PETITION TARGET: Speaker of the Ohio House Matt Huffman
The decomposing bodies of four horses who had reportedly been locked inside a barn were discovered at Pure Gold Stables and Equestrian Center in Salem Township, Ohio, according to local news. Necropsies of the horses found evidence of dehydration and starvation, and authorities recovered a fifth horse’s skeletal remains in a burn pit elsewhere on the grounds.
Disturbingly, because Ohio law classifies horses as livestock rather than companion animals, the alleged cruelty in this case could only be charged as misdemeanors.
Now, the newly introduced Ohio Equine Protection Act would establish specific provisions for equines used in sport, recreation, lessons, therapy, instruction, or racing.
If enacted, HB 992 would make causing serious physical harm to an equine, along with repeat offenses, punishable as felonies. The legislation would also seek to prevent neglect by requiring caretakers to provide equines with proper food and water, appropriate housing, veterinary services, and safe transportation.
Those measures would then be reinforced by allowing courts to remove equines from convicted offenders and restrict those individuals from possessing equines in the future.
Limiting legal safeguards to animals classified as companions is arbitrary and unjust — horses, like all sentient animals, deserve meaningful protection from cruelty.
Sign our petition urging Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman to back HB 992 and help ensure cruelty against equines is treated with the seriousness it deserves in Ohio.
