OLD TOWN, Fla. (WCJB) – After TV20 spoke with residents about animal abuse and neglect claims, the owners are now trying to shut down what they say are false claims.
Residents have gone to social media, claiming animals such as cows, pigs, ducks, cats, and dogs were not getting food or water. TV20 spoke with residents who said the animals had been neglected for years.
“It’s heartbreaking to know that people think we don’t care about our animals. These animals, they’re family,” said Miranda Ducharme, the owner.
After one cow died, activists were enraged. They say they left the dead cow on a hoist while neglecting other animals. The owners now say that ever since residents became vocal and made claims, she and her family lost their produce business.
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“That’s my financial stability and now it’s gone,” said Ducharme. “All these people say they want to help but yet how are they helping by getting my produce stand closed? How are they helping by getting our animals getting sick because they’re feeding them over the fence and they’re eating dirt?”
Owner Ducharme says they waited to bury their cow so they could get a necropsy. She adds there was a hoist because it has always helped her cow stand up.
Ducharme says the cow came from a cold state and struggled to transition to a hotter state, causing her to get pneumonia and other sicknesses. She says they would rest her on the hoist to give her medication and massage her legs.
The vet performed a necropsy and in the report it says “The foreign material (primarily the sand) was the primary cause of death, obstructing the abomasum and causing an ulcer.”
“She had a stomach full of dirt, she had hay string from bailed hay which we do not feed,” said Ducharme.
Ducharme believes it could be from residents taking it upon themselves to throw food over the fence and into the dirt. They did so because people were concerned that they weren’t being fed.
“People I know want to say they want to help but if they want to help they need to maybe get in touch with us not just throw the food over the fence so they’re eating all that dirt,” said Ducharme.
Ducharme says they are doing what they need to do for their animals and says people evidently don’t understand dairy animals if they think they are starving. She says she feeds her animals food and water 2-3 times a day.
Dixie County Sheriff’s Office officials say they are actively investigating the complaints.
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