Crook County Buys Neglected Horses

After a nearly two-week delay, the immediate fate of 75 neglected animals in Crook County was decided Friday morning.

The horses and cows finally were sold to the highest bidder at an auction in front of the county courthouse.

The highest bidder was Crook County itself, purchasing the horses for the cost of their care.

County officials say about a dozen people showed up for Friday morning’s auction, which went fairly quickly.

“We announced the foreclosure and asked if there was anyone there to bid, and Crook County was the only one that voiced a bid,” said Assistant County Counsel Eric Blaine.

The cost of taking care of the neglected animals since January of this year totaled a little under $23,000. The delay in auctioning them off added to the cost.

“That started accumulating expenses for the county, so we had a lien and went through the process of foreclosing on that lien to determine who would be the legal owner of those animals,” said Blaine.

The animals allegedly were neglected by Timothy Coffia, a ranch hand Powell Butte. He was arrested earlier this year and pleaded not guilty in February to 20 counts of animal neglect.

County officials won’t say where the horses are being kept right now, but will say that the sheriff’s department is working closely with the ranch and they are being well taken care of.

“They are looking much better than when they were seized in January,” said Blaine. “They’ve been fed and cared for with veterinary services. We’ve got a lot of volunteers to make sure that they’re hale and hearty.”

We’ve received many comments into the newsroom asking if the horses will be adopted out individually or sold as a whole, But the county says they’re still in the process of finalizing plans for the horses, and will have an announcement out shortly.