Man Accused of Neglecting Animals Speaks Out After KAMC Story
By: Scarlett Greyson
Updated: February 13, 2013
Fed up with watching a man neglect his animals for years neighbors have been speaking out.
At least six neighbors have told KAMC they've watched several animals suffer at the hands of a man, who just doesn't care.
Shawn Shoemaker, the man accused of mistreating his animals, denied all of the allegations against him. But he told us Tuesday that all of the hassle and attention from the media, has made him decide to get rid of all of his animals.
"All of these animals will be gone tomorrow. You know if it's this big of a problem, this is not the first time my neighbors have complained, so lets just alleviate the problem," said Shoemaker.
Neighbors said not only horses have come and gone, but they've seen dogs, pigs, and even goats have suffered through his care over time. Many of them, they said, dying from starvation and hunger.
"Those horses cant talk, but what if they were a kid? I mean something would get done, " said neighbor Jacob Leak. " They're horses, they cant tell us how they're being treated so we need to step up and help them as a community."
Janese Lisenbee, another neighbor has called the sheriff several times to complain about the horses who look malnourished and uncared for.
And she's even seen him drag a hose to the trough to give water to the animals himself, but she said that's simply not enough.
"It just doesn't really seem like nothing is getting done about it," said Lisenbee. "And it's just I've seen in the summer time when it's a hundred-and-two and a hundred-and-five degrees that they've gone like five or six days without water. And I've seen, you know, the dehydration showing on their bodies."
We spoke to several other neighbors Tuesday who said nearly the exact same thing.
"They can barely even move, they are so weak," said Leak.
And Rodney Peterson, another neighbor, is furious about the whole situation.
"I'm mad as hell. You know something should have been done about it a long time ago," said Peterson. "They should stake him out here in the fields and let him see how it feels to starve and go four or five days without water."
Shoemaker told us that even though he plans to sell all of his animals on Wednesday, he plans to own more in the future.
Shoemaker said, "I don't want the stress of the neighbors."
At least six neighbors have told KAMC they've watched several animals suffer at the hands of a man, who just doesn't care.
Shawn Shoemaker, the man accused of mistreating his animals, denied all of the allegations against him. But he told us Tuesday that all of the hassle and attention from the media, has made him decide to get rid of all of his animals.
"All of these animals will be gone tomorrow. You know if it's this big of a problem, this is not the first time my neighbors have complained, so lets just alleviate the problem," said Shoemaker.
Neighbors said not only horses have come and gone, but they've seen dogs, pigs, and even goats have suffered through his care over time. Many of them, they said, dying from starvation and hunger.
"Those horses cant talk, but what if they were a kid? I mean something would get done, " said neighbor Jacob Leak. " They're horses, they cant tell us how they're being treated so we need to step up and help them as a community."
Janese Lisenbee, another neighbor has called the sheriff several times to complain about the horses who look malnourished and uncared for.
And she's even seen him drag a hose to the trough to give water to the animals himself, but she said that's simply not enough.
"It just doesn't really seem like nothing is getting done about it," said Lisenbee. "And it's just I've seen in the summer time when it's a hundred-and-two and a hundred-and-five degrees that they've gone like five or six days without water. And I've seen, you know, the dehydration showing on their bodies."
We spoke to several other neighbors Tuesday who said nearly the exact same thing.
"They can barely even move, they are so weak," said Leak.
And Rodney Peterson, another neighbor, is furious about the whole situation.
"I'm mad as hell. You know something should have been done about it a long time ago," said Peterson. "They should stake him out here in the fields and let him see how it feels to starve and go four or five days without water."
Shoemaker told us that even though he plans to sell all of his animals on Wednesday, he plans to own more in the future.
Shoemaker said, "I don't want the stress of the neighbors."
