Horses found starving, tied to trees

SUFFOLK, Va. - Whispering into the horse's ear, Sherry Smith cooed, "Sweet, so sweet."

Smith has been around horses her whole life and in years of caring for the animals that are as powerful as they are delicate, she's never seen horses need help like these.

"She's starving really bad," said Smith of the mare she was walking. "She's really, really hungry."

Smith and her neighbors found five horses - four female and one male - in a small clearing a mile down a gravel road in Suffolk. The horses were tied to trees with dog leashes and given buckets of water to survive -- but no food.

Rescuers brought in a trailer to take the horses to a nearby stable, where a vet can treat them.

Animal control searched for any more malnourished horses but didn't find any.

One at a time, the horses climbed into a trailer on their way to a better place. For the horses, a short ride to the stables was a journey to better care on the long road to recovery.

After our first story aired on WAVY News 10 at 6 on Saturday, a viewer called Suffolk police and identified the horse owner. Police said they'll release more information about the owner and the charges in the next few days.