The Mason County Sheriff’s Office continues to claim that this horse is not starving
Starvation is the most extreme form of malnutrition. It is a slow, frightening, and excruciatingly painful death. When humans starve their companion animals, it is classified as Animal Cruelty in the 1st Degree, a Class C Felony. Two horses in Shelton, WA, appear to have been starved to death, and two more are at great risk of suffering the same fate. No animal should have to die this way and no one who has starved their animal should go unpunished…
Starvation is a slow and excruciatingly painful death for any living being. When an animal begins starving, their body breaks down their fat tissue and muscle in an attempt to sustain their nervous and cardiovascular systems. As starvation continues, individuals are susceptible to dehydration, disease, and fungus, becoming increasingly unable to move as their muscles atrophy. Starving individuals become fatigued, apathetic, and weak, slowly and painfully fading away. It is unthinkable that humans could inflict this terrible suffering on their animals. But when they do, it is classified as Animal Cruelty in the 1st Degree, a Class C Felony that is punishable in Washington State with up to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine. For the system to work, though, perpetrators have to be charged and prosecuted for their crimes.
Two horses on Little Egypt Road in Shelton, WA, have already suffered this fate, but their owner, Greg Harris, has not been charged with their deaths. Tragically, two more horses on Harris’ property are also starving. Their fear and suffering are unimaginable, and neighbors have recently reported that these two surviving horses are missing. It is unconscionable that law enforcement is concealing this terrible crime, but the Mason County Sheriff’s Office continues to claim that the two deceased horses did not starve to death, and that the two remaining horses are not starving. Both Pasado’s and the general public believe that both claims are incorrect.
Janean Dolezal, an equine specialist and founder of Sunrise Equine, examined the two surviving horses prior to their disappearance. Using a body condition scoring system called the Henneke System, Dolezal scored each of the surviving horses with a 2.5 and a 3. A score of 1 on the scale would be a horse in dire condition who is in immediate need of medical attention and likely could no longer stand. A score of 9 is obese, and a score of 5 is ideal. A score of 2.5 indicates emaciation and the need for immediate intervention.
Photo documentation of the deceased horses supports enough probable cause to exhume their bodies. Pasado’s is asking the Mason County Sheriff’s Department to allow Pasado’s to exhume the horses and perform necropsies.
Pasado’s is offering to cover all costs incurred in determining the cause of death for the two deceased horses. We have been inundated with telephone calls from outraged citizens regarding this case. Without a necropsy or thorough expert examination of the deceased horses, there is no accurate determination for the cause of death. Photo documentation of the deceased horses supports enough probable cause to exhume their bodies. Pasado’s is asking the Mason County Sheriff’s Department to allow Pasado’s to exhume the horses and perform necropsies.
Sunrise Equine, Pasado’s Safe Haven, and Second Chance Ranch are on standby with the resources to remove and care for these horses, ensuring that they will not perish like their unfortunate pasture mates. In addition to covering the cost of the necropsies, Pasado’s is offering to pay for the cost of vaccinations, blankets, and the some of the ongoing care of the remaining two horses when they are placed in a rescue.
At a recent commissioner’s meeting, Pasado’s Cruelty Investigator, Kim Koon, and the reporting person discussed the case of the four horses on Little Egypt Road. Mason County Sheriff’s Department Case Number 11-00446 addressed several issues and generated a heated debate. Koon presented evidence of the horses’ body condition, as well as new evidence that Greg Harris buried the two horses in direct violation of the Washington State Code for disposal. The horses were buried near a well and a stream and both are buried within FEMA’s floodplain zones.
Deceased mare's body
The commissioners advised that these concerns needed to be specifically addressed by Mason County Chief Bird, who is in charge of the case. After the commissioner’s meeting, concerned citizens, neighbors who witnessed the starvation of the horses, and Kim Koon questioned Chief Bird about the case.
Koon asked Chief Bird if he would accept Pasado’s offer to exhume the bodies and perform necropsies. Koon explained that the public and the media were asking for his response to our request. Chief Bird said that their veterinarian had examined the two living horses, stating that they are in good enough condition and that there is no evidence of a crime. The veterinarian used by Mason County Sheriff’s office also examined photographs of the deceased horses, stating that they had not starved and showed no signs of neglect. When asked if this veterinarian was an equine specialist, Chief Bird responded simply, “I don’t know.” Citizens informed him that the veterinarian they chose specialized only in small mammals.
Several of Harris’s neighbors told Chief Bird that despite what this veterinarian thought, they had watched the horses decline over a period of three years as the horses slowly starved to death. The neighbors said that they had made numerous calls to Animal Control and to the Police Department. The local animal control officer made a number of visits to Harris’s property but nothing changed. The reporting person in this case is one of Harris’s neighbors, and after the confrontation with Chief Bird, she received a harassment order from Harris that same afternoon. Shelton community members are concerned about Harris, whose negligence and callousness present future risks for the community. People who harm animals are five times more likely to harm a human. We believe that Greg Harris is not only dangerous to animals but to the community as well.
Pasado’s is asking the Mason County Sheriff’s Department to obtain a search warrant to exhume the bodies for necropsy and determine their cause of death. Pasado’s is urging for more responsibility, accountability, and credibility from law enforcement to uphold our animal cruelty laws. Numerous rescues, including Pasado’s Safe Haven, are willing to provide assistance. Pasado’s still urges law enforcement to seize the horses or for the owner to relinquish ownership to ensure that they get the care they so desperately need.
Law enforcement cannot do it all. We need to have a strong citizen’s force that is educated and vigilant. The law needs to support those people who act on behalf of their community and speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Pasado’s strives to support and ease law enforcement’s work load, but all offers of assistance have been denied. Pasado’s believes that a powerful example can be made with this case demonstrating that Mason County does not tolerate criminal acts and that crime will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.
Pasado’s is still pursuing this case and has great concern for the two remaining horses. We will be attending another hearing in Shelton on February 11th at 8:00am. Since Mr. Harris did not show up for the January 28th hearing in regards to the anti-harassment order he filed on the reporting person, this hearing has been rescheduled for the 11th. Pasado’s is taking this opportunity to be present and hopes to testify in regards to all that this case encompasses, as well as be there to support the reporting person who has bravely spoken up for the abused and murdered horses. We would love to have your support if you would like to attend.
If you would like to support Pasado’s life-saving work, please consider making a donation. Thanks to the support of readers like you, we can continue to be a force for the animals, pursuing perpetrators, protecting the innocent, and ensuring that justice is served.