Local print coverage

On Sunday, September 28, five horses were seized due to mistreatment.

Here are the local headlines:

Associated Press, via amNY, neglected horses seized in raid at NY stable

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. - Animal welfare detectives say they've seized five neglected horses in a raid at a Long Island home with a stable out back.

The Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says the horses taken from the Central Islip (EYE'-slip) property on Sunday morning were in danger of dying.

A veterinarian says they were severely neglected and required emergency medical care.

SPCA officers say they've arrested a man in connection to the case and charged him with five counts of animal cruelty.

The horses are being cared for. If they can be stabilized they'll be placed in foster care pending the outcome of the case.


Newsday, Charges of animal cruelty

Five maltreated horses were rescued from a Central Islip property yesterday morning and their owner was arrested, the Suffolk Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said.

Detectives and humane officers from the agency's Emergency Animal Response Team executed a search warrant about 10 a.m. yesterday at 88 Hawthorne Ave. in Central Islip, said Suffolk SPCA Chief Roy Gross.

It was part of an ongoing investigation into the treatment of the five horses, Gross said.

The owner of the horses, Salvatore Gandolfo, of 41 Maplewood Lane, Aquebogue, was arrested at the scene. Charged with five counts of animal cruelty, he is expected to be arraigned today, Gross said.

Gandolfo was housing the horses at stables on the Central Islip property, Gross said.

Gross would not elaborate on the condition of the horses or how they were mistreated, except that they were in danger of dying. "They're going to need medical attention," he said.

Richard Root, 62, who rents a room in a boardinghouse on the Central Islip property, said he didn't see any signs of the horses being mistreated.

A woman who identified herself as Gandolfo's wife declined to comment last night.



Newsday, Horses in injury case recovering as owner is arraigned

Five sickly horses found grossly underweight, some with maggots embedded in their heels, were recovering yesterday at a Huntington stable as their owner faced animal cruelty charges for what officials called severe and long-term neglect.

[CORRECTION: Workers at the Indian Head Ranch in Huntington are caring for five sickly horses that were rescued from a stable in Central Islip. A caption yesterday incorrectly described the role of the ranch. Also, the man accused of injuring the animals, Salvatore Gandolfo, is not affiliated with the ranch. Pg. A17 ALL 10/1/08] Salvatore Gandolfo, 55, of Aquebogue, pleaded not guilty to five counts of injuring animals at his arraignment yesterday at First District Court in Central Islip.

Judge Paul Hensley set bail at $10,000 cash or $20,000 bond, citing Gandolfo's failure to appear in court this year for misdemeanor traffic charges.

Defense lawyer Jason Bassett of Central Islip later said his client planned to post bail today. "Mr. Gandolfo is a well-respected member of the equestrian community," Bassett said. "He absolutely denies that these animals were ever harmed in any way by him either by negligence or any intentional act."

In court, Suffolk SPCA lawyer Herbert Kellner applied for a hearing to determine whether Gandolfo should pay a $7,500 fee to care for the horses at the Huntington stable.

Gandolfo, of 41 Maplewood Lane, told the judge that he had gotten a veterinarian to check the horses, which were seized from a stable at 88 Hawthorne Ave. in Central Islip Sunday after SPCA officials executed a search warrant.

But at Huntington's Indian Head Ranch, whose owner, Wayne Dougal, took in the ailing horses, they appeared emaciated.

Belle, an Arabian mare, was about 300 pounds underweight, Dougal said. A beige stallion and Teddy, a paint gelding, had maggots in their heels before ranch employees soaked them in diluted bleach, he said.

"The only thing these horses could count on was each other," Dougal said. "These horses should've been taken care of much better than this, because he's in the business."

Gandolfo is listed as a contact on the Web site of Windy Meadow Horse Farm in Calverton, which offers riding lessons and sells horses.

Mitch Prawki, 52, whose Adams Road home is less than 100 yards from the Central Islip stable, said he first complained to Islip Town officials about the conditions at the stables in 2002. "The manure is piling up by the backyard," Prawki said. "Seeing those horses the way they were, something had to be done."

The misdemeanor animal cruelty charges carry a maximum penalty of up to 1 year in prison and a $1,000 fine. Gandolfo is due back in Suffolk District Court on Oct. 8.



Newsday, Horse owner pleads not guilty to abuse charges

The owner of five maltreated horses rescued from a property Sunday in Central Islip pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of animal cruelty in Suffolk District Court, not far from where the horses were seized.

Appearing without a lawyer Salvatore Gandolfo, 55, of Aquebogue, pleaded not guilty before Judge Paul M. Hensley. The judge set bail at $10,000 cash, $20,000 bond, citing Gandolfo's previous failure to appear in court for traffic violations.

Gandolfo, of 41 Maplewood Lane, had been charged with five counts of animal cruelty after detectives and humane officers from the Suffolk Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals' Emergency Animal Response Team executed a search warrant Sunday morning at 88 Hawthorne Ave. in Central Islip.

There, authorities seized the five horses. Suffolk SPCA chief Roy Gross did not say how the horses had been mistreated, but said they were in danger of dying.

Gandolfo told the judge he is employed and had gotten a veterinarian to check the horses.

A lawyer for Suffolk SPCA, Herbert Kellner, applied for a bond hearing in court Monday that would require Gandolfo to pay for the horses' veterinary care, feeding and housing.

"The case is a bad case of animal abuse, of animal cruelty and neglect," Kellner said Monday outside the courtroom. "Obviously, the horses are in bad enough condition that they needed to be seized by our agency."

Gandolfo is due back in court on Oct. 8.