him as no animal cruelty charges have been filed against him yet. Our goal is to raise awareness of this case, hopefully to a national level, in the hope of preventing future cases like this one. Below is the entire story of this case. Please read the story and consider helping us protect and care for these helpless horses by posting the story on your blog along with a link to our video and our website so your readers will be able to find out how they can help with this case. Thank you for your time.

Please Help End a Horrific Case of Animal Cruelty

This is a story of extreme animal cruelty involving over one hundred horses. Twenty-five of these horses were found dead above ground, with dozens more presumed dead in mass burial sites or “bone pits,” as the owner of the horses has openly admitted.

The story began when cell tower workers that were working adjacent to the property known as “Whispering Pines stables” in Lassen County, CA witnessed a dead dog tied to a tree and many horses dead and dying at the property. These workers had full view of the surviving members of this emaciated herd. The fifty plus starving horses were foraging for food around the corpses of their babies, mothers and friends.

Animal control made contact with Dwight Bennett the owner of Whispering Pines and Mr. Bennett confirmed that he owned the horses at Whispering Pines.

While Mr. Bennett has never denied that dozens of horses were dead and dying on his property and under his care, he has maintained that someone was poisoning the horses. A standard necropsy, performed on any one of the horses that had died could have confirmed or denied the presence of poison but animal control never investigated further.

In April 2011 Mr. Bennett agreed to give Lassen County animal control ownership of twenty of the most severely emaciated horses on his property and two dogs. The Grace Foundation of Northern California was contacted to help with the case and was asked by Lassen County to provide the care for these horses. The Grace Foundation of Northern California brought in their team of experts, including Julie McBride, a licensed therapist who assists with hoarding and cruelty cases, and Dr. Michael W. Russell a veterinarian that specializes in large animal Veterinary care.

The neglect was documented by The Grace Foundation experts. Videos and photos of twenty-three of the dead horses were taken and reports from both Dr. Russell and Ms. McBride clearly stated their professional opinion that all of the animals should be removed from the property.

The Grace Foundation of Northern California took possession of all twenty horses and agreed to cover the majority of the costs for the twenty horses care. The Grace Foundation of Northern California was assured that if they helped with building the case that Lassen would pursue criminal charges and get the rest of the horses removed from Mr. Bennett’s care.

After months of waiting for justice to be served and the person (Dwight A. Bennett) responsible for the deaths of more than 25 horses and the abuse and neglect of over 50 additional horses, to be held accountable, The Grace Foundation of Northern California was absolutely devastated to learn (through a reliable source) that the Lassen County District Attorney, Robert (Bob) Burns, had indicated that for the time being he had NO plans to file charges against Bennett.

While The Grace Foundation of Northern California appreciates and respects the difficult jobs our government officials have been assigned to, they also believe that it is our responsibility to be a voice for our most innocent, even when it may not make us popular with some.

Thankfully, most of the time our system works like it should, but there are many instances when the system becomes “out of order.” When this happens, it is the responsibility of those who have witnessed the break down in the system, to point it out and help get it back on track. This is one of those cases. As it happens, the break in the system did not only affect the animals that were being harmed. Bennett also had two foster children placed into his care. Many of you must be wondering how this could happen? How could this be? That is what The Grace Foundation of Northern California wanted to know, as it certainly appeared our judicial system seemed to have truly failed.

In the kind of plot-twist that would strike moviegoers as implausible, The Grace Foundation of Northern California started to understand just how far back the break in the system seems to be, and just how deep it truly runs. They were shocked to find out that the breech in the system began over three years ago, when calls started coming in to the Lassen County Animal Control regarding potential animal cruelty at Whispering Pines. And that the calls appeared to go unanswered. Maybe it was due to the horses not being in AS bad of condition at that point in time? OR perhaps it was because a Lassen County Animal Control Officer named Judy Waelsch owned and kept a horse at Whispering Pines? That horse was one of the first horses that came to Grace through Whispering Pines in April, which Bennett had surrendered. Ms. Waelsch has since recued herself from this case and the case is now being handled by the Assistant Director of Public Works, Lassen County.

While all of this was going on and 25+ horses were lying dead in the yard of Mr. Bennett’s home, 2 foster children (first a teenage girl, then a teenage boy) were placed in his “care” and as records show in his bankruptcy papers, the foster child is Mr. Bennett’s only source of income.

The Grace Foundation of Northern California knows that sometimes animal cruelty is not taken serious, but they were shocked to think “the break” could affect innocent foster children that are at the mercy of our governing system to keep them safe. Surely, anyone placing children in this man’s care would have visited his home and would have clearly seen the dead horses lying in plain sight of the entrance to the Whispering Pines property? If they missed the dead horses, they absolutely would have had to interview the people living in the dilapidated trailers that litter the property?

The Grace Foundation of Northern California’s shock turned to horror, as they learned that the answer for this breech may have to do with the fact that Mr. Bennett’s son-in-law works for the agency responsible for placement of foster children in Lassen County.

All of the time this was going on, the Whispering Pines property was being foreclosed upon. The foreclosure, which is all too familiar to many of us and is typically a very sad and unfortunate sign of the times, actually became THE “saving grace” for the 36 horses that were still alive on the property! All this, was happening while Lassen County was supposedly about to press charges against Bennett.

A court appointed “Receiver” of the property, which included the 36 living horses, turned out to be the living angel that the horses so desperately needed. Vicki Lozano and her daughter began feeding the Whispering Pines horses 12 bales of hay each day – morning and evening – in July. The horses were finally safe…at least that is what The Grace Foundation of Northern California believed when they were asked to take possession of the remaining horses in August.

Yet, with everything in life, if a break is not properly fixed, the weakness gives way and a catastrophic event can occur . . . that is where this case is today.

Before the State’s ruling on Mr. Bennett’s property could be finalized once and for all, Mr. Bennett filed for bankruptcy during the 11th hour, halting the foreclosure and freezing his assets. Without any animal cruelty charges having EVER been filed against Mr. Bennett by Lassen County Animal Control, he was free to claim that the horses (that had somehow managed to live through his abuse and neglect), were now his only assets! Unbelievably so, Mr. Bennett put a valuation of $195,000 on the horses and made them part of his estate. In addition, this has also left Mr. Bennett free to get more animals and foster more children. All the while, Mr. Bennett openly admits that he does not have the resources to care for the horses – his assets – if he were to get them back! And there is a possibility that this COULD occur, if this blatant wrong is not corrected, and justice does not prevail.

These thirty-six horses now must be held in “protective custody” for an indefinite amount of time as Mr. Bennett’s bankruptcy case goes through the courts. This puts the last 36 surviving horses in danger, but this also will effect the lives of the pregnant mares and the at least 18 confirmed unborn foals, that have somehow miraculously survived this ordeal! (An additional 11 mares may also be pregnant, but that has not yet been confirmed.)

The Grace Foundation of Northern California is now left to carry the financial burden for these horses. The situation became direr when blood tests performed on the female horses revealed that eighteen of the mares are over 45 days pregnant. An additional 11 mares may also be pregnant, but that has not yet been confirmed.

Had Lassen County upheld the California State Law regarding animal cruelty none of this would be happening. The Grace Foundation of Northern California would have been able to move forward with placing these horses in permanent homes and our system of government would have insured that a man responsible for the death of dozens of animals could not harm anymore innocent victims.

The Grace Foundation of Northern California has never felt so determined to see that a case does not just become another tragically sad case of animal cruelty. It is, however, bigger than them and they cannot do it on their own.

That is why The Grace Foundation of Northern California is pleading with each and every one of you to PLEASE help us with this case, in whatever way you possibly can.

Below please find a link an article that ran in the local newspaper, The Lassen Times, a link to a video about three of the horses involved in this case, as well as a link to The Grace Foundation of Northern California’s website.

Lassen article:
http://www.lassennews.com/home/7231-county-officials-review-horse-ranch-information

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ0jZbkVgdM&feature=youtu.be

The Grace Foundation website: www.thegracefoundationofnorcal.org

– end —

I found the following info about this issue online…

Justice for Animals – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Justice-for-Animals/142646019168086

Please help bring horse murderer to justice – http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=13547.15

Grace Foundation and the latest victims of the economic downturn | Ride Magazine

Please take the time to take action and ask for justice for all these poor horses that suffered and died at the hands of this man.

Please re-tweet: #AnimalCruelty Leads to Mass Deaths of #Horses in Lassen County CA http://alove4horses.com/?p=2737 Pls RT

Your Tax Money Is Being Used to Abuse Wild Horses

Joni — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 19:47:19 +0000

Press Release from www.thecloudfoundation.org – Breaking News: Wild Horse Abuse in Utah – http://www.thecloudfoundation.org/index.php/news-events-a-media/press-releases/599-pr-butterfield (Please visit the thecloudfoundation.org for the latest news about the wild horses)

Report exposes abusive conditions at BLM wild horse holding facility in Utah

Cloud Foundation asks Congress to reform Wild Horse and Burro Program

WASHINGTON (April 8, 2011)—The Cloud Foundation received a written report and video documentation from Lisa Friday after her tour last month of BLM’s Butterfield Short Term Wild Horse and Burro Holding Facility (aka Salt Lake City Wild Horse & Burro Center), outside Salt Lake City. Friday was shocked to find wild horses living in unhealthy conditions that would that raise concerns and charges of abuse if they were observed in private facilities.

“When government is facing a shutdown, tax dollars cannot be used for animal cruelty,” states Anne Novak spokesperson for The Cloud Foundation. “We ask Congress to defund the roundups and use that money to help Americans in their time of need.”

The video contains disturbing images of once-wild horses penned in areas where they were unable to navigate out of a knee-deep mixture of mud, manure, and urine. Friday, a wild horse adopter and long-time horsewoman from Richmond, VA; reports of seeing 30 horses laying down in mud and excrement for the entire three hours in which she was at the facility. ”They never got up,” she states.

“I saw more than 10 horses in one pen alone trying to escape the quagmire but their legs were suctioned deep into the mud,” explains Friday.

“Seeing wild horses in this kind of squalor is heart-breaking,” says Ginger Kathrens, Director of The Cloud Foundation who has spent 17 years documenting the wild lives of horses in her Cloud productions for PBS. “I don’t understand how BLM can justify the removal of these animals from the safety of their wild homes, only to dump them into these hellish conditions. I seriously doubt that the American taxpayers want their money used for this kind of cruelty.”

In her report, Friday describes conversations with BLM facility employees who acknowledge that wild horses are not given the required three opportunities to be adopted, but are regularly sent to long term holding for life after only one advertised event—which may be nothing more than one exposure on the internet.

Friday noticed a young mare that was extremely emaciated. The BLM told her the female was a three-year old from a roundup in the Moriah Herd Area of Nevada. The mare was captured 8 months ago; raising another red flag about the care the animals receive in the BLM facility. Friday asked where the sick pens were and was told, “Any pen, which contained a sick animal was a sick pen”. She was told there were pregnant mares in the pens. She asked why she hadn’t seen any foals. The employee replied that there was one foal born. When Friday asked where it was, the employee changed the subject.

“Besides their horrible living conditions, it was disturbing to see how cruelly BLM interacted the horses,” explains Friday. “I was horrified to see horses being moved from pen to pen with the help of a ‘Bobcat’ (small bulldozer).”

“Perhaps this is natural horsemanship, BLM style?” asks Kathrens, a wild horse adopter herself. “Anyone who interacts with our wild horses should be required to go through classes to learn the contemporary techniques taught by so many wonderful clinicians. There is really no excuse for this kind of aggression toward already terrorized animals.”

The Cloud Foundation is sharing Lisa Friday’s report with Congress, asking for an investigation of all holding facilities—especially those on private property that are currently off limits to the public. The Foundation demands that BLM follow the law and allow all young wild horses five years and under three legitimate opportunities to find adoptive homes, before being housed for life at taxpayer expense.

The Cloud Foundation and 200 other organizations continue to call for Congress to withhold money for more roundups until BLM undergoes an overhaul of its broken Wild Horse and Burro Program.

The BLM is currently asking Congress for an additional $12 million to conduct their scheduled summer roundups. More than 40,000 wild horses and burros are housed in holding facilities throughout the US at huge taxpayer expense. The Cloud Foundation estimates that less than 15,000 wild horses remain in the wild. Caroline Betts, PhD, predicts wild horse extinction in 11 years if BLM is allowed to continue removing massive numbers of horses from their legally designated ranges in the West.

“The only way to save the water, land and last wild horses in the American West is to remove the government’s incessantly corrupt Bureau of Land Management…” says Academy Award winner Michael Blake, author of Dances with Wolves.

# # #

Media Contacts:

Anne Novak
anne@thecloudfoundation.org
Tel: 415-531-8454

Lauryn Wachs
lauryn@thecloudfoundation.org
Tel: 617-894-6939

Links of interest:

Lisa Friday’s full report to The Cloud Foundation: http://bit.ly/gHIjLX

Butterfield, UT short term wild horse holding video: http://bit.ly/hWO2fG%20

“High Crimes and Misdemeanors” – American Herds Report: http://bit.ly/gQlaxa

Foundation video calling to Defund the Roundups: http://bit.ly/hL0eOj

Unified Moratorium letter and 200 signatories http://bit.ly/6ck87L

“Wild Horses: Management or Stampede to Extinction?” – Reno Gazette Journal: http://bit.ly/fBCBz9

“Antelope Roundup a Disaster Wild Horses” – Foundation Press Release: http://bit.ly/h0kvEn

54 Members of Congress protest BLM management http://bit.ly/gFJDs1

Independent Report to Defund Roundups: http://bit.ly/gCyiu0

How to contact your Congressmen: http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

Video Report Shows Obama’s BLM Abuse Wild Horses in Short Term Holding (rtfitch.wordpress.com)
Government agency accused of abusing wild horses ()
Roundup Reality (artandhorseslauraleigh.wordpress.com)
BLM “News Release”Fraud? (ppjg.wordpress.com)

The truth about America’s Wild Horses

Joni — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 05:01:54 +0000

What You’ve Come to Believe About the Wild Horse Plight in America is WRONG

This is a copy of a special emailing I was sent from ‘Horse Nation‘:

And by continuing to believe it, you fight a surface war while, underneath it all, the government continues to remove and destroy our wild horses. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is now considering shooting thousands of wild horses it holds in captivity.

RE-EDUCATE YOURSELF ABOUT THE AMERICAN WILD HORSE PLIGHT

We’ve been battling the issue for years: saving wild horses from death in one form or another.

We are asked to believe they are starving to death on the public range due to overpopulation and need to be managed and controlled for their own good.
We are asked to believe they are dying of thirst due to drought conditions in the West (despite that cattle have no trouble finding water sources).
We are asked to believe wild horses are overpopulating and therefore competing with “native” wildlife or endangered species and must be removed from public lands to protect the ecosystems.
And now we’re being asked to believe that the high cost of taking care of unadoptable wild horses is just more than the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) can bear and that the BLM must now consider shooting the thousands of wild horses it holds in captivity.

But these reasons have never been the core root of the wild horse problem. Unfortunately, the above reasons HAVE been the truths even wild horse defenders have come to believe but they are not. They aren’t even close to the truth.

LEARN THE TRUTH ABOUT WHY WILD HORSES ARE BEING “MANAGED” AT ALL http://www.horsenation.info/news/AUMs.html

It will take all of us to come to terms with the core root of this issue and not continue treating the symptoms (via public outcry, writing legislators, etc.). Treating the symptoms all these years has only proven ineffective and it’s costing the wild horse its freedom and rightful place on the American landscape.

RE-EDUCATE YOURSELF ABOUT WHY THE BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT IS REMOVING WILD HORSES FROM THE PUBLIC RANGE IN THE FIRST PLACE

And then let’s talk about serious, effective solutions.

Thank you.

Laura Moretti, Founder

Horse Nation: http://www.horsenation.info

P.S. Please copy/paste the above message, then email it to everyone you know and encourage them to forward it as well. And then please consider encouraging your local media to pick up on this part of the story!

Horse Nation

Note from Joni: Our government is killing our wild horses – most wild horses that our government catches eventually end up at horse slaughter houses.

Lets not have a time when the only place to view wild horses are in photos and videos.

Bush, Oil and Wild Horses
Watch out this video has some images that are hard to watch – but you need to!

Why the Wild Horses are Vanishing – Youtube video

Sheryl Crow & Viggo Mortensen speaks out for the horses – Youtube video

Wild Horses – Youtube video – music and photos of wild horses

Wild Horses Music Video – music and photos of wild horses

This last video is not about wild horses but about government corruption…
BLM Terror

Tags: freedom, government, horse slaughter, horse videos, horses, wild horses

Natural Herbal blends now classified as drugs

Joni — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:40:36 +0000

State of California claiming herbal blends for horses are categorized as – remedies – and therefore have to be registered as – veterinary drugs – !

by Jessica of Earth Song Ranch November 2008.

I am not sure what the State Department of Ag is up to, although it is apparent the new director wants to make a name for herself! I am sure it is in conjunction with the FDA and trying to stop us being able to use as well as manufacturer products that treat – disorders – in a natural and cost effective manner.

They, the State of California Department of Ag, are now targeting any and all companies doing business in the state using any kind of herbal blend for animal use to register that blend as a – veterinary drug – at the cost of $180 per product including Earth Song Ranch products yet that is not a guarantee of being able to sell that product, they have decided to interpret their regulations in a new manner and more broadly then they ever have and have decided that herbs are – remedies – and therefore come under the class of – drug -.

So unfortunately I am in the process of registering The Herbal Wormer, and possibly a couple other products as such, as I cannot afford to register them all at this time, I am not a Uckele or an Alltech, Silver Lining Herbs, Wendell or Hilton Herbs and feel that this is one step closer to the government taking away our rights to treat ourselves and our animals with alternatives including herbs, supplements, etc. They have targeted Wendell Herbs, Hilton Herbs, Silver Lining Herbs, and many more. There are only two categories in the state – feed additive – and – remedy – to sell livestock products there is no such category as supplement, so many companies are being hit with this new TAX if you will to do business in the state including companies like Hilton Herbs who are international!

If you need anything specific for your horses, please phone me, as I do have some of the blends still, and can help you with Cushing, EPM, Joint (yes any joint product is also considered a drug! Because there is no category for supplement!), Mare-Zyme etc. The Pro-Zyme, Pro-Zyme +, Colostrum, Beta Glucan, Kelp, and all other products

The above news report was posted in Earth Song Ranch November’s Newsletter and Jessica give me permission to repost it here for you. Please visit her Earth Song Ranch website or you can contact Jessica by email at: Jessica [at] earthsongranch . com (remove spaces and replace [at] with @).

Earth Song Ranch
Horse Nutrition, Equine Per-Biotics, Pro-Biotics & Digestive Enzymes; Hoof & Joint Care Supplements, Herbal Wormer, Natural Fly Spray and Natural Equine Supplies

NOTE from Joni: Personally I have been reading and learning about natural health since I was about twelve years old and over and over again since then I have heard about the FDA and the large drug companies trying to restrict and regulate the our use of natural herbs, supplements, and vitamins.

Is the FDA totally corrupt like so much of our government? Keep your mind open and learn, but also be aware of who you learn from. Mainstream media is owned by the largest companies. Watch who is padding who’s wallets – who will the they want to protect?

Latest Youtube videos about possible poison food that the FDA is not testing or telling you about…

Deadly Candy 4 Halloween?. . . Candy Product Review 2008 of Potentially MELAMINE Tainted Treats, A SERIOUS Warning My Mike Mozart of JeepersMedia on You Tube

USA Food Supply TAINTED? . . . . .Halloween Candy? Melamine + Toxins? Mike Mozart of JeepersMedia

Melamine Poison now in USA foods? . . . Kidney Stone News Report by Mike Mozart of JeepersMedia

FDA Pharmaceutical Evil Pt.1
FDA Pharmaceutical Evil Pt.2

Fight For Your Health Part I

Genetic Foods/Monsanto Revealed 1/3

Milk The Deadly Poison WATCH THIS!!!

Tags: business, equine, government, horses, nutrition, remedy, supplements, veterinary drug

America’s burning, do you smell the smoke?

Joni — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 02:39:56 +0000

Freedom, don’t let it die! America is flaming and going down.

If you never read another thing I write please read this. That is how important I feel this news is. I am worried about what is happening in America right now, to our basic freedoms. Wake up, shake up, don’t go down in a whimper. What the hell am I talking about you’re asking. Well…

Go read this news article: Senate Bill 1959 to Criminalize Thoughts, Blogs, Books and Free Speech Across America by Mike Adams

I believe that us horse lovers are even more fond of our freedoms than most. We know what is feels like to be on a horse’s back and feeling the sun and wind in our face, reining our way along our own trails. I don’t want to lose what is best about living in America – living free, speaking free, thinking free.

I have heard and seen too many negative changes in the past few years. Seems we have a government based on fear, war, secrets, lies, greed, control, oil, big business, terrorism, jails, and torture.

Please also check out these…

…groups of congressionally empowered vigilantes roaming the country at will looking for “homegrown terrorism…

…FREE SPEECH AMERICA??? GOODBYE. Transparent government? Out the window…

…I guess that would make Al Gore a domestic terrorist, especially after his speech last year saying “the executive branch of our government has been caught eavesdropping on huge numbers of American citizens and has brazenly declared that it has the unilateral right to continue.”…

…your words and actions could be considered terrorism. S 1959 EVISCERATES FREE SPEECH, and empowers the government to declare ANYTHING they deem an “extremist belief system” to instantly make you a ‘terrorist’ and resulting in stripping of US citizenship, torture, and/or execution, with no habeas corpus rights, no ability to challenge even in the US Supreme Court…

Do a google search for “S. 1959″ and you find a lot more articles about this subject.

Now we have to watch what we say or even think are end up on the government’s list of possible domestic terrorists. Never take your freedom for granted – or you may end up like a dog at the end of a leash.

Tags: free speech, freedom, freedoms, government, law, terrorist