Anna was a beautiful, buckskin horse. She was sassy and full of life. Anna was my daughter's best friend. She was one of 2 lead horses in the Spencer Picnic Parade. In December of 2003 we decided to sell her so my daughter could have the money to go to college this fall. We found a family with 4 little girls who lived a couple miles from our home, and they have 2 BLM mustangs they bought at the Cornell Auction. We thought this sounded like a terrific place for Anna to be, and she was close enough my daughter could still go see her.

The people were to start paying us after Christmas. By February of 2004 we had not received payment or heard anything from them. I called and said they had to pay something. We received one payment. Then in May of 2004 we still had not heard or gotten any other payments, so I sent them a certified letter. They did not pay or contact us. So I called and was told they would pay by the beginning of June.

By June 24th I made another call a nd was informed that they were probably just going to have to bring Anna back to us. They wanted us to wait for the weekend for them to bring her down, but my husband told my daughter not to wait, just to go get her. An hour later, my daughter was home and sobbing, saying that Anna was skin and bones. I called the woman who took my daughter to trailer Anna to her new home. She confirmed Anna's condition and said if we didn't turn the people in she was going to. She said they were standing in feces up to their knees, and there were no water pails, not even dry ones in the stalls. They had no hay and there wasn't even a pasture. I was horrified.

I called the Tioga County Sheriff's Department and had them send an investigator out. He took pictures and told us he was going to talk to the people. I had also called the vet to have them meet me there. When I saw Anna, I was shocked and sick. The vet came out and said that he felt she had pneumonia, was emaciated and dehydrated. She was given iv fluids and medicines. We went to get her the best quality horse hay I could find and senior feed, along with corn oil and linseed oil meal. We followed the vet recommendations as to how much of what we could introduce to Anna.

On June 25th, 2004, I awoke to a call from the Sheriff's Department. The officer who had come to see Anna informed me he didn't think he could charge them with anything because the mustangs didn't look AS bad as Anna, and the people had explained to him that they simply had not had the money to pay for a vet. Of course, he found the mustangs to have water and hay when he got there. I was distressed to think they would get away with the neglect and starvation of Anna. I called the Animal Cruelty Officer for Tioga County. He said to get him the pictures and reports and he would investigate this further. I went up to see how my daughter and Anna were at noon. Anna was no longer able to stand, or even get up. She had been down sin ce 2a.m. I called the vet and had them come out again. The vet got there and told us it was up to Anna now, and that she was simply to weak to get up. She had a great appetite and dragged herself out of the barn and into the grass at this point. The vets helped us get her back into the barn so she wouldn't eat too much grass and get sicker since her system was not used to food. My daughter and her girlfriend spent hours moving hay bales around to keep Anna propped up on her sternum. She wanted to get up. She tried and tried. I finally left for the night about 6:30pm.

On June 26th, 2004 my daughter who had taken her sleeping bag and sweatshirts(and Anna's favorite treats: carrots and lolli-pops) up to spend the night in the barn with Anna, called us hysterically crying. She wanted me to get to her and bring as much help as I could find. Anna was thrashing around, could no longer sit up on her sternum, had bitten her tongue and was choking on her own blood. I sent my 19 year old son, and my youngest daughter, 14 years old, to get to her right away, while I once again c alled the vet and as many people as I could find to help. Our vets did not have anyone available but would try to find a doc and get them out to us. I knew Anna could not wait. I decided to call an equine vet someone had recommended the day before. She came out without even hearing from me, just her answering service. After examining Anna the vet felt that the diagnosis of pneumonia was made by a less experienced clinician who mistook the loss of fat layers between lung compartments as the sound of pneumonia. She explained Anna had gone into severe shock and was so starved that she thought it most humane to put her to sleep. She felt that even with a trip to the Equine hospital and months of help and care, Anna still would have only a 15-20% chance of survival. My daughter very bravely said, "Please just do it and get it over with. I don't want her to hurt herself anymopre." So, my whole family, an EMT from Candor who had come to see if she could help, my daughter's girlfri end, whose family had been kind enough to let us board Anna at there stables, and the vet all held my daughter and Anna as she was put to sleep. The vets final diagnosis: CAUSE OF DEATH - STARVATION.

The man who [ALLEGEDLY] starved her to death has been charged with animal cruelty by the Tioga County Sheriff's Department. He is to appear in the Town of Candor Court on July 19, 2004. His name is Pete Cicci. He resides at [CENSORED], Candor [NY]. An on going investigation still exists for the 2 mustangs he and his wife still have. I hope you can use this story and bring attention to the abuse of this wonderful animal and the abuse and neglect she and other horses suffer.