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Horses owner says shes back on track

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  • Sonny Long •
  • Originally published July 1, 2008 at 10:49 p.m., updated July 1, 2008 at 10:49 p.m.

YORKTOWN – Yolanda Ortiz said she appreciates the outpouring of concern for her horses, but she is now “back on track” taking care of the animals.

Ortiz – whose husband, George Ortiz, died June 24 – said that she had left a friend in charge of taking care of the horses. Passers-by discovered the horses looking malnourished and have been watering and feeding them.

“My husband had been sick for 13 years and been in and out of the hospital a lot lately,” she said. “I had someone in charge of taking care of the horses. The key was in the truck. The truck was full of gas. There’s feed here on the back porch. I haven’t had a chance to talk to him to see what happened. It was all a misunderstanding and bad timing, I guess.”

Yorktown Police Chief Paul Campos said he visited with Ortiz on Tuesday and was assured the horses would be taken care of.

“She’s moving some of them to another pasture with more grass. Since there was food and water there every time I went by, there will be no citation issued,” Campos said.

Ortiz said another problem was that one of the horses won’t let one of the other ones eat unless Ortiz is there shooing the aggressive horse away.

“One of them is a real bully when it comes to feeding time,” she said. “I’m moving one of them to another pasture so she can eat without being bothered.”

She said that while she wants to keep the horses, she would consider selling the two younger ones.

“These are fine horses. Three of them are registered, and one is a purebred Arabian,” she said.

Ortiz said she appreciates the concern of the community.

“At least we know that people care,” she said. “But people also need to know the whole story. My husband came first. I’m back on track. Life goes on.”

Sonny Long is a reporter for the Victoria Advocate. He can be reached at 361-580-6585, by e-mail at slong@vicad.com, or comment on this story at VictoriaAdvocate.com.



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Comments

  • Delight Delight Report a ViolationReport a Violation Permalink  | 

    I went by there yesterday in the late evening to leave some hay and a bag of feed. I ended up not leaving it, due to the weather. I did not see the 2 horses that were emaciated-The other 3 were thin, but okay. There was hay and water there. So, I guess she moved or sold them already. Hopefully, they will all be okay now. Maybe, people will learn that if your life circumstances prevent you from taking care of your animals you should give them or sell them to someone who can take care of them.

    July 2, 2008 at 10:45 a.m.
  • fairley01 fairley01 Report a ViolationReport a Violation Permalink  | 

    I am heartened to know that so many cared. However, I agree with Romonak, without D. Sagan the story might have been about dead horses in the pasture. Ultimately, we are all held accountable for our actions; if not on this earth, than by a higher power.

    July 2, 2008 at 9:32 a.m.
  • romonak romonak Report a ViolationReport a Violation Permalink  | 

    well it's good to hear they are being taken care of again...i would not have suggested filing charges against a widow anyways...people just need to keep in mind that these animals are a big responsibility and even if someone else is "in charge" of their care, ultimately, they are still the responsibility of the owner.

    thankfully there were careing passerbys that brought the neglect to her attention or else the story may have been about dead horses in the pasture...

    July 2, 2008 at 8:27 a.m.