60 neglected horses found on Iowa farm; repeat offender charged

Almost 60 neglected horses, including two deceased, were found at a horse stable in Earlham Thursday night, according to authorities.

Nine of those horses, which were discovered at the Lemontree Welsh stable, were deemed to be in exigent need and were taken to the Animal Rescue League headquarters in Des Moines. The rest remain on the stable grounds, pending further investigation.

Jimmy Lee Lemon, co-owner of Lemontree Welsh, has been charged with three counts of livestock neglect and two counts of failure to dispose of animal remains.

Lemon has been released and has a court date pending, Earlham Police Chief Jason Heimdal confirmed. Multiple phone calls to Lemontree Welsh stables seeking comment were not returned.

Thursday’s seizure marks the second time Lemon has run afoul of the law in regards to his horses. In 2016, he was charged with failure to dispose of animal remains when four dead horses were found on the Lemontree property. The deceased animals “had been there for several days,” according to court documents.

In that case, Lemon pled guilty, served no jail time and was ordered to pay $100.

Lemontree isn't a registered business with the Secretary of State, and it wasn't immediately clear whether horse breeders have to obtain licenses from the state to operate.

Ariel, one of the Lemontree horses now recuperating at the ARL, has 21-inch-long hooves that are so protracted they curl back into her front ankles causing painful cuts and bruising. Growth of that sort takes at least five years, said Jay Wilson, the ARL's animal intervention coordinator.

Another horse, Fudge, has such bad dental issues that he is unable to chew feed down enough to swallow and is forced to spit out almost all of his food, said Jessica Jorgenson, an ARL employee.

Most of the almost 60 horses — which ranged in age from about 1 to older than 30 — were obviously malnourished with visible ribs and hip bones and extreme hair loss, said Wilson.

"Seeing ponies in these conditions is heartbreaking, and they clearly did not get this way overnight," said Tom Colvin, the ARL's CEO. "There is absolutely no excuse for what these ponies have gone through."

The ponies were found in three areas of the farm, Wilson said. Some were locked in stalls with "3-4 feet of mud and feces"; others were in a lot next to the barn; and still others were in a pasture "full of weeds" with "a puddle from the rain serving as the only access to water."

“While we were there, some of the ponies were so hungry they were eating the hair that had fallen from the other ponies," an ARL news release stated.

The two deceased ponies, one of which was found in a stall with a live horse, had been "dead for a while," Wilson said.

The scene at Lemontree was “sad,” said Heimdel, who added that he doesn’t see cases of animal cruelty in the Earlham area "very often."

“You hate to see animals being treated like that and in that condition," he said.

Lisa Landis, a representative with the Welsh Pony & Cob Society of America, was shocked to hear of the abuse these animals suffered. She knew the Lemons and had seen them at previous Welsh pony shows in the region.

“We are such a close community, we call ourselves the 'Welsh Family,'” Landis said.

The Lemons are listed as "lifetime" members of the society, but hadn't registered a horse to receive official breed paperwork in "several years," she said.

The Welsh pony society has offered to help rehome the Lemon ponies if necessary, and Landis said that they have resources to help owners in trouble — before things get this bad, she said.

“Our network reaches across the country and we can help,” she said. “We love these beautiful ponies and we want to make sure that they are being taken care of and living their best lives.”

Thursday afternoon's seizure and investigation of the stable took more than seven hours, the ARL said. The ponies that were taken to the ARL now have clean stalls and have begun a "refeeding program under the supervision of equine veterinarians."

Following the Friday afternoon examination of the horses by the Lemon's veterinarian, treatment for hoof and mouth issues has also begun.

Before authorities left, Lemon was given instructions by the assisting veterinarians on how to properly care for the remaining animals.

The Earlham Police Department will look in on the animals next week to see if the requirements are being followed, but those at the ARL are anxious to ensure their safety.

"The circumstances that they were living in are very concerning," Wilson said, "and I am concerned for the horses left behind."

Donations wanted

The ARL is seeking donations of high-quality grass hay, Purina Strategy horse feed, and pine shaving bedding in addition to monetary donations for the horses' medical, hoof, and dental care. Donations can be made at www.ARL-Iowa.org/Donate (RE: Ponies) or delivered between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends and 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on weekdays at the ARL’s Main location at 5452 NE 22nd Street in Des Moines.