More than 30 horse lovers upset with the Santa Clara County animal control unit’s handling of a case involving malnourished horses at two South County ranches picketed in front of government offices in San Martin Monday morning.
“It’s reached a point where we want people to hear us and do something about it,” said Morgan Hill resident Debra Kenyon as passing motorists honked their horns in support. “Action speaks louder than words.”
Kenyon held up a sign that read, “Animal Control says the horses are getting better! Really?,” and included three color photographs of a horse named “Braiden” taken at different times, showing its declining health over time. The final image has Braiden lying on the dirt of a Center Avenue ranch in unincorporated Gilroy.
“Braiden, why have they let this happen?,” the sign read in smaller print. “Please, help us save Braiden and the other horses.”
Protesters—coming from places such as San Jose, Santa Cruz, Hollister, Morgan Hill and Gilroy—lined the southbound side of Monterey Road in front of the county sheriff’s station. They held up signs with different slogans on them, most calling for action to save the horses they say are still suffering at the Gilroy ranch.
One sheriff’s deputy stood nearby to keep an eye on the protesters, who parked their cars across the road on Highland Avenue and walked over to Monterey Road for the demonstration.
“I want something done about this,” said Hollister resident Carol McGill, who volunteers at the Equine Rescue Center, which purchased 10 sickly horses from the same rancher who runs the Gilroy property Sept. 24. Those horses—which were found malnourished at the rancher’s Morgan Hill pasture—are still housed at the ERC in Paicines.
“I want the horses removed from this man. Something has to be done,” McGill continues.
McGill said one of the horses from the Morgan Hill pasture on Maple Avenue died the morning after its arrival. ERC founder Monica Hardeman, also picketing Monday, paid $11,000 for the 10 emaciated horses—including the one that died, which they named “Justice”—from Morgan Hill rancher Humberto Rivas. Hardeman and her staff have been nursing the horses back to health.
“They’re doing great except for Justice. That was just disgusting how that all transpired,” McGill added.
In the Morgan Hill case, Rivas said he received the horses in bad shape from another horse rancher he had done business with over the years because they could not take care of the animals. He was trying to nurse them back to health before selling them. Rivas leases both the Morgan Hill and Gilroy properties, where he keeps dozens of horses, according to neighbors.
In September, a group of Morgan Hill neighbors started a Facebook page titled “Morgan Hill Horses In Need,” documenting the poor health of the horses being kept by Rivas in Morgan Hill and Gilroy. Images of the malnourished horses went viral on the social media site, drawing news media attention and prompting the district attorney’s office to take notice.
“We need to be a voice for the animals because they cannot speak for themselves. We need to do that for them,” said Santa Cruz resident Kim Baker, who wore a horse mask and brought her granddaughter to Monday’s demonstration. “If good doesn’t stand up, then bad will prevail.”
Morgan Baker, who grandma said is home-schooled, had her own thoughts on the horse situation. A youth participant in Gymkhana, an equestrian event, Morgan, decked out in cowgirl gear, said: “They shouldn’t be abused. All other things are taken care of and the horses are just forgotten.”
Lori Yeilding, a volunteer at the Valley View Ranch Equine Rescue At Ranch Forgotten Horse Sanctuary, said situations involving the mistreatment of horses—similar to what is being alleged in Morgan Hill and Gilroy—happen “all over the country.”
“It’s a never-ending problem,” Yeilding said. “We just want justice and humane treatment of horses.”
Coming down from San Jose were Steve and Katrina Gordy—who shared with fellow picketers a similar situation in Milpitas that they felt was mishandled by animal control.
“I just hope (this South County situation) gets more exposure,” said Katrina Gordy, who believes that animal control does not want to take on the expense of caring for the horses. “Either animal control just refused to act or really is just not educated enough. Maybe it’s a combination of both.”
The Times previously reported that animal control is continuing its investigation and the district attorney’s office is waiting for that report.
Check back later for updates to this developing story.
