Eight starving horses rescued from ‘deplorable’ Acres Homes property

At the scene of the horse abuse, Robert Herman Smith, 43, was arrested on an unrelated burglary case. At the scene of the horse abuse, Robert Herman Smith, 43, was arrested on an unrelated burglary case. Photo: Houston Police Photo: Houston Police Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Eight starving horses rescued from ‘deplorable’ Acres Homes property 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

Eight malnourished and parasite-ridden horses were confiscated from an Acres Homes property Wednesday, according to the Houston Humane Society.

"The environment they were in, it was deplorable," said Humane Society spokeswoman Monica Schmidt.

The suffering horses - ages 3 to 20 - were stranded ankle-deep in muck and manure, showed signs of rain rot on their coats and suffered from untreated wounds, according to a Humane Society press release.

Wednesday's rescue - which stemmed from an anonymous tip - is just the latest in a long string of horse neglect and abuse cases in Montgomery and Harris counties in the past couple years.

In the latest case, authorities saved the horses in the 1000 block of Glen Avenue in what Schmidt said was one of the Humane Society's more severe horse cruelty cases.

"I think what makes it a little worse is the fact that usually we're dealing with one or two horses, but when you're dealing with eight that's eight times the abuse and neglect," she said.

"And definitely there's a lot of long-term neglect going on here."

The confiscated horses had no signs of hoof or dental care, suffered from intestinal parasites and were visibly underweight.

Houston Police Department and Precinct 5 Constables helped seize the animals, which are currently being cared for at the Houston Humane Society's Animal Wellness Clinic.

On Friday, Houston police said they have yet to file animal cruelty charges against the owner in the ongoing case. Schmidt explained that typically in such cases criminal counts don't come until after a civil case.

"We have a civil court date set for January 3 where the caretaker of the horses will have a chance to give his side of the story," Schmidt said.

She's optimistic that the case will eventually end in criminal prosecution.

"In a case as egregious as this, I think we have a good chance of the district attorney's office accepting charges," Schmidt said.

Police made two arrests at the scene on unrelated charges: Robert Herman Smith, 43, was taken into custody after HPD officers learned he was wanted on a warrant from Harris County Precinct 4 in connection with an outstanding home burglary case. Jeffrey Murphy, 60, was arrested for cocaine possession after telling the officers he had "powder" in his pocket, HPD officials said.

Authorities did not immediately name the horse's owner.

Even though no one was arrested for animal cruelty, two male suspects were collared at the scene.

Police made two arrests at the scene on unrelated charges: Robert Herman Smith, 43, was taken into custody after HPD officers learned he was wanted on a warrant from Harris County Precinct 4 in connection with an outstanding home burglary case. Jeffrey Murphy, 60, was arrested for cocaine possession after telling the officers he had "powder" in his pocket, HPD officials said.

It's still not clear why there were so many horses on the property, which Schmidt said is relatively small and not a farm.

Although they have a long recovery ahead, all of the horses are expected to survive.

"We have high hopes that all eight will make it," Schmidt said. Two of the younger horses are small for their ages and their growth could be permanently stunted, but an equine veterinarian offered a "fairly good prognosis" for all eight.

Last June, a much bigger seizure drew the media spotlight when the the Houston SPCA rescued more than 200 emaciated horses from a dairy farm in Conroe, as the Chronicle previously reported.

Even before then, horse abuse and neglect had been an ongoing problem, especially in the Acres Homes area, which has a high horse population.

In January 2015, a horse named Monty died after collapsing in rush hour traffic with his owner on his back. In response, the Humane Society got together with other local agencies to create Monty's Task Force, a program geared toward ending horse cruelty in Acres Homes and surrounding areas.

The task force launched in January 2016 and has since held two low-cost horse care clinics, offered low-cost de-worming and vaccination and provided free microchipping. They've also offered education for horse owners and, when those proactive efforts aren't enough, they have helped confiscate and care for 16 horses.

Overall, the community response has been positive, Schmidt said. There's been an uptick in cruelty tips and a glut of supportive phone calls and Facebook comments.

"I think people are fed up," Schmidt said, "of driving down the street and seeing emaciated horses along the side of the road or of seeing a horse that died of starvation being dragged down the road for heavy trash pick-up.