Mill City, OR Horse Abuse
It breaks my heart to read about and watch the videos of this horrific case of horse neglect and abuse in Mill City, Oregon. It also makes me so mad that I want to go pound the crap out of this Tania Herring person.
I just don’t understand HOW someone can look at their sick, starving and neglected animals and not SEE the truth there! How can they walk by these horses, day in and day out, and not see the ones that can’t get up, the protruding ribs and backbones, the open sores and the flipping CHUNKS of missing fur!! This is a sick person!
What’s amazing too is how this property is a pretty nice setup. I mean it actually looks kind of upscale. We get it in our minds that often these horse abuse cases involve these dilapidated, disgusting shanty-town facilities. But the truth is abuse crosses socioeconomic barriers and is perpetrated by people who are mentally sick. I mean this place probably cost a bit to lease. Maybe it cost so much that this Tania Herring person couldn’t afford hay. But what she could afford at the very least was to get off her ass and give these animals clean water! And to stop breeding them. And…and…and the list goes on. How does someone get over 100 head of horses in the first place? How can someone just stop feeding their animals or not give them enough to eat? How can someone not reach out for help when their situation gets out of control? Ego, arrogance, pride – all the culprits that stand in the way of common sense and simple compassion. It really baffles me and of course once again makes me terribly sad that some human beings can have such a great capacity for cruelty.
This case is just one of so many that have cropped up on the news over and over again this past year. The economy and skyrocketing unemployment has made it hard on a lot of horse owners for sure. It has made it hard on a lot of people period! I have no answers or advice about how to prevent yourself from metamorphosing into a disgusting, cruel, thoughtless, selfish and stupid human being – that’s between you and God and your conscious. But here’s my take on horse ownership:
- One person – one horse! We don’t need 3, 5, 10+ horses. Most people barely find the time to ride one horse. My family has 4 horses – we are a family of 4, one horse for each person and our horses are well (and happily) used.
- Think long and hard before you become a horse owner. These animals live long lives, require a great amount of care, are expensive if taken care of properly, and really, really need an owner who knows how to care for them properly. These days it is easy to get a horse – CHEAP – but not so easy to sell a horse. Think before you buy.
- Don’t BREED! I get so sick and tired of seeing stallions who should be geldings, owned by people who think they’re going to make the big bucks with their backyard studs who do nothing more than stand around (usually by themselves) in a little stall or paddock. It’s just cruel. Owning a breeding stallion means being dedicated to promoting his abilities so he is actually sought after for breeding – this takes time and money. And for God’s sake, don’t breed your mare because you think she’d make a “cute” baby! Babies grow up, need to be trained, cared for and ridden. This is again an investment of time and money.
- Don’t rescue horses unless you are
-
- Wealthy
- A rescue operation
- Have adequate facilities, food & water, horse knowledge, time, commitment and dedication! Otherwise you become a collector and then you slowly turn into a Tania Herring.
If you are moved by these stories of horse abuse and neglect and want to reach out and help – by all means, DO SO, but do it by donating your time, money, horse skills, services, and hay or horse supplies. Don’t rescue or adopt unless you are truly prepared to take that horse on as your own and give it the proper care, nutrition, time and dedication any horse deserves from us human beings.
The suffering that occurs in all these animal abuse cases is unacceptable and the sadness is unbearable for those of us that see the results of a human being’s capacity for cruelness. Let our hearts and voices speak out against the people who do these sorts of things – if you see it, REPORT IT, and if you can, support your local animal rescue operations (Google “Oregon horse rescue operations” or “Oregon animal rescue operations” – there are a lot of great ones out there).
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Here are the things that bothers me the most. She would purchase these horses at auction and take them home to try to sell them for profit. She was constantly trading horses for other horses. Duping the new buyers into thinking they were getting a younger more well trained horse than they really were. She never kept any of the new auction horses quarantined from the rest of the herd to see if they were going to get sick, so all the sickness was spread all over the ranch.
The other thing to consider is that now the ranch that she was leasing is going to be a health hazard to any and all horses that may live in it for the next 5 years. Strangles stays in the soil for 5 years. It is often fatal. The vet can do a nose swab to test to see if the strangles virus is present in their nasal cavity. A horse can carry the strangles virus without ever showing any symptoms of it, and can pass it on to other horses it comes in contact with. Any rescued horse should be kept in quarantine for at least 30 days to see if it will develop any symptoms of anything before it is moved into general population.
She has only been at this nice place since September. She was previously in a dump of a stables at the end of a dead end road, in Jefferson in Marion Co, the owner asked her to leave from there, one can only assume because of the horrible shape of the animals. It was almost impossible to get Marion County to do anything about anything. I am sooo glad she moved to Linn Co, onto a well traveled road!
I rescued a BIG palomino paint mare (not from Tania) in October. She was so weak from hunger she could hardly stand. By December she was almost fat and hardly even looks like the same horse. So you can’t tell me that in 6 months the starving horses she had “rescued” in September, would still look that skinny, if they were being cared for properly. And all those minis! You can worm what… 6-8 minis on a tube of wormer? Plz! You can get wormer 10 tubes at a time for $3 a tube online at Jeffers Equine! And the lice! That only comes around when horses are unkept! I feel sorry for the people that she had duped into believing that she has the horses best interest at heart.
What a horrible person! I have since found out that she was trying to run that place as a rescue operation! This article at Fugly Horse of the Day gives access to this woman’s website and additional information. You bring up excellent points Lisa and some really good insight into just what a total sleeze-bag this woman is. Thank you also for the great information about Strangles and passing that on to the rest of us who may not realize the huge impact this woman had on so many horses and even future horses to that property.
Another point I want to make is to BE SURE to research any horse rescue operation you contribute time and money to THOROUGHLY!!! There are a lot of con-artists and scammers out there (and I thought they all worked through the Internet!) who put the health and well being of beautiful animals in grave danger just to make some bucks! This is just SICK AND WRONG. Beware of these individuals and do your research first!
YES, THIS WAS A BEAUTIFUL FACILTY IN IT’S DAY. IT HAS A SWIMMER, 27 STALLS AND 13 CROSS FENCED ACRES WITH VERY NICE STURDY LEIN TOOS!
i TRIED TO LEASE IT BACK LAST SPRING, WAS GOING TO TRY A LITTLE SPORT HORSE CONDITIONING, GET THE POOL BACK UP AND OPERATIONAL,
I DON’T THINK THE TRUST CO. OR THE PROP. MGNT CO. ARE HORSE POEPLE. THEY DON’T FEEL SHE’S IN THE WRONG. OVER 100 HEAD ON 13 ACRES???? OH, YES SHE RUINED THE PLACE FOR AWHILE. WHAT A SHAME FOR THE WALKER FAMILY!!! A REAL SHAME, THEY NEED TO FIND SOMEONE ELSE TO MANAGE IT.
I ALSO STRESS TO HORSE POEPLE ABOUT POEPLE LIKE THIS…BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN OLDER HORSES, DON’T PAWN THEM OFF INTO PLACES LIKE THIS. WHEN YOU BUY A HORSE, HAVE THE END IN MIND ALSO, SOME DON’T SELL.
WHAT CAN WE ALL DO ABOUT EDUCATING HORSE OWNERS? CLASSES ON NOT BREEDING, OVER OWNING, PROPER CARE…THE EYE DOES NOT LIE, IF YOU CAN SEE BONES THERE IS A REASON.
THANK GOD TO ALL THE GOOD NEIGHBORS AROUND THERE FOR STAYING ON THIS GAL. I HEAR SHE SHE KEEPS MOVING AROUND. I CAN’T HARDLEY FIND A PLACE FOR 10 HORSES HOW DOES ONE FIND A PLACE FOR 50 OR MORE?????? HOW?
Thanks for the interesting information! I totally agree there needs to be more education for potential horse owners – and some that already own horses! I’m a big believer in not breeding – so many people doing it thinking they’re going to make big dollars! It’s sad. And your point about older horses is a very good one! I have had my horse for almost 10 years now. He’s been with me since he was 9 months old. I know I will have him all his life. I’ve made this commitment. Horses are an investment of time, money and commitment – especially to keep them happy and in good health, so we need to really think long and hard before we add another one to our lives. The horse I have is more than enough horse for me!
And my Gosh, over 100 horses on 13 acres?? I can’t even picture what that would look like! You are so right though – thank God for all those Good Neighbors and “the eye does not lie”!
oh no this is horrible!! i know this woman! i sold her my 10,000$ barrel mare!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That is unfortunate!!!!! I hope there is a way for you to follow up on what happened to your horse. I have tried finding out online what happened with her court date and the verdict, or even what has happened to the remaining horses but to no avail. If anyone out there knows anything – please keep the rest of us informed. I do wonder what became of the horses the authorities took from her and even more important, the horses that were left in her care!
Thanks for everyone’s comments.