Nearly 80 Arabian horses seized from a property in Texas earlier this month are to be rehomed by The Humane Society of North Texas.
The 77 starving horses were seized from owner Gordon Dennis Key’s Renazens Arabian Horse Ranch in Denton County on 14 August.
An agreement was reached about the horses’ future at a court hearing on Wednesday (26 August) via Mr Key’s lawyer, Rick Hagen.
Mr Key, who faces animal cruelty charges, has agreed to donate the horses to The Humane Society.
The horses have been under care of The Humane Society of North Texas since they were seized on 14 August.
And Mr Key has been ordered to pay $5,000 court costs as well as costs of caring for the horses since they were seized.
“This is not a case where a person had a wilful desire to not care for an animal or was being intentionally cruel,” said Mr Hagen.
“He had no employees left. It was just one man doing the best he could for 77 horses. It was just impossible.
“He is an honorable man, and he really did care about the animals.”
The Humane Society is arranging an adoption event to rehome the horses and has reported that the horses are recovering well and are gaining weight and confidence.
