The operator of a therapeutic horse-riding program in Warren County was charged with 15 counts of animal cruelty.
The operator of a therapeutic horse-riding program in Warren County fed animals shrink-wrapped hay and failed to provide care, leading in some cases to their deaths, according to the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The agency charged Aiyanna Callaway, 33, of the Bangor area, and owner of Horses 4 Hope in Pohatcong Township, with 15 counts of animal cruelty. A phone number for Callaway redirected to another farm, which did not respond to a voicemail.
Her inaction at the farm she leased at 50 Warren Glen Road resulted in serious bodily injury or death for a number of horses, authorities said.
Horses showed signs of botulism and an investigation by the NJSPCA and state agriculture officials concluded 13 of the 37 horses on the property earlier this year were below the minimal body score of a 2.0 as required by New Jersey law for the humane treatment of livestock, officials said.
Lehighvalleylive.com first reported on the charges Friday; authorities released more details about the charges Monday. A hearing is set for July 13 in Pohatcong Municipal Court.
The NJSPCA said it launched an investigation in March after receiving numerous complaints.
State officials said they put the farm on quarantine after witnesses reported that Callaway would order hay in shrink-wrap, have it rolled in the field, and leave it up to the horses to rip through plastic with their teeth.
The NJSPCA said it also found tubs of water frozen on the property, and the horses' only access to water was from a pond that collected the run-off of the animals' feces and urine.
On officials' first visit to the property in March, they said, they found a dead horse that they later learned was humanely euthanized by a veterinarian the day before.
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On March 22, a witness found a horse named named Ruby laying on the ground showing signs illness and unable to stand. Due to the horse's suffering, Ruby was humanely euthanized by a state veterinarian later in the day.
Callaway was not there, but officials contacted her by telephone at her Pennsylvania home, according to the NJSPCA.
On March 24, another horse named Black Beauty was humanely euthanized due to clinical signs of botulism, officials said.
Initial necropsy reports tested positive for bot larvae in Ruby's digestive system and final necropsy results concluded positive for botulism in Ruby's digestive system and in the feed hay.
Due to the deadly epidemic, Callaway was ordered to find a new place to house the horses, according to the NJSPCA.
The entire farm was put on quarantine because of that and due to a lack of appropriate paperwork and health certificates, officials said. Callaway was ordered to find a new place to house the horses.
Around April 2, 13 horses with body scores that did not meet the state's requirements were relocated by Callaway to an alleged horse rescue called Rescue Last Chance Horse Ranch in Jackson, N.J.
Witnesses provided officials with a written communications from Callaway to the new ranch, directing personnel to feed Callaway's personal horses "the good grain and to give the other horses whatever."
Communications from Callaway were also provided to the NJSPCA in which Callaway instructed individuals to lie to the authorities that she was "hiding behind her horse therapy program for kids to escape getting a horse dealer license and its regulations," according to the NJSPCA.
According to a 2014 lehighvalleylive.com profile on Horses 4 Hope, Callaway nursed mistreated horses back to health, then used them to provide free, therapeutic rides for abuse victims, troubled youths and people with special needs. The farm was located in Upper Mount Bethel Township at the time.
In that report, Callaway said she has no employees and does almost all of the work by herself: "We don't have the money to do all this," she said. "The problem is I just can't say 'no.'"
Jim Deegan may be reached at jdeegan@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @jim_deegan. Find lehighvalleylive on Facebook.