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Twenty animals subjected to abuse and neglect on a southwestern West Virginia farm have been given a second chance by a New Market horse breeder.

Elizabeth Tate Winters, owner of Paradise Stables Too on Lime Plant Road outside New Market has agreed to care for 20 horses, donkeys and mules rescued by the Humane Society of the United States from Gary Belcher, owner a farm in Wayne County, W.Va.

Belcher pleaded guilty to three counts of animal cruelty earlier in June, was fined $900, and barred from owning animals for five years. If he violates this, he will be fined up to $2,000, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

Adam Parascandola, director of animal cruelty issues for the Humane Society of the United States, said this comparatively light punishment — light because it did not include jail time — was an example of why tougher animal cruelty laws were needed in West Virginia. "Whether it was one or 40 [counts of animal cruelty], it was going to be the same punishment," he said.

The gathered Humane Society of the United States employees hoped that the case would serve as an example; to show law breakers that animal cruelty would not be tolerated, and to show law enforcement that they could call on the society as a resource.

In Maryland, a person convicted of abuse and neglect of an animal can receive a sentence of up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000, according to the Michigan State University College of Law: Animal Legal & Historical Web Center at www.animallaw.info.

The animals were part of a larger group of 49 horses and mules that were living on a property only four to five acres — a tenth of the space they need to graze and exercise, according to Stacy Segal, an equine protection specialist with the Humane Society of the United States, a national which has an office in nearby Gaithersburg.

Segal is one of Winters' boarders, and when the Humane Society of the United States began to care for these horses about a month ago, she asked the horse breeder whether she knew anyone who could help care for the horses until they were healthy enough to adopt.

"She asked me ‘do you know of any people who would be interested in driving seven hours to West Virginia to rescue horses for free,'" Winters said. "I said ‘no.'"

However, Winters thought about the problem further, and suggested that the horses be brought to her farm northeast of New Market, where they could receive the care they need until they are healthy enough for adoption.

Two of the 22 horses that were originally to be brought to the farm were adopted Sunday, she said.

Winters said the she and the Humane Society of the United States were able to reach an agreement and arrange a contract to use a portion of her property in only three days, "which is pretty dead-on quick." She attributed to the friendliness of people who work with animals such as horse breeders and Humane Society of the United States employees. "They're easy to work with," she said.

Segal said that Winters is a "wonderful example" of a business person in the horse breeding industry taking responsibility for the care of rescued animals.

Jordan Crump, a spokeswoman for the Humane Society of the United States, said many people do not understand the level of care necessary to keep a horse healthy, adding that yearly dentist and doctor visits, food and shelter add up to thousands of dollars per year.

"The cheap part of getting a horse is the purchase price," Segal said.

In fact, Crump said that often times less scrupulous owners will purchase horses cheaply at auction, only to keep them in poor conditions.

In Belcher's case, he bought the animals across the Kentucky state line, and brought them back to his property, where they did not have enough space or food. They began to become territorial and to fight for resources, Crump said.

By the time the Humane Society of the United States was called in to help, the horses were emaciated and sickly, and some of them had untended wounds.

However, by Monday, most were out of the "danger period," Segal said, and would soon be ready for adoption.

She said that Paradise Stables Too was an ideally situated location for the Humane Society of the United States to care for the horses until they were adopted because the farm is relatively close to its office in Gaithersburg and Winters had a strong network of people in the horse breeding industry who might adopt the animals.

Despite her initial uncertainty about how she could help the mistreated animals, Winters said she was happy they had come to her farm where they would be cared for.

"I think God sent them our way," Winters said.

E-mail Christian Brown at chbrown@gazette.net.