Horses Found Starving In Tulsa County

By Tara Vreeland, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- Neglect, or simply old age? A dozen horses have caught the attention of concerned motorists driving by a pasture in North Tulsa County. They say the field doesn't have enough grass to feed the horses.

One woman says she has watched the condition of the horses deteriorate and says with winter coming, they will only get worse. The Tulsa County Sheriff's Office says the horses have access to grass and water and it's harder to keep weight on older horses.

"It's just in my opinion I just don't want things to get too worse before it's too late," says Rachel Gaines.

Rachel Gaines is worried about a herd of horses living in this pasture off North Yale.

A horse owner herself, Gaines says these horses are too thin, their ribs are visible beneath their heavy winter coats.

"I took some hay out there personally and it took me five minutes to convince them to come up and eat it and I walked around and was crying, it was so sad to see them," Gaines Said. "The horses nibbled on the grass while we were there and some started chewing on the trees already stripped bare of bark."

The final straw for Gaines came this morning when she saw one of the mares dead in the pasture.

"I was livid and started crying instantly," Gaines Said.

Gaines has called the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office in the past.

Deputies tells The News on 6 they cannot comment on the ongoing investigation. However, they didn't seem to know about the dead horse and showed up to investigate after we contacted them.

The deputy told The News On 6 he does not think malnutrition killed the horse. He also told me the department is keeping an eye on these horses and says the owner knows it.

"I don't want it to get to where there are more dead horses in the pasture," Gaines said. "The owner needs to step up and take care of them and if he can't. I know people who are more than willing to take them."

The Sheriff's deputies and animal control officers say the owner will have to put hay out for the horses once winter hits. They say they did try to contact the owner about the dead horse this afternoon but were unable to do so.