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New Info About Terrible Conditions In Cruelty Case

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Apr 27, 2009 8:01 pm US/Mountain

New Info About Terrible Conditions In Cruelty Case

Written by Paul Day

Reporting
Paul Day

BRIDGEPORT, Neb. (CBS4) ―

Click to enlarge 1 of 1: Horses rescued from 3 Strikes Ranch

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New pictures obtained by CBS4 show horses in appalling condition at the Nebraska ranch targeted in the state's worst ever animal cruelty case.

"One of the young mares pretty much died in my arms while I was out there," said Amanda Davis, a former volunteer at 3 Strikes Ranch.

Davis worked at the ranch before conditions turned deadly during the past winter. She supplied CBS4 with dozens of pictures she took after she returned to the ranch this spring.

3 Strikes is promoted on its Web site as a caring place dedicated to preserving the heritage of wild mustangs. Instead, there's mounting evidence it became a death camp involving disease and starvation.

"It's heart wrenching for me," Davis said. "These animals trusted him."

Davis blamed the owner of 3 Strikes, Jason Meduna, for accepting way too many animals with no resources to care for them.

At least 74 animals are known to have died and 211 were rescued and brought to the Morrill County Fairgrounds in Bridgeport, Neb.

Meduna told Davis and others his herd became infected through no fault of his own. But after an investigation by the Morrill County Sheriff and local veterinarians, Meduna has been criminally charged with animal cruelty.

"Looking at those horses, they look wormy." said Jodi Messenich, Executive Director of Zuma's Rescue Ranch in Northwest Douglas County.

Messenich and three volunteers spent five days at 3 Strikes helping care for the sick and starving horses. The rescued animals cannot be relocated until they've been evaluated for infectious diseases and cleared by a veterinarian.

Messenich is preparing to bring nine horses from the County Fairgrounds in Nebraska to her facility in Colorado later this week. But she has to be careful to protect the dozens of healthy horses already kept on her property.

"The ones I'm bringing in I know have lice, which is very contagious." she said.

Among the nine rescued horses are three of her own she entrusted to Meduna's care. Her plan is to keep all the rescued horses in quarantine care until they pose no threat to other horses. Once they are totally recovered, she hopes to find suitable adoptive homes for six rescued mustangs.

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