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Twenty-Five Dead Horses Discovered At Maryland Farm Alongside Hundreds More Starving

Twenty-Five Dead Horses Discovered At Maryland Farm Alongside Hundreds More Starving

Police had previously been called to the farm for various reasons, but have been unable to find sufficient evidence to seize the horses

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

A local sheriff a made a gruesome discovery at a farm in Quantico, Maryland last week when they discovered 25 dead horses, some rotting just metres from the farmhouse.

Among the horses was a foal that lay close to the back door of the house in a state of decay.

Some of the horses had been starved to the extent that they had broken glass doors to attempt to find food and even eaten away at the metal sidings on the house.

Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis checked in on the farm owned by Clayton P. Pilchard and his wife Barbara L. Pilchard, according to the state's property records.

Sheriff Lewis said: "Those horses were so hungry, they had broken the glass sliding doors on the back of the house, trying to get in and find something to eat.

"There's mud and broken glass all around the back of the house."

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Of the baby horse found close to the property he added: "She [Barbara Pilchard] said she dragged it near her front steps, where it's been decaying for two weeks."

There are other still thought to be more than 100 horses living among the dead animals - and the large groups of vultures who are eating the corpses.

A similar discovery was made by Nicole Constance, a local resident, on Friday morning.

She discovered one of the dead horses near the farm and decided to get in touch with the media rather than the police because she feels that previous reports have fallen on deaf ears.

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She told local TV station WMDT: "The sheriff hasn't done anything. Any authorities, animal control.

"I don't know what it's going to take, but I'm not going to stop until I know that these horses are out of there."

Sheriff Lewis continued: "I'm shocked at what I saw, I was absolutely appalled at the living conditions, not just of the horses and the animals, but also the homeowners.

"I'm shocked that anyone could live like that."

He says that they have previously been called to the farm for various reasons, but have been unable to find sufficient evidence to seize the horses.

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Lewis said: "We had experts on horses who said they believed the horses were being properly cared for and receiving the care necessary to live.

"The condition of both the horses and the property looked unacceptable to us, but we had insufficient evidence."

They now have that evidence and all of the horses are to be taken to a safe place, with more than 5,000 pounds of grain and 25 bales of hay having been donated for the surviving animals.

As for their previous owner, Lewis said she doesn't think she has done anything wrong.

He said: "She told me she had every right by state law to allow the animals to decompose."

Featured Image Credit: WBOC 16

Topics: US News, Animals