Man faces charges after horse dies from neglect

PUTNAM COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - A man from Red House is facing a charge of animal cruelty after a horse found on his property had to be euthanized due to its injuries.

“I’m going to get involved, and I’m going to charge you for the neglect,” said Putnam County Sheriff Bobby Eggleton. “I don’t care if it was this individual or anybody else.”

Timothy Craig Boggess, 65, could be facing additional charges after Heart of Phoenix rescue group recovered a horse from his property that was underweight and had a serious and gruesome injury to its foot.

A man from Red House, West Virginia is charged with animal cruelty.(wsaz)

The animal couldn’t be saved and had to be put down. Sheriff Eggleton says he’s heartbroken.

“If you can’t take care of your animals, are you really going to take care of your people? “Animals take a lot of care but not as much as people do,” he said.

Eggleton wants the community to blow the whistle on any other cases of suspected animal abuse so they can be investigated properly.

“You have a responsibility to take care of your animals,” he said. “And I have the same responsibility to take care of your animals, too, whether I have to take them, or feed them.”

He hopes to protect all pets, whether they be dogs, cats, or larger animals like horses and cows. While he recognizes that sometimes people fall on tough times, he believes there are plenty of resources and assistance out there to take care of the animals -- including the animal shelter, rescue groups and even the Sheriff’s Office.

“I know that maybe it doesn’t fall on the most important thing, but for that animal it’s the most important thing,” Eggleton said.

For now, it’s a warning -- but also serves as a promise. The sheriff says he’ll be continuing to protect the pastures of Putnam County and all of the people, pets and animals who live there.

“If this is happening on your farm or in your house or something like that, do something about it before I have to,” he said.

Eggleton says it’s too late to help this horse, and he wants to make sure it doesn’t happen again.