Borell Linked to 40+ Neglected Horses

The state veterinarian for the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDOA) confirmed on June 27 that the name of Breeders' Cup-winning trainer Maria Borell is “associated with the ownership” of more than 40 neglected and undernourished horses found in dire stabling conditions at a privately leased farm near Harrodsburg.

Dr. Robert C. Stout of the KDOA said in a Monday afternoon phone interview that KDOA veterinarians were on the scene caring for the neglected animals in conjunction with help from the Mercer County Sheriff's Office and a team of volunteers who are donating hay, feed, and their time to tend to the stricken horses. The investigation into the level of neglect and who exactly owns the farm and each of the individual horses continues to unfold, he said, although no criminal charges have been filed against Borell or anyone else so far.

“This is an ongoing investigation. We've been involved since the first of June,” Stout said. “Our goal in these things is, number one, to respond to a complaint, obviously, and to address the welfare of the horses. The local law enforcement officers have been very responsive in responding to the needs of the horses. I don't know how much I can say legally, if you know where I'm going with that. But there are a number of horses that do not seem to be managed in a way consistent with Kentucky law.”

As of deadline for this article, Borell had yet to respond to a text message sent Monday afternoon requesting her side of the story.

At this time last year, Borell had never trained a Thoroughbred winner from 22 lifetime starts. Then she took over as the trainer of Runhappy (Super Saver), who blossomed into a graded stakes-winning sprinter. But 24 hours after Runhappy won the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint on Oct. 31, Borell was fired, and she sued client Gallery Racing Stables, LLC, (owners James and Linda McIngvale) for breach of contract and defamation. Over the winter Borell relocated to Florida, but a training stint with Drawing Away Stable was also short-lived, ending in a dismissal from that job.

According to an investigative article titled “The Shocking Untold Story of Maria Borell” that was published on the website US Racing in late May, Borell has been involved in a series of incidents in recent years that involve questionable equine care, damage to and neglect of properties she has leased, and personal financial difficulties.

That article, along with a follow-up published last week, used graphic photographs from farm visits to the Mercer County property to illustrate “deplorable conditions,” such as “horses of all ages with open sores all over their bodies,” “yearlings not yet weaned [that] hadn't had blacksmith attention in months,” and horses “drinking unclean water from filthy buckets and troughs [while] housed in paddocks with broken fences that had yet to be repaired.”

US Racing quoted Tres Delaforce, a longtime horsewoman who is also a trainer, as an eyewitness to the neglect: “I've never seen anything like it in my entire life,” Delaforce said. “Those horses hadn't had basic care or regular feed in months. They were skin and bones. None were in acceptable shape. There was a worker there who told us the horses hadn't had food in at least 10 days at that point–and you could tell. Some were even locked in a barn the entire time they were there, which had to have been at least two weeks.”

The Mercer County Sheriff began investigating the horse farm after publication of the first US Racing article. But a dispatcher at the sheriff's office told TDN on Monday that the KDOA and the county prosecutor's office took over the case after the magnitude of neglect became evident.

“We're assisting, but it's way bigger than what we can handle,” the dispatcher said. “We take the feed and the hay bales out there and check on them daily to make sure that they're being fed, and they are.”

In the second US Racing article, Delaforce and others questioned why officials took so long to act on their initial reports of neglect.

“The fact that [county and state officials] knew about this for weeks and let this continue boggles the mind,” Delaforce told US Racing. “I was speechless and that's saying a lot for me. I could barely take any photos I was so stunned. Stunned.”

Stout, in Monday's interview with TDN, was asked if criticism about letting the investigation lag was valid.

“I personally don't think it is valid,” Stout said. “People don't want to understand that we are bound by law and due process.” After a pause, he added, “You can't always do just what you might want to do.”

Shane Mitchell, an animal health inspector who is leading the investigation for the KDOA, was reached on his mobile phone while at the farm on Monday.

“We're trying to work through the situation right now,” Mitchell said. “The immediate welfare concerns of the horses have been and are being addressed. We do have some [volunteers] out here doing daily care. I can't say enough good things about the ladies coming in to help us on this right now. The county sheriff's office is coming in daily.”

But when TDN wanted to know specifics, such as how many of the horses are Thoroughbreds, whether the case is considered outright abandonment or willful neglect, and who is supposed to be the lawful caretaker of the horses, Mitchell apologized and said he couldn't discuss those details.

“I can't confirm any of that for you because we're still in a very fluid, very active investigation right now,” Mitchell said. “That's one of the reasons we're here at the farm right now. We're still trying to get that information gathered up with the county prosecutor's office. I can tell you right now, as of this date and this hour, [3:30 p.m. Monday] no, we have not filed any charges.”

Stout said that for the time being, the horses will remain on the property where they currently reside, with daily care provided by the volunteers and overseen by the KDOA and the Mercer County Sheriff.

As far as potential re-homing of the animals, Stout said, “That's a decision that will be made by the law enforcement and the attorneys associated with the county. It's not something that I can decide. All that's been presented to the county attorney for his findings on it.”

A GoFundMe donations page has been established by a volunteer named Tara Cochran “to raise funds for the expenses relating to the urgent care needed for the 43 sick and near-death horses.”