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  • Several of the horses taken which were into custody from land on Empire Rd. were malnourished. Photo Submitted

    Several of the horses taken which were into custody from land on Empire Rd. were malnourished.

  • Danyell Saathoff Photo Submitted

    Danyell Saathoff
October 7, 2012

Sheriffs deputies take starved horses taken into custody

Joshua Kellogg The Duncan Banner

DUNCAN — Prompted by warning of a passerby, Stephens County Sheriff Deputies took several starving and malnourished horses along with one suspect into custody after the animals were found without any food or water.

Sheriff Wayne McKinney said the investigation into 11 horses found in a small field on Empire Road, a 1/2 mile south of Grandview Schools is nearly complete and charges could be filed against two individuals for charges of alleged animal cruelty.

The horses were taken into custody Friday.

“The horses were on a little less than five acres of land,” McKinney said. “They had no food, no water and no hay.”

Danyell Saathoff, 30, was taken into custody as one of the owners of the horses for outstanding warrants in Caddo and Grady County, stemming from violating probation, passing bogus checks and traffic charges.

The Sheriffs department was informed by someone driving by the property about the conditions of the horses and after visiting the land Thursday, decided to take action to save the lives of the animals.

“This didn’t happen over night, it was a long drawn out process for them to get in the shape that they are in,” McKinney said. “It’s a shame this happens, no reason for letting an animal starve to death.”

All 11 horses were taken to a local veterinary office and are in protective custody.

The Sheriffs office is in the process of submitting a report to the District Attorney’s Office for consideration of charges in relation to the case.

There is another individual being investigated for potential charges as Saathoff owned seven of the 11 horses taken into custody with remaining four owned by another party.

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