The horse was named after a rock star but it apparently wasn’t treated like one at its Oxford home.
A horse named “Santana” was found at 48 Condon Road in an enclosure with no water and a container nearby that was filled with rotting vegetables to eat, according to a search and seizure warrant on file at Derby Superior Court. “Santana,” which was very thin with its ribcage showing, had hooves that were overgrown, cracked and splayed, plus patches of hair missing, sores on its hind legs and was covered in manure and mud, the warrant states.
“Santana” was one of 41 animals that were seized by state and local animal control last week from the home of Karen Desrosiers, who had a history of complaints with the state Department of Agriculture. Many of the animals were neglected, state officials said, and now the state could be pursuing criminal charges against Desrosiers.
Desrosiers, who has refused to speak to local media outlets, including Patch, was planning to get rid of the animals because they had become too costly to take care of. But when state Animal Control Officer Barbara Godejohn asked if she would sign over the animals to the state, Desrosiers told her should would only sign over the horse, “Santana,” the report states.
Animal control officials then received a search and seizure warrant and obtained four dogs, one cat, 18 chickens, six turkeys, six guinea hens, a donkey, a horse, two miniature horses, a goat and a pig. They are being taken care of by state animal control officials.
Some of the animals are going to need some close attention to improve their health conditions, including an old donkey named “Edgar” who was found roaming loose on the property with a halter that was so tight it left depressions on his face, the warrant states. The animal’s hooves were also overgrown, state officials claim.
Also, two miniature horses were found roaming on the property with badly overgrown hooves, no water or feed available to feed them and two buckets of what appeared to be motor oil nearby that had no cover on them, the warrant states. Desrosiers also had no hay to feed the animals, according to the warrant.
The chickens had no food and were feeding on a dead chicken, the warrant states. She also had no food for the horses on site, according to the warrant.“When asked why none of the animals had water, Desrosiers claimed because she had given them water yesterday,” the warrant states. “(State Animal Control Officer) Godejohn explained that it was now after 3 p.m. and asked when she was planning on giving them water; (Desrosiers) claimed that she had been taking a nap. She claimed she had come outside earlier that day to feed the animals.”
The last page of the warrant explains Desrosiers’ history with animal control officials. She had previous problems in 2010 with “Santana” and another horse named “Ranger” but those animals eventually showed improvement after state animal control officials intervened.
The warrant also explains that Desrosiers owned a calf in2010 thater the state ordered be evaluated by a veterinarian because it looked sick. The calf was found to have a temperate of 104 degrees, lungs that were clean, an upper respiratory virus and difficulty swallowing. The vet claimed that he/she was not sure whether the animal would make it. It was not specified in the warrant what happened to that calf; it was not on the list of animals seized last week.
Animal control officials were not called back to the house until a few weeks ago when animals were found roaming around the neighborhood.
