Rescue & Adoptions

Past Rescues

Living Nightmare

Update 07/26/07

On May 9, 2003, Steuben County Humane officer Scott Mazzo received a warrant to enter the property of Canisteo farmer Anthony M. Imperatrice and seize all surviving animals in a horrendous case of neglect and cruelty. At the time the warrant was requested, the only known animals involved in this case were sheep, horses and cattle. Farm Sanctuary was asked to come to help load sheep and cattle so they could be transported to a safe foster facility where they could receive proper and immediate medical treatment.

Eyewitness Report from New York Shelter Director Susie Coston:

From the road where I parked, you could smell the dead and decomposing bodies, but even with that omen of what was still to come, I was not prepared for what I saw. The bloated, rotting carcasses of huge work horses and a Scottish Highland cow filled the alleyways and doorways of the barns. Dead and living animals were chained to their tiny stalls and standing on two to three feet of feces. The barn was dark and damp, and the living trembled in fear as I walked through. Horses, donkeys, goats, and chickens were forced to live in the filth and had to endure the smell of the dead who were once their herd or flock mates.

Outside, the three remaining live Scottish Highland cattle backed up to the farthest end of their tiny pasture, steering clear of the barn door, where a dead cow lay in years' worth of feces. Cow bones lay scattered over the small pasture, many bleached white from the sun. The loft just above them was full of Timothy hay, and tall green grass grew only a few feet away from where they were confined; yet they were hungry and uncared for.

The five remaining adult sheep, all females, nursed their five babies in another pen, which could barely hold them all, and there were no trees for shade on this hot morning. The ram who fathered the five male babies lay dead right outside their fence, and the emaciated bodies of the females were disguised beneath their thick wool.

The donkey was one of the saddest of the victims, unable to walk more than one step at a time as she was led from the dirty stall and barn for the first time in years. Once out in the light and on clean ground, we could see the bone of the right front foot, where it had pushed out through the skin, and the hoof that should have been in its place, pushed backwards. The rest of her hooves were long, upturned and deformed, and her frail, arthritic body looked nothing like the beautiful creature she should have been.

A Spanish goat was tethered between the bodies of two of the dead horses. When approached, he would smash his head into the back wall of the stall, unable to flee due to the chain around his neck. His body convulsed in fear the entire time animals were being removed around him. Knowing nothing else, he fought to stay in the barn as we were moving him, his eyes squinting to block the sunlight that he had not seen for such a long time. Once at Farm Sanctuary, he started putting the darkness of the past behind him. For a time, we still saw fear and mistrust in his eyes. But watching him with his head back basking in the sun, we knew there was hope for his future.

Two other goats, females, were tethered in another stall on top of moldy hay and feces stacked higher than the gate that originally held them. The leashes used to tie them were too short, and they were not able to stand up, forcing them to remain on their knees. The older of the two had on a dog collar which had imbedded itself in her skin causing a raw, oozing abscess. Their chests and knees were rubbed raw from months of being down, and their hooves were between five and seven inches long. When we untied their leashes from the walls, they were unsure of how to walk, and crawled on their knees to the door. Like their friends before them, they squinted, unable to tolerate the sun after so long in the dark. When they finally did walk, they had to step up high, with their hooves so malformed and rotten. For the first day after their hooves were trimmed, they still attempted to walk up high or walk on their knees, and they, too, showed signs of mental abuse. After receiving much-needed food, gentle affection and medical care at Farm Sanctuary, though, their health and spirits improved.

Two rabbits and a pheasant were in filthy wire cages suspended by ropes from the rafters of the barn. Underneath their cages was two feet of excrement, which landed in the stall of the dead horse below them. They were very frightened and circled around their cages as fast as they could while we cut them down and removed them from the barn. At Farm Sanctuary, the rabbits were given a large pen full of straw to rest and heal in, and they happily slept huddled together for the first time, since they had been living in separate cages. Eventually the rabbits were adopted into loving homes outside the sanctuary, and the pheasant was taken to a local wildlife rehabilitator, for care and placement.

Ten chickens also resided at the farm, and for some reason, were the only animals free from confinement. They foraged for bugs outside in the pastures and the barn where the other animals lived. Aside from their overgrown beaks and nails, they were in relatively good body condition and were easily cared for when they arrived here at Farm Sanctuary.

The smaller horses and sheep were taken to a local farm to be fostered and treated by a vet and farrier. None of the horses had received proper hoof care, and most had difficulty walking to the trailer. All were underweight and frightened. Two stallions, standing over 6-feet tall, were also removed from the farm and taken to a foster facility to be neutered, have their hooves trimmed, and put on much-needed weight. Of all the animals on the farm, they were in the best condition, and were living outside of the barn.

The bodies of countless dead animals were found on the farm, but most were skeletons that were no longer recognizable. Because authorities could not determine when or how they died, Imperatrice could only be held responsible for the deaths of those animals that had died more recently. In the end, although Imperatrice admitted to poisoning four of his horses because he thought his children could not care for them, he claimed that he had done nothing wrong. Unimpressed by Imperatrice's self-professed innocence, local authorities charged him with 8 felony counts and 20 misdemeanor counts of animal abuse and took him into custody. The surviving animals, including five ewes, five lambs, three goats, one donkey, two draft horse stallions, five Arabian horses, three Scottish Highland cattle, two rabbits, ten chickens, one pheasant, six geese, and two cats were removed from the property and cared for at Farm Sanctuary and the local SPCA.

UPDATE!!! 06/23/05
In February of 2005, Anthony Imperatrice plead guilty to all 28 counts of the indictment charging him with poisoning animals, cruelty to animals, and aggravated cruelty to animals. Then, on June 20, Imperatrice was finally called to account for his barbaric treatment of the animals who languished under his care. Imposing a heavy penalty on Imperatrice, Steuben County, New York judge Peter Bradstreet sentenced the animal abuser to 5 years of probation with intensive supervision, and ordered him to pay over $40,000 in restitution, most of which has been awarded to Farm Sanctuary and the Finger Lakes SPCA to cover costs incurred during the removal and rehabilitation of animals rescued from the offender's property. Imperatrice was also ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation, and was banned from obtaining or possessing animals.

Grateful that justice has finally been served in this case, Farm Sanctuary continues its vital work to rescue and rehabilitate abused and neglected farm animals. With your help, we are making a difference!

UPDATE!!! 07/26/07
Animal rescues provide opportunity for action

It was a hot, muggy July morning at Farm Sanctuary's New York Shelter, and Ramsey the sheep was doing something he would've found inconceivable four years ago: He was sitting in the shade.

About 30 miles away on a farm in Addison, N.Y., Jenny the donkey enjoyed the morning munching on her favorite breakfast treat-the hunger pangs of years past now just a bad memory.

Life is much different these days for Ramsey and Jenny, two of several animals found suffering on a farm in Canisteo, N.Y., in the spring of 2003. Countless decaying corpses-some still bound to fences by short chains around their necks-were found among the emaciated, diseased and neglected living. Ramsey and nine other blackface sheep were discovered crammed together in a pen in the full sun, sweltering underneath the weight of their unshorn wool.

Jenny fared much worse: the donkey was barely ambulatory after living countless years tied tightly in a dark barn. She had been beaten, and she was covered with mange and ringworm. The end of her front right leg was so deformed that the bone was easily visible-and the hoof she should've been walking on was pushed backwards.

Farm Sanctuary joined local authorities in the rescue effort.

"From where we parked on the road outside the farm, you could smell the dead bodies," recalled Susie Coston, Farm Sanctuary shelter director, of the day Ramsey and Jenny were rescued. "Even with that omen of what was to come, I was not prepared for what I saw."

It's safe to say the animals weren't prepared, either. Instead of the routine abuse and neglect they'd become accustomed to, what the animals saw that day was a light at the end of the tunnel.

Now rescued and enjoying each moment of their happy, healthy lives, Jenny and Ramsey are both examples of how, in different ways, people can help abused farm animals.

Ramsey and five other sheep taken from the Canisteo farm are a part of Farm Sanctuary's Adopt-A-Farm Animal Project. Monthly contributions from supporters go toward feed, healthcare and bedding.

Programs like Adopt-A-Farm Animal have allowed Ramsey to thrive-and finally have a full, normal life.

Farm Sanctuary also offers in-home placements through its Farm Animal Adoption Network. It's a more hands-on way to directly aid animals who have suffered.

Often, when an animal has endured such incredible abuse, the rewards of seeing them come out of their shell and learn to love are many. It's a scenario that plays out time and again at our shelters-and in the homes of adopters.

"I actually won her over with saltine crackers," said Sandy Rice, of Jenny's turnaround. "She's spoiled rotten. You wouldn't believe it's the same animal."

Sandy said she's enjoyed getting to know Jenny, and sees adopters like her as filling an important role for animals who come from abusive backgrounds.

"Somebody's got to be their voice."

Click here for more information on Farm Sanctuary's Farm Animal Adoption Network, and here for details about our Adopt-A-Farm Animal Project.

YOU CAN HELP
Donations to help fund emergency rescues throughout the year are urgently needed and greatly appreciated. Member contributions allow Farm Sanctuary to respond immediately when cruelty cases arise and farm animals need us. Please call 1-607-583-2225 ext. 221 to make a donation to the EMERGENCY RESCUE FUND using your credit card, click here to make a donation using our secure online form or mail payment to: Farm Sanctuary, PO Box 150, Watkins Glen, NY 14891.