On Tuesday, RCMP cruisers, and horse trailers with the province’s Chief Veterinary Officer’s (CVO) office could be seen loading up horses at a property near Teulon, Man.
The province confirmed its involvement in the animal seizures at Barefoot Ranch: Horse Rescue and Sanctuary.
Its president and founder, Sherri Anderson, said officials would be taking away all the animals in her care — except for two cats and two dogs.
That number rounds out to about 160, she said, including 52 horses.
She told Global News she was notified about the seizure just hours before.
“There wasn’t anything I could do about it because they went to a judge on June 7 and put down a bunch of documentation that I’ve never seen, and they put that documentation in front of them. The judge signed off and gave them authority to seize all the animals here,” she said.
Anderson said she has documentation showing she’s taken the proper steps to care for the animals at the ranch.
“I can prove to you the bills that were brought in every six days: The amount of like feed I bought from Master Feeds, the feed that I’ve gotten from my…hay guy,” she said. “I can prove to you all the feed that I’ve given them.”
She said she has hired a lawyer to walk through the appeals process.
Kayla Wheeler said she adopted a horse from Barefoot Ranch in August 2023, and shortly after had concerns about the animal’s health.
“After two short rides, I realized something was incredibly wrong with this horse. I realized that this horse actually stayed at Barefoot for about a year and her hooves were left neglected for six months,” she said.
“About a month after I got her, (veterinarians) diagnosed her with a grade three out of five lameness after a simple lameness exam,” she added.
Wheeler says she brought her concerns about Barefoot Ranch to the province’s CVO, and consulted with other individuals who said she was not alone in her concerns.
“I started doing more research into this place, and from that research, a lot of people reached out to me with their own stories — similar stories — and it just got worse from there,” she said.
Wheeler said she has seen horses emaciated on the property.
“They tried sending me a horse named Sanchez,” she said. “Sanchez… was a one on the weight scale, so he was incredibly emaciated — underweight. I actually just found out that his mother died, who was also at the Barefoot. He was in deplorable condition,” she said.
Anderson said she disputes any claims that the animals in her care have been mistreated.
“Nobody gets into rescue to, like, make money or starve animals or hurt them. That’s not the case. We go into debt to make sure that they’re properly cared for,” she said.
In an emailed statement, a provincial spokesperson said the animals have been removed from the property to ensure their safety, and that “no further details on this ongoing investigation can be provided at this time.”
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