Animal hoarding: Officials seize 150 animals from Henderson County couple

HENDERSON, Ky. - Animal control officials have removed and relocated more than 150 animals from a residential property in Henderson County.

Bridget Kilgore, animal control officer and animal shelter manager in Henderson County, said they identified the residence in May after fielding complaints from neighbors but were finally forced to seize the animals last week.

"We had been trying to work with them, but they were not changing the way they were caring for these animals, and they were actually adding animals to it .. it was actually getting worse."

"We had to do something. There was no food, no water for some of them, and they wouldn't have made it for the next 48 hours," Kilgore said.

"Some of the cages were extremely crowded with the birds where they were actually sitting on each other." 

Henderson County Sheriff's Office officials confirmed the case to The Gleaner, saying the problem was at 12 Center Street in Corydon where a couple in their 20s live. One of the two, Kassidy Ford, has been cited for 154 counts of second-degree animal cruelty, five counts of not having a license or rabies vaccination for dogs, and two counts of improper waste removal for a dog.

"Their dogs were just laying in their own feces, so they got charged with that," Kilgore said of the canine waste removal charge.

The other resident at the property, a male, is facing the same charges as Ford, but Kilgore said they are having trouble locating him.

As for the other animals, "They were outside, and then they had a small broken down camper filled with birds."

"There were several different types of poultry. There were pheasants, chickens, geese, ducks, turkey, quail, peacocks, guineas, and there were several rabbits, goats, a ram and a few dogs."

She said conditions at the property, which is 1 acre at best, were grim.

"Lots of feces and carcasses everywhere which was the complaint to begin with. The care of the animals, and the smell."

The couple allegedly tried to dispose of some of the dead animals, but did so poorly, according to Kilgore.

"There was a large area, more or less a dip in the ground," she said, where the remains had been, "thrown in a hole with a little bit of dirt. You could see the bags sticking out of the ground."

How you can help

The animals that were removed are in a "safe rescue location" on an area farm.

Kilgore said the public's help is needed to help properly care for the animals.

"We're needing obviously a lot of bird feed for chickens, so chicken feed, goat feed, rabbit feed. They can bring them straight here to the shelter" on Drury Lane, she said.

Cash or check donations can also be sent to the Humane Society of Henderson County at 203 Drury Lane, Henderson, KY 42420.

Kilgore said disease doesn't appear to be a factor in this case. "That is being looked at. Right now, (the main issues) are starvation, malnutrition and dehydration."

Kilgore said every time animal control officials came to visit the address, they were given a different explanation as to why the couple had all the animals.

"They told (animal control officers) they were trying to raise their own food, and then on another visit, they said they were raising their own food and putting them up for sale. Then on the last visit it was that these are all my pets. So we got all kinds of explanations."

This isn't Henderson County's first animal hoarding case in recent memory.

Doil Stogner, then 73, was charged in October of 2017 with 544 misdemeanor counts of second-degree cruelty to animals after hundreds of animals were found living in deplorable conditions on his 10-acre farm in Reed, Ky. 

He eventually pleaded guilty to all 544 offenses. As part of the plea agreement, Stogner was sentenced to 180 days of home incarceration.

He was ordered to not possess or own any animals during the period of conditional discharge (Probation), which was two years. Stogner was also ordered to make full restitution to the Humane Society of Henderson County in the amount of $1,452.00.

Editor's note: Information for this story was also gathered by Beth Smith.

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