CUSTER COUNTY – The Custer County Sheriff’s Office has charged 71-year-old Linda Gentsch of Westcliffe with 36 counts of animal cruelty.
The charges are in connection to an investigation and seizure of 37 horses from three properties in Custer County, according to the Sheriffs’ Office.
The Sheriffs’ Office said Gentsch was residing at a property on County Road 140 in Custer County and was keeping the horse on that property as well as two adjacent properties that totaled about 80 acres of land.
The horses were transported to the Harmony Equine Center where they received vet care. One of the young horse was euthanized due to its extreme medical condition. The other 36 are responding to treatment, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office said the intake veterinarian’s report stated the herd was the “sickest” group of horses she had ever encountered in an intake exam.
The veterinarian is still working to establish how many of the horses are carrying foals, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators from the Humane Society are continuing to work with the Custer County Sheriff’s Office to monitor the health of the remaining horses on Ms. Gentsch’s property.
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