Animal Cruelty: Muskogee County Man Booked On 69 Counts

A Muskogee County rancher is in custody after authorities say he failed to care for cattle that belong to three out-of-state cattlemen. Last week, authorities found 56 dead, close to 200 in fair to poor health and more than 100 still unaccounted for.

The cattle are being buried Tuesday, according to District 1 County Commissioner Ken Doke.

Rudy Fulton was booked into the Muskogee County Jail on 69 felony counts of animal cruelty, Muskogee Now reports.  One of the owners of the cattle told News On 6 Fulton was paid up front to care for the livestock and still had feed, unused, on his property. 

10/29/2015 Related Story: Dozens Of Cattle Found Dead, More Dying, 100 Missing In Muskogee

"It hurts," said co-owner Robert Dea, an Iowa resident. "Not only the condition of the cows and what they went through, the money that's been lost. It's going to hurt us."

Deputies told News On 6 this is one of the worst cases of livestock neglect they've seen, and the cattlemen are still grappling to understand.