Equal Justice for Horses: Why Ohio’s Laws Must Change

Their blankets were still fused to their bones. The stall walls were chewed bare where the starving animals tried to eat their way out. Seven more horses stood nearby, alive but dangerously thin.

It was cruelty in its purest form — and yet, under Ohio law, it may only be punished as a misdemeanor.

The Legal Loophole

Ohio divides animals into two legal categories:

• Companion animals — dogs, cats, and pets kept in homes

• Livestock and others — including horses

That single word — “livestock” — changes everything.

If you intentionally harm a dog or cat, you can be charged under Ohio Revised Code §959.131. Serious cruelty or repeat offenses are felonies, carrying up to a year in prison and fines up to $2,500.

But if you starve a horse?

It falls under Ohio Revised Code §959.13, the general “cruelty to animals” law. The maximum penalty:

• 90 days in jail

• $750 fine

That’s the same penalty as a traffic-related hit to a mailbox — for slowly killing a living, breathing animal.

Why Horses Deserve Equal Protection

Horses don’t fit neatly into either box. They’re not livestock in the traditional sense — they’re athletes, therapy partners, and companions that live long lives alongside humans. They feel hunger, fear, and pain like any other animal.

When horses are neglected, it’s rarely quick. It’s weeks or months of starvation, infection, and suffering. Humane agents, volunteers, and veterinarians see it every year — and still face an uphill battle to get justice.

The Problem With the System

Ohio’s humane societies do heroic work, but they often operate with part-time investigators and shoestring budgets. They can gather evidence and rescue animals, but they can’t prosecute felonies.

If a case isn’t handed to a county prosecutor quickly, evidence can vanish, witnesses disappear, and the clock on justice runs out. That’s exactly what’s believed to have happened in the Salem Township case — earlier complaints were made, but no charges followed until it was too late.

What Needs to Change

1. Make large-animal cruelty a felony. Horses deserve the same protection as dogs and cats.

2. Require prosecutor involvement. Serious neglect cases must automatically transfer from humane agents to county prosecutors within 30 days.

3. Fund rural investigations. Counties need state funding for feed, vet care, and proper evidence handling so cases don’t collapse under cost.

4. Standardize evidence rules. Every cruelty case — whether for a dog or a horse — should follow the same chain of custody and documentation standards.

Justice Without Exceptions

A 1,200-pound animal dying behind a locked stall isn’t “property neglect.” It’s violence.

It’s the same cruelty, the same indifference, and it deserves the same accountability.

When we make excuses because an animal has hooves instead of paws, we tell the world some lives matter less. Ohio can do better — and the Salem Township horses deserve to be the turning point.

Equal protection under the law should apply to all animals. Because suffering doesn’t stop at species lines, and justice shouldn’t either.