The seven malnourished

horses confiscated by the Georgia Department of Agriculture from a pasture

off Sandy Creek Road Tuesday morning are well on their way to recovery,

according to Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin.

"We are

very optimistic there will be a full recovery of all seven horses,"

Irvin said.

Irvin said

he was disturbed to hear from the horses' owner, John Johnson of Jonesboro,

that he would leave them for weeks at a time without any care.

"You can't

live them for weeks at a time, especially when they don't have any feed,"

Irvin said.

The Department

of Agriculture impounded the horses based on "the owner's failure

to provide adequate food and humane care," Irvin said.

State officials

were called in at the request of the Fayette County Animal Control unit,

which began the initial investigation and will press the criminal charges

against Johnson.

The horses

are under the care of veterinarians at the state's central care facility

in Decatur. The personnel there are specially trained at helping starved

animals recover, Irvin noted.

The food portions

must be carefully controlled because if the horses eat too much, they

could die.

The owner of

the horses, John Johnson of Jonesboro, has been cited for six misdemeanor

counts of cruelty to animals.

Three of the

horses were in critical condition when they were examined by a veterinarian

Tuesday morning at the pasture.

The impounded

horses include a quarter horse mare and her foal, three ponies and a Saddlebred

mare and stallion.

Back

to News Home Page |