Four Wayne County women are facing animal cruelty charges in unrelated cases.
One case involves an emaciated horse that later died. Geraldine Benson of Equinunk is charged with four counts of animal cruelty involving five horses and five rabbits.

Pennsylvania Humane Society Police Officer Marlene Metzger says Benson “failed to provide food, water and access to clean and sanitary shelter.” She says the five horses were living in a foot and a half of manure and mud. One of the horses, an older, Arabian mare was “absolutely emaciated, skin stretched over bone,” Metzger said. “I ordered veterinary care the day I was there, and told them that they needed to get a vet out there or they needed someone to euthanize the horse. That’s how bad that horse was ...I told them that horse wasn’t going to live 48 hours ...I went back 48 hours later, and the horse was laying there dead.” Metzger said she questioned if they’d had the animal euthanized and was told, “No, it just died.”

“Just to leave her lay there and die, that horse suffered,” Metzger said. “It didn’t need to be that way.”

Metzger said the owners said they had been feeding it the best food and giving it the best care. Metzger said the horses were in “varying degrees of carrying weight ... from absolutely emaciated, couldn’t lose another ounce, to in good weight.”

She said the owners have since re-homed the other four horses.    

  
Two of the four citations involved rabbits, allegedly caged in filthy conditions. Resulting charges were for failing to provide food, water and access to clean and sanitary shelter.

Puppy needed surgery 
Shaquanna Douglas of Honesdale is charged with three counts of animal cruelty related to a four-month-old puppy. “She’s being charged with one count of abandonment. She left the puppy in a dark bathroom with no food or water (a) minimum of four days,”Metzger said.

She says they received a tip that the dog was in the apartment and that Douglas had gone away. Metzger said she did find an empty bowl in the room. She said the dog was “very, very thin” when they removed him from the apartment October 14, weighing about 14 pounds, when he should have weighed “20 or more.”

“When we discovered the puppy in the bathroom, he also had a very bad limp ...which was due to a previous fracture that was untreated.” Douglas is also charged with failing to provide necessary veterinary care “to a pup suffering from a pelvis/femur injury resulting from trauma” and for failure to provide necessary food and water.

The American Staffordshire puppy is currently in the Dessin Animal Shelter’s custody. Metzger says he underwent surgery, Wednesday, to repair his broken leg and is doing well.

Douglas is also charged with dog law violations for failing to have a dog license and rabies vaccination for her puppy.

Underweight with mange
Robyn Dolph of Waymart is charged with one count of animal cruelty relating to her three dogs. She’s charged with failing to provide food and veterinary care for a mastiff and vet care for both a rottweiler and a yorkshire terrier.  

A complaint came in to Dessin Animal Shelter on October 27  about a “very skinny mastiff with a skin condition ...(and) a rottweiler that was also patchy,” Metzger said. When Metzger questioned  Dolph about the two dogs, the owner allegedly told her, “take them,” keeping the yorkie. 

The two dogs were taken to the vet, where the mastiff was diagnosed with mange. “He had bloody, scabby sores all over his body and he was skinny,” Metzger said. “I’d say he was probably 20 to 30 pounds under weight. As of Thursday’s interview, they were still being treated for “various illnesses and conditions” Metzger said, but were doing well.

Cats abandoned
Nicole Gushlaw of Honesdale is charged with one count of animal cruelty for allegedly abandoning four cats with no food or water and moving out. Questioned if the cats were left in the house, Metzger said, “They were on a screened in porch when I got there, but I believe the landlord had let them onto the screened in porch.” She said the landlord called when he discovered the cats.

A neighbor was feeding them on the screened in porch. The cats were removed October 27 and are currently in the care of the Dessin Animal Shelter.

Cruelty to animals is a summary offense, punishable by a fine of $50 to $750, and up to 90 days in jail.