Neglected horses healing at Manatee County Sheriff’s Office farm

After two weeks at the farm located at the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Jail, five horses are beginning to show signs of recovery.

Deputies received complaints about the horses being thin and emaciated at property located at 4900 block of Wingate Road. According to a media release, the Sheriff’s Office has received complaints about this property before. When deputies visited the site, the horses were in worse condition than previous visits. They were confiscated Dec. 22. 

The horses suffered from neglect, said Dave Bristow, Sheriff’s Office spokesman, but they are doing better now.

“They needed some TLC,” he said.

The horses are located at the Sheriff’s Office farmland located near the jail at Port Manatee. There, non-violent and lower-level inmates work and help take care of the animals as part of the Leading Inmates to Future Employment program. In addition to animal care, the Sheriff’s Office has a tilapia farm and an auto body shop.

The fate of the horses is unknown for now — there have been no charges yet against owners Rico and Heather Morin and investigation into the alleged animal cruelty case is ongoing, Bristow said. After the investigation is over, the court can mandate what to do with them.

“We either keep them or find a good home for them,” Bristow said.