Fourth horse dies at Davie farm amid suspected feed contamination

Another horse has died in a feed contamination tragedy thought to be responsible for wiping out the equine population at a Davie farm.

On Monday morning, an 8-year-old quarter horse named Foxy was euthanized by injection after her owners decided her suffering was too great.

She was the fourth horse to die since October at Masterpiece Equestrian Center, a Davie boarding farm and riding school. The suspected reason: tainted feed. More horses are expected to be euthanized as early as this week.

“She was the sweetest little pony, everyone loved her,” said Debra Buis, a private boarder who owns two of the horses at the center.

The Lakeland company that sold the feed has since recalled the product, stopped production and acknowledged that the feed contained an ingredient harmful to horses.

“We are committed to working with the Masterpiece Equestrian family to bring restoration in the midst of their tragic losses,” said Jonathan Lang, general manager of Lakeland Animal Nutrition. “Although we can never replace their horses or take away the pain of this tragedy, we are working with their representatives to expedite a resolution.”

Buis said three horses at the farm developed sudden paralysis and collapsed in October. All three died within a week.

Days later, testing of the feed, conducted at the horse owners’ request, came back positive for monensin, a powerful medication used in poultry and cattle feeds. Monensin is too strong for horses, and there is no antidote.

The rest of the horses became terribly ill. Owners were told by veterinarians to provide “comfort care.”

But officials at the farm said it’s been horrible watching the animals deteriorate.

Over the weekend, Foxy, the quarter horse used by children in walk-trot and jumping shows, bit someone — behavior not typical of the normally gentle animal.

On Sunday, Foxy’s body was becoming bloated and her face was swelling, especially around her temples and jaws. The symptoms are a sign of heart or kidney failure, or possibly both. The veterinarian was called and Foxy was put down.

“This is devastating, very devastating, and I expect this is not the end of it,” said Millie Pryce, Foxy’s owner and owner of Masterpiece Equestrian Center, 13901 SW 26th St. “It’s very difficult.”

The rest of the 18 horses — most of them show horses — will die, officials said, but owners aren’t rushing the inevitable.

“It’s not that they are hoping for a miracle,” said attorney Andrew Yaffa. “This is a loved member of their family. They can’t bring themselves to put their horses down. It’s just so sad.”

Lakeland Animal Nutrition said in a statement emailed in November that the feed distributed throughout Florida was recalled after the deaths in October, and that an investigation was underway.

Lang said in a statement Monday that testing from the Florida Department of Agriculture confirmed late last month that monensin and lasalocid — another additive to promote growth for other types of farm animals, but toxic to horses — were present in some of its horse feed.

“As a 95-year-old company that has built its business on a reputation of excellence and quality, we were grieved to hear of this news,” he said.

Lang said no other deaths have been reported. He also said the company is “re-examining all quality procedures and training to ensure all product meets the most rigorous of quality standards,” he said.

“We are committed to working with the Masterpiece Equestrian family to bring restoration in the midst of their tragic losses,” Lang said. “Although we can never replace their horses or take away the pain of this tragedy, we are working with their representatives to expedite a resolution.”

Yaffa said he hasn’t filed a lawsuit, but was in negotiations with the company.

The illness has closed down the stable’s riding business because the farm said it couldn’t risk putting children on sick horses that could collapse.

Show horses boarded there can be worth $35,000 to hundreds of thousands of dollars, Yaffa said.

“The children are watching their favorite horses and ponies die right in front of them,” he said. “They are deteriorating. It gets to a point where you can no longer keep the horses pain free. It’s an ongoing disgusting series of events.”

lhuriash@tribpub.com or 954-572-2008