St. John Humane Society

St. John Parish, Louisiana

This is how Joe looked when the St. John Humane Society took custody of him on April 26, 2001.

This is how Joe looks five months after taking him into rescue.

St. John Parish residents were calling and pleading with the parish operated animal control for weeks trying to get a starving and abandoned horse off of the Mississippi River levee. Residents were told that animal control only responded to dog and cat complaints and employees refused to even go and look at the horse.

On April 26, 2001, the sheriff's office called the St. John Humane Society to ask if they would be able to dispose of the horse. The volunteers immediately brought a horse trailer and took the nearly dead horse down and to safety at a local dog boarding facility.

The veterinarian confirmed that the Thoroughbred horse was malnourished, had severe infections in all of his legs due to being hobbled for an extended period of time(ropes tying the legs together)thereby producing deep rope burns around each ankle. Roofing nails were also removed from the horse's feet.

Tracing the tattoo on the horse led the Humane Society to discover that the horse had been sent to slaughter because he no longer could race due to a bad back leg joint. The horse managed to escape that fate only to be sold to an individual and forced to endure months of being starved and hobbled. For some unknown reason, the new owner then drove the horse to St. John Parish and left the horse alone on the levee; never to return.

The St. John Humane Society volunteers named the gray horse Smokey Joe. As you can see, Joe has made tremendous progress and is receiving the love he so deserves.

Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Smith, Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey Massi, Mrs. Carol Thoerig, Mr. and Mrs. Loyd Guillory, Ms. Cory Guillory, Mr. and Mrs. George Esper, Ms. Colleen Esper, Mrs. Joan Garvey, Mr. and Mrs. Cecil Jones, Ms. Allison Jones, Mr. and Mrs. Bubba Wheat, Mr. and Mrs. Mark Dufrene And all those who anonymously donated feed and hay.

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