Harley L. Thompson

20 malnourished and dead horses rescued

Moraine, OH

December 24, 2006

Harley L. Thompson, 67, of Moraine, the owner of 20 malnourished and dead horses rescued just before Christmas from a Dayton-area farm was charged today, January 11^th with 29 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty and ordered to appear in Court the week of January 15^th. Moraine Police Sgt. Mike Keegan stated that Thompson has been served with papers notifying him of the charges. The horse trader was not physically arrested because of his age and cooperation with authorities.” He has said he wants to get it over with,” Keegan stated. “He is remorseful.”

              

(Photo's courtesy of WCPO)

When Officials with the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center arrived at Thompson’s farm in December 2006 following a tip to one of Butler County’s dog wardens, eight horses were found dead on the property. Another was in such bad shape it was euthanized. The remaining horses were in various stages of distress, standing in an open field in the pouring rain, mud up to their knees.

The horses are now under the care of volunteers. Most are recuperating at a Maineville horse farm and four are at a veterinarian’s office in Dayton.

Thompson is scheduled to appear in Kettering Municipal Court at 9 a.m. January 19^th.  He faces up to 90 days in jail and a $750 fine on each offense. Court records show Thompson was charged with animal cruelty in 1975.

     (Photo courtesy of the Enquirer/Tony Jones)  Hank (left) and Jordan are two of the malnourished horses that came from a farm outside of Dayton that are now being cared for at the Kubicki Equine Centre in Maineville.

       (Photo courtesy of the Enquirer/Jessica Brown)  Kim Jones of Mason took pity on Syd after she saw the horse's picture. Now the mare belongs to her.

  (Photo courtesy of WCPO)  Hank, who has pneumonia, is being cared for by Valerie Neal of Liberty Township along with 4-H Club members who rescued several horse.  Neal is coordinating volunteer efforts to help the horeses.

Reference:

Dayton Daily News	WHIO TV7
The Enquirer	Fox45
Times Recorder	WKYC
Canton Repository	The Horse
Fox19	WCPO