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Post by Admin on Apr 26, 2008 14:00:54 GMT -8
In another thread, "galaxy" said:
>>>Remain focused on the facts and if you are not sure of facts try to verify them<<<
This is important. Anyone can start a witch-hunt, but what does it take to be a level-headed seeker of truth?
Please use this thread to state verifiable FACTS that support your view. Thanks!
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Post by guest on Apr 29, 2008 9:08:14 GMT -8
King County small claims court, December 2006: MP v. Pacific Equestrian Center
This case was in reference to a draft cross yearling, "Morocco," who was adopted through CBER in early 2006. MP, who lives in Southern CA, paid Dean Solomon over $1,100 for quarantine board, "training" of the semi-wild horse, and veterinary treatment (castration and strangles treatment).
Besides basic board being provided, neither the training by Dean Solomon or any of the veterinary care for which the owner was billed ever took place. The horse was never castrated, never trained or handled, and he sat for three months in a small dirty paddock. Every time MP made arrangements to transport him to CA, Ms. Solomon had another excuse for why he was not ready to travel (a strangles flareup, "not quiet ready" with training, snotty nose, sick, etc.)
The vet who supposedly treated the horse said he'd never seen Morocco. Two PEC workers confirmed that they never once saw Morocco out of the paddock in the three months he was there. Morocco spent many hours laying down each day. It was evident by the photos Ms. Solomon rarely provided that there was something wrong with him.
After three frustrating months of getting the runaround by Ms. Solomon (who ultimately stopped answering her emails and phone calls when MP demanded evidence of the vet visits), Morocco's owner had the horse she had never seen or touched hauled out of PEC with a few hours' notice to Dean Solomon.
The hauler arrived to find that someone had clearly tranquilized the horse, who was wobbly and unable to walk well. He was still so wild, they had trouble loading him via a chute; he could not be touched or haltered. Morocco was trailered straight to an veterinarian who specialized in orthopedic issues, who confirmed the sedation and diagnosed the horse with a severe and incurable orthopedic condition. This is why he was laying down all the time; he was in pain. It is probably why he was dumped at the feedlot to begin with.
Morocco was euthanized that day upon advice of the vet. It was the first time he had EVER seen a vet since arriving at PEC.
Ms. Solomon then refused to talk to MP or refund the money for the castration, "training," and other billed vet fees. MP decided to take Dean Solomon to small claims course, and in the process of interviewing King County professionals, MP discovered that Ms. Solomon owned money to many vendors (vets, farriers, feed & shavings dealers), and in general was infamous for her poor horsekeeping and bill-paying practices throughout King County.
In December 2006, the case was heard in King County small claims court, where MP traveled from CA to WA at her own expense to appear in court, and won a judgment against Dean Solomon (who never bothered to show up to defend herself, despite being served by a process server --- she was well aware of the proceedings).
MP placed a judgment on Dean Solomon's credit record as well as a lien against the PEC property. The extreme stress and sadness of the situation had serious consequences for her, health-wise, and she never rescued a horse again.
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jmpr
New Member
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Posts: 45
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Post by jmpr on Apr 29, 2008 10:59:43 GMT -8
www.komotv.com/news/local/18026899.htmlStory Published: Apr 22, 2008 at 6:00 PM PDT Story Updated: Apr 22, 2008 at 6:47 PM PDT By Akiko Fujita Watch the story AUBURN, Wash. -- A local woman has been charged with four counts of animal cruelty after King County Animal Control Officers found half a dozen horses infested with lice and starving. Court documents allege Dean Solomon failed to provide her animals with necessary food, water, shelter, sanitation and medical attention. "We found a lot of horses on a site that was really muddy and the horses looked really thin," said Al Dams with King County Animal Rescue. "The level of mud was pretty deep. In some cases, you couldn't even see the hooves." Charging papers only site Solomon for neglecting six horses but Jenny Edwards with Hope for Horses, a Woodinville rescue organization, says as many as 69 crowded the Pacific Equestrian Center last summer when she pointed animal control officers to the property. "She didn't seem aware even of the number of horses she had at the time," Edwards said of Solomon. "The fences were run down, the horses were escaping, there were horses that needed medical attention." Pictures Edwards took on that visit show the hooves of horses covered with their feces, one horse suffering from rain rot, another caged in by wire fences. Charging documents say the neglect and starvation caused "pain and suffering." The hooves on one were extremely overgrown. The same horse was suffering from foot sore in all four feet. Dams says local rescue organizations have stepped up to help Solomon by taking in her horses. Two horses were in such poor condition that they had to be euthanized.
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jmpr
New Member
Image of a PEC supporter
Posts: 45
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Post by jmpr on Apr 30, 2008 16:43:43 GMT -8
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Post by watermarkfarm on May 1, 2008 15:06:55 GMT -8
The Quarter horse in these photos was a CBER rescue in May 2006, listed briefly on the CBER website as "Julia." She was shipped to her new home in Southern CA on June 28, 2006 after spending approximately 30 days in mandatory Quarantine under the care of Dean Solomon/Pacific Equestrian Center. The hauler (Lori Wright, TieroFarm) provided the horses with a 6-hour layover at my farm in Northern California en route to the LA area. This mare, "Julia" aka "The Mystery Horse" arrived at my farm with long feet and was approximately 3/5 lame: I called my farrier out on an emergency basis. She arrived 1 hour later to trim Julia, and was upset that someone would put a horse with such compromised/long feet on a 30-hour interstate haul. I phoned the new owners of "Julia" to ask permission to trim the mare and also ask them why they had not had her trimmed while at PEC. They were upset and surprised at her condition, as they had asked Dean Solomon if her hooves needed to be trimmed during the 30 days this mare was boarded at PEC. The new owners were more than happy to pay for such services for the rescue horse they eagerly awaited. Here is an "after" photo of Julia's feet. Her LF is booted and wrapped as she had hoof changes consistent with chronic founder and laminitis, and her LF sole was very painful under the coffin bone. She was walking on her heel bulbs. The farrier suspected some coffin bone rotation in her LF foot. This was our attempt to patch her up enough to finish the trip to LA: This mare's feet were never trimmed while she was under Dean Solomon's care. She otherwise looked healthy. Her weight was good and she was shiny, curious and bright-eyed upon arrival at my farm. Here is part of the email, dated June 29, 2006, that I sent to Samantha Milbredt of Columbia Basin Equine Rescue regarding my concerns about this horse and PEC: Something I think you CBER folks need to hear. We hosted "Julia" for the hauler yesterday. Julia has been at PEC for a month being quarantined. Her feet were in bad shape, very long and all broken up and she walked on her heel bulbs, and was completely down on the sole/coffin bone on her FL, with the hoof wall de-laminating from all the pressure. She was very lame. I was pretty horrified that PEC hadn't had her feet done while she was up there, and then sent her on a long trailer trip without being trimmed. We had our farrier out within an hour and had her trimmed and wrapped the bad foot. Anyway, not trying to create waves, but I question why PEC did not have this done while the horse was up there. The new owner was horrified and would have taken care of this for Julia.
Here is the response, dated June 29 2006 from Sam at CBER. It was the last time we corresponded regarding this: As for PEC, I am sorry to hear that they did not address Julia's feet. I understand that they just rescued 18 horses from an auction and while this is not an excuse I am sure they are overwhelmed. As every barn we have heard good and bad, the good thing about PEC is they stepped up to the plate when everyone was full, time will tell if we continue to work with them. I will share your finding with the rest of CBER. Thanks for the info.
Julia has since received veterinary care, xrays, and corrective shoeing and is serviceably sound and well loved in Los Angeles. I have seen horses with far worse feet, but I was dismayed to see a horse rescue release a horse after 30 days with feet that long and painful. It took me one hour to have the farrier out to trim this mare and make her more comfortable. Why couldn't Dean Solomon have done the same? And what was she doing rescuing 18 horses from an auction when she was not providing adequate basic hoof care for a horse already in her care? Katie Moore Watermark Farm Santa Rosa, CA
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Post by guest on May 1, 2008 15:09:08 GMT -8
Excellent question.
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Post by forthem on May 1, 2008 15:13:55 GMT -8
very good question! will there be anyone to give an answer???
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Post by sadsituation on May 1, 2008 15:24:08 GMT -8
How much do you want to bet those answers will sound something like "You haters are just LOOKING for dirt to throw on Dean". "Go rescue a horse instead of bashing a legitimate rescuer!"
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Post by watermarkfarm on May 6, 2008 13:21:02 GMT -8
Official Exceller Fund stance on Dean Solomon/PEC: Fri, 2 May 2008 19:34:23 -0700 Thank you for contacting The Exceller Fund regarding this most distressful situation. The Exceller Fund has not been involved in rescue or adoption efforts in the Pacific Northwest for about 3 years with the exception of one request for assistance with vet expenses for a feedlot rescue in January 2007. The Exceller Fund sent a check for $180 to a vet to pay for care for a Thoroughbred gelding taken from a feedlot. The Exceller Fund has never used Dean Solomon or the Pacific Equestrian Center to care for our horses. Darlene is a former officer/board member who personally knows Dean Solomon. The Exceller Fund has no foster facilities or operations in the Pacific Northwest . We currently have 5 board members, 4 of them live in Lexington , Kentucky and the 5th lives in Los Angeles . Our officers are located in Lexington and Los Angeles . At this point, we have no plans to be involved with rescue or adoption efforts in the Pacific Northwest and will focus our efforts where we currently have horses. I have attached a list of our horses and their foster providers. Please let me know if you would like to contact any of them, and I will be more than happy to provide you with their contact information. If you would like more information on any of our horses, please let me know. We have many wonderful horses that are looking for a forever home! Bonnie Mizrahi, President The Exceller Fund www.excellerfund.orgProviding a Future Beyond the Finish Line sm (818)429-3418
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Post by seen it myself on May 7, 2008 9:47:21 GMT -8
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Post by Tinker and Goldie on May 7, 2008 16:59:51 GMT -8
Nice story from Pasados.
What they left out was that Pasados "boarded" two of their own rescues at PEC for months and never checked on them. They are just as neglectful in this situation as Dean is. Poor Tinker and Goldie lived out in the mud and manure for months during 2006 and were apparently forgotten by Pasado's staff.
What I really want to know is: When is the trial?
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Post by Jerry on May 7, 2008 18:25:38 GMT -8
Nice story from Pasados. What they left out was that Pasados "boarded" two of their own rescues at PEC for months and never checked on them. They are just as neglectful in this situation as Dean is. Poor Tinker and Goldie lived out in the mud and manure for months during 2006 and were apparently forgotten by Pasado's staff. Tinker and Goldie were there a lot longer then a few months. Close to a year if not longer. Pasado's went down to check on them a few times, and said everything was A-Okay. Appears they are trying to avoid guilt by association. It neeever happened.....riiiight........ Are there ANY rescues in Washington that aren't F'ed up in some way? Except for maybe WIRE and Juliane's Serenity (NOT to be confused with Serenity/Clark's). Hope for Horses are attention sleepers that euth horses for expediency, starve horses in foster care, and lie about their involvement in a rescue just to cash in. Pasado's doesn't really know squat about horses, and have their own can of worms. SAFE had the JR mess, with Psycho Syndi saying he was "just fine" where he was, he was almost dead when she saw him. Rodeo City (they are the proud owners of Psycho Syndi now, volunteer of the year) sent horses to Chuck. The newest on the block Serenity has Kim Clark who is infamous for selling lame horses as "cute little movers" and "pony club prospects" when they can barely walk, plus doubling prices on feedlot horses and pocketing the difference as "fundraisers", and Patricia Clark that doesn't know her butt from a whole in the ground giving Sam/CBER the wrong horse, confusing KitKat with Natasha, they don't even look the same. Not even getting into CBER, that would be a novel. What an f'ing mess, between egos, incompetence, and screwed up priorities. It is no wonder many people don't even want to get involved anymore.
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Post by guest on May 7, 2008 20:01:38 GMT -8
SAFE had the JR mess, with Psycho Syndi saying he was "just fine" where he was, he was almost dead when she saw him. Wow...hang on a minute. Read JR's thread carefully and you find that while SAFE took responsibility for what happened and for cleaning it up (which they did, immediately and the horse is now great and in a loving lifetime home!), the responsible party for that mess was CBER. CBER placed the horse, not SAFE. CBER had no adoption contract, did not do a site visit, and probably did not even check references. SAFE at that point was nothing more than a fund of money that was funneled through CBER to purchase horses. As for Syndi, agreed she is a Psycho but SAFE simply did not know who she was and unknowingly sent her out to do a site visit on their behalf as the horse was way over in Eastern WA. As soon as SAFE received the pictures from her (including the commentary that the horse was "fine" and "just old"), the owner was contacted and the horse removed, and I doubt they have anything to do with Syndi anymore. SAFE tries very hard to do everything the right way, and the nice thing about SAFE is that when they do make mistakes, they own up to them, and immediately take steps to rectify the situation AND re-evaluate their policies to see what they need to fix to avoid the problem happening in the future. Honestly I don't think you can ask for better than that from a rescue. I just hate to see them listed here among the rescues with problems. I think they are doing a fine job.
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Post by Jerry on May 7, 2008 20:24:44 GMT -8
SAFE had the JR mess, with Psycho Syndi saying he was "just fine" where he was, he was almost dead when she saw him. Wow...hang on a minute. Read JR's thread carefully and you find that while SAFE took responsibility for what happened and for cleaning it up (which they did, immediately and the horse is now great and in a loving lifetime home!), the responsible party for that mess was CBER. CBER placed the horse, not SAFE. CBER had no adoption contract, did not do a site visit, and probably did not even check references. SAFE at that point was nothing more than a fund of money that was funneled through CBER to purchase horses. As for Syndi, agreed she is a Psycho but SAFE simply did not know who she was and unknowingly sent her out to do a site visit on their behalf as the horse was way over in Eastern WA. As soon as SAFE received the pictures from her (including the commentary that the horse was "fine" and "just old"), the owner was contacted and the horse removed, and I doubt they have anything to do with Syndi anymore. SAFE tries very hard to do everything the right way, and the nice thing about SAFE is that when they do make mistakes, they own up to them, and immediately take steps to rectify the situation AND re-evaluate their policies to see what they need to fix to avoid the problem happening in the future. Honestly I don't think you can ask for better than that from a rescue. I just hate to see them listed here among the rescues with problems. I think they are doing a fine job. SAFE as an org overall has been great (aside from some major leadership issues ), but they are far from perfect. Training packages being donated as a fundraiser, but safe bod member bidding and winning, but never paying and using it on their own horse. Four board members have left in the last few months, and another last year. How about a SAFE bod member's horse having to be RESCUED by SAFE and listed on their site as a rescue. That was more than a little unconventional. "Jellybelly", SAFE resource and supporter is being evicted from her farm/property, and everyone else is in a scramble to find homes for all her horses....yet she is offering to take in MORE horses on the SAFE bb? That is just super.
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Post by guest on May 7, 2008 21:18:12 GMT -8
Wow. Someone has their facts woefully incorrect and I am floored at this blatent attempt to deflect blame by trying to discredit a VERY upstanding and respected rescue.
Leadership issues? Please explain further since you are so "in the know". Have you met any of the SAFE leadership? Organizational changes happen. Have you ever served on the board of directors? Understand how much work it is?
The training package, donated by Cam and Carrie Reeves, was in fact bid on by SAFE. There was no reason that SAFE could not bid on items donated to their own fundraiser, if they felt they could use them. No, SAFE doesn't have to pay for them, as they would only be paying themselves, as it was donated. But but doing so they forfeited the donation they would have gotten if someone else had purchased the training package. It was a good deal though and SAFE needs training for their horses, as they ACTUALLY put training on their horses. As for using it on a BoD's own horse??? You are crazy. The package is currently planned to be used for SAFE horse Jack. READ their bulletin board, its right there in black and white, as is everything else that goes on at SAFE.
I have no idea what you are talking about when you say a SAFE BoD's horse had to be rescued and rehomed via the rescue. Please explain, all-knowing one. If you make accusations such as that, you had better be prepared to back it up, because I am a long time supporter and volunteer and clearly know a lot more about SAFE than you do, and I'd love to hear this story.
And lastly, seriously deranged one - if there is a bulletin board member that is having financial issues and yet trying to take on more horses from their bb - how is that SAFE's responsibility?? Is SAFE adopting horses to this person? Are they supposed to do background checks on everyone who registers and posts on their forum? In fact, back to the PEC discussion, Dean also picked up horses off their free "Horses in Need" listing service which are horse ads posted by other bulletin board members...is that SAFE's fault too? And sadly, two of those horses, Jack and Roy/Pumpkin, are now dead. Another, Colonel, is missing.
This whole thing reeks of someone with a personal grudge. Perhaps you were turned down to adopt, as I heard PEC was, at one time? Hmm....
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