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Deschutes County contracted fairground facilities to fake equestrian business

NW Horse Report Staff
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Deschutes County contracted fairground facilities to fake equestrian business

Recently released records provided by Deschutes County in Oregon have confirmed that officials with the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center had executed a contract for facility use with a non-existent equestrian business.

The revelations came after NW Horse Report began an investigation in early March into Phillip Metcalf of Redmond, Oregon, over reports of what multiple people have described as unethical business deals and financial transactions. Local equestrians expressed that Metcalf was using the Fair & Expo in an attempt to legitimize unfair and deceptive trade practices.

Metcalf had reportedly announced a consignment sale event that would be hosted on May 29th, 2021, by his business High Desert Select Horse Sales. Metcalf has also been known to use the alias of Royce Bisio in several of his dealings.

There was one key problem– the business doesn’t actually exist according to the State of Oregon.

“I can confirm that there is no business with the name ‘High Desert Select Horse Sales’ registered with the Oregon Secretary of State’s corporation division.” said Aaron Fiedler, Press Secretary for the Oregon Secretary of State. This fact was further acknowledged in a email sent by the attorney for Deschutes County, David Doyle. The attorney for the county represents and advises the county government and is not part of the District Attorney’s office for the County.

“I can confirm that High Desert Select Horse Sales is not a registered business in Oregon, nor is it a registered dba (doing business as).” said Doyle in a March 10th email to the Fair & Expo Center’s director, Geoff Hinds.

It was discovered that officials with the Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center signed a contract for the lease of facilities between non-existent equestrian business.

Days prior to our initial story, Hinds said that Metcalf had signed a contract with them for the event personally, not under the business name. However, records released tell a slightly different story and appear to confirm the county executed an agreement with the business with Metcalf signing for it, and not initially with Metcalf personally. In reviewing the records released to NW Horse Report, officials later made an attempt to correct the contracts after several initial inquiries and questions raised by Commissioner Patti Adair.

“That alone [when referring to the lack of a registered business] is not a basis to cancel the agreement, however it is a basis to require Mr. Metcalf to personally sign the agreement in his individual capacity.” said Doyle in the same email.

In subsequent emails which were also on March 10th, Hinds confirmed with Doyle that the agreement should be changed so the “User” was changed to be Phill Metcalf rather than High Desert Select Horse Sales, and the event name changed to Phillip Metcalf; Horse Sale. Despite this confirmation, days later Fair & Expo officials prepared changes to the agreement to “Metcalf Horse Sale”. Metcalf Horse Sale also appears not to be registered with the Oregon Secretary of State, raising further questions.

Records showed that the updated agreement indicated “revised March 13th”, but it had not yet been executed by either party. There was no other revisions provided to us. It cannot be determined if the agreement had been revised to name Metcalf personally under the contract.

In an email response on April 6th to NW Horse Report, Hinds went on to explain the change to Metcalf Horse Sale in the contract: “In this instance, when it came to our attention that the entity which had been identified might not be registered as an Oregon business, we sought verification. Upon confirming with the Corporation Division that the entity was/is not registered, we notified the customer that the previously executed contract must be re-written to reflect individual status. At some point in the process Mr. Metcalf mentioned another business entity (Metcalf Horse Sales). A new contract was prepared- but never executed since we confirmed with the Corporation Division that Metcalf Horse Sales was/is not registered in Oregon.” said Hinds.

There was no other revisions of the agreement provided to us upon the release of records provided on March 13th. The County’s legal team told NW Horse Report they would provide the personally executed agreement with Metcalf at a later date. Hinds did not confirm in his latest email if a proper updated agreement had been executed by Metcalf and the county.

The Fair & Expo Center’s website continues to show the event as “Metcalf Horse Sale”, which was changed around the time of our initial reporting in March on the matter.

In an earlier conversation Hinds said they did not have any procedure or practice in place of verifying the registration of the businesses they sign agreements with. When asked if his department may make any changes in this area, Hinds indicated they were always reviewing “best practices”.

Emails between officials with the Fair & Expo also showed that Metcalf had provided a copy of his “business license”. Pressure from NW Horse Report to the county’s legal team resulted in ignored follow-up requests for the information for the copy of the purported license. It was provided to us promptly by Mr. Hinds after we reached out to him in early April. The “business license” appeared only to be a screenshot taken on a mobile device that showed various bits of business information. On the same day that Hinds provided the material NW Horse Report had started seeking a request with the Deschutes County District Attorney to order the release of the records, though this became unnecessary after the rest of the material was provided by Hinds.

“To date, the only “license” that Mr. Metcalf has shown to staff was contained on his cell phone.  Neither the status of that license, nor the issuing authority was/is identified, and therefore we did not accept the license.” said Hinds.

The screenshot provided by county officials that was allegedly sent by Mr. Metcalf, appears to possibly be a page to apply for some sort of business license or registration.

The screenshot appears to possibly be a page to apply for some sort of business license or registration, but it could not be determined what entity or government agency system it could be from.

Continued promotion under unregistered business

Despite the developments over the last month, Metcalf continues to promote the sale and event under the fake business “High Desert Select Horse Sales” as seen via multiple social media posts on both personal and “business” pages on Facebook.

“As for promotion of the event, staff typically does not get involved (at least proactively) in monitoring how the customer markets the event.  And to this point in time, staff has not been privy to any marketing material specific to the event.” said Hinds when asked about Metcalf’s continued event promotions.

Metcalf has further created a Paypal page soliciting registrations under the bogus business name for the event. PayPal has not responded to a request for comment which was submitted weeks ago.

On March 18th, Metcalf posted on Facebook that he expects over “200 head”, apparently referring to the number of horses. There continues to be confusion on the method of the sale, with Metcalf calling it a simple consignment sale as well as an auction. Despite his claims of an auction, Oregon law further appears to require that the auctioneer be named in all marketing and promotional materials. Metcalf previously told NW Horse Report he would not release the name of the auctioneer.

Metcalf went on to claim that there were 53 horses registered for the sale. “I HAVE AS of now 53 head” said Metcalf in a March 19th post on the Oregon Horse and Tack Trader Facebook group.

“Your consigner fee sheet is cut off and you can’t see all the fees being charged. It looks like you have 3 different charges (or more) to consign a horse to you, which seems sketchy.” said one poster in the same Facebook thread.

Metcalf’s latest post on one of his Facebook pages advertising the event also advertised another unregistered business called “Untamed Transportation”. A US DOT registration was found for the company and shows it based out of a residence in Halsey, Oregon.

When contacting the business the person who answered by phone said they are an “single driver company” and denied having any affiliation or knowledge of Metcalf, including his alias Royce Bisio or his purported businesses.

Additional Questions over Active Warrants

Many equestrians were up-in-arms over the fact that Metcalf has multiple outstanding warrants for his arrest, questioning how someone with active arrest warrants could facilitate a lease with a county government. Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel appeared to confirm to county officials that one of Metcalf’s active warrants was for “failing to complete an alcohol treatment program”.

“There is a warrant for the arrest of Mr. Metcalf. The warrant was issued based on my office’s motion seeking to revoke Mr. Metcalf’s probation for failing to complete an alcohol treatment program as ordered by the count (the program was ordered as a condition of his probation for a DUII conviction).” said Hummel in a email sent to Commissioner Patti Adair in early March.

Sgt. Jayson Janes, Public Information Officer for the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, confirmed that Metcalf also had a probation violation warrant out of Crook County, which appears related to a different case. Both warrants were showing to have been issued in July and August of 2020.

This is part of an ongoing story. To read our previous report on this story click here.

Sisters Rodeo canceled for second year

NW Horse Report Staff
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Sisters Rodeo canceled for second year

While those with the Sisters Rodeo and even the Deschutes County Commissioners seemed optimistic about the prospects of holding the 80th Sisters Rodeo this year– those dreams have been crushed due to the current COVID-19 health restrictions. The Sisters Rodeo Association voted unanimously on April 13th, to cancel the 2021 rodeo event.

As recently reported by NW Horse Report, the Deschutes County Commissioners had sent a letter in early March to Oregon Governor Kate Brown expressing their desire and ability to safely hold the outdoor rodeo known as “The Biggest Little Show in the World”.

The rodeo had been set for June 9-13th. “All of a sudden, everything was going in the wrong direction,” board Vice President Roger Dwight told NewsChannel 21.

In a formal press release, the Sisters Rodeo Association stated they were in the process of notifying members, sponsors, contractors, vendors, and media of the 2021 cancellation.

In part the statement said: “Due to the unfortunate rise in COVID-19 cases and the restrictions enforced by local & state government agencies, the Sisters Rodeo Association (SRA) Board of Directors made a unanimous decision on April 13, 2021, to cancel the 2021 Sisters Rodeo and subsequent events for the second year in a row.”

“We were not able to meet all of the standards and protocols established by the State of Oregon’s Health Authority. The recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Deschutes County put our five-day event in the high-risk category. With the limitations placed on events for capacity, we had to make our decision based on our financial capabilities to try again next year [in 2022] to have a full capacity rodeo,” said SRA President Curt Kallburg.

“With heavy hearts, the decision had to be made,” said SRA Public Relations Director, Amorita Anstett. “The Sisters Rodeo will survive and will come back next year. We ask our fans and community to stay with us during these challenging times and hope, that come the second week of June in 2022 we will be ready to rodeo and once again present the ‘Biggest Little Show in the World.’” 

Court grants motion for forfeiture of 48 neglected horses seized from Yamhill County woman

NW Horse Report Staff
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Court grants motion for forfeiture of 48 neglected horses seized from Yamhill County woman

In the first major ruling regarding the case involving the severe neglect of 48 saddlebred horses by Susan Swango, 82, Judge Cynthia Easterday granted the petitioners motion for forfeiture of the 48 seized horses and 7 cats. The petitioners included Yamhill County, Oregon Humane Society, and Sound Equine Options. SEO is an Oregon 501(c)(3) horse rescue based in Gresham, Oregon. Today’s (April 9th) court session had been scheduled during Swango’s arraignment hearing last month.

Swango must now post a $140k bond payment within 72-hours, otherwise the seized animals will be forfeited to the petitioners. The bond amount typically reflects the current and anticipated costs involving for the organizations taking care of the the seized animals.

While the horses were seized in late February from Swango’s facility, Silver Oaks Saddlebreds near Carlton, Sound Equine Options and the Oregon Humane Society are limited in their handling of the horses until the animals are forfeited to them for legal ownership. The forfeiture process being used is outlined in Oregon Revised Statute 167.347 (Forfeiture of animal to animal care agency prior to disposition of criminal action). The petitioners were represented by the State’s Animal Cruelty prosecutor, Jacob Kamins.

Neglected horse seized from Susan Swango in February 2021.
One of the horses being documented for evidence that was seized from Silver Oaks Saddlebreds in February, 2021. The owner, Susan Swango, has been charged with 55 felony counts of animal neglect.

Swango is currently charged with 55 felony counts of Animal Neglect in the 2nd Degree, 48 related to horses in her care and 7 more counts in connection with cats rescued from her property. This allows the horse rescue organization, Sound Equine Options, along with the Oregon Humane Society (OHS), to secure legal ownership without waiting for the final disposition of the criminal case against Swango.

“It would create a balance due for cost of care of the animals from the day of the seizure through today’s date. Ms. Swango would have 72 hours to pay that balance in full. If she did not pay the balance, the ownership of the horses would go to SEO and the cats to OHS.” said Kim Mosiman, executive director for Sound Equine Options.

“If SEO gains ownership, it would free up the animals to move forward with their lives and allow SEO to start looking for good home placements. Without this ruling the animals would remain in legal limbo for a significant amount of time (costly to SEO) until the criminal case is over.”

It also appears that the court provided Swango a “waiver of attorney form”, signaling that she may intend to represent herself (pro se) moving forward. As reported in our previous follow-up story, Swango had her previous court appointed attorney relieved almost immediately upon being appointed to her last month. Her next court hearing was scheduled for May 6th.

35th Annual Idaho Horse Expo underway in Nampa

NW Horse Report Staff
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35th Annual Idaho Horse Expo underway in Nampa

Each year the Idaho Horse Council produces the State’s largest equine EXPO which attracts exhibitors and spectators from across the United States. The EXPO features highly regarded trainers and clinicians from across the state and nation, the latest in products ranging from jewelry to arena equipment, entertainment, industry-related seminars, youth activities, and competitions from youth roping, to trail events and even jousting.

This years expo is featuring the Hal Coburn as this years Announcer. COVID-19 precautions have also been implemented by the Ford Idaho Center Horse Park and Idaho Horse Council, the hosts of the annual Expo. It runs from today through April 11th.

Since the inaugural Idaho Cutting Horse Association’s 2002 Futurity with over 400 horses and participants, Ford Idaho Horse Park has blossomed into one of the Northwest’s leading horse facilities.  With over 110 acres and the ability to house 850 horses, folks come from all over the country to make the Ford Idaho Horse Park their home for their horse show. 

Admission is $10/day, while kids 12 & under are free. Tickets available at the door or D&B Supply.

Gwenyth Davies, convicted in 2020 over case of neglect of 61 horses, due back in court

NW Horse Report Staff
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Gwenyth Davies, convicted in 2020 over case of neglect of 61 horses, due back in court

Gwenyth Davies, the subject of one Oregon’s largest horse neglect cases in recent memory, is due back in court April 26th over the State’s allegation she’s violating her probation terms. Davies was sentenced in February of 2020 to 5-years probation as part of a plea deal she received in order to to avoid jail time.

The charges stem from an October 2019 investigation by authorities from multiple agencies which resulted in the seizure of 61 severely neglected horses in Davies care. Several dead horses were also found on Davies’ property during the investigation and seizure. Additional charges were also brought against Raina and Erica Ott, who lived at Davies’ property.

A photo provided by the Oregon Humane Society from the conditions at Davies’ property in late 2019.

Raina Ott had been previously charged and convicted of felony theft in 2018. Raina Ott entered a guilty plea on one of the four courts of neglect in exchange for deferred sentencing on all counts while she completes terms of probation. Erica Ott’s plea deal appears to have involved a guilty sentence on one count, not-guilty on another, and two counts being deferred until the completion of a 3-year probation. Erica Ott is eligible for an early end of her probation after 18-months.

“One of main goals in this case was to ensure this type of neglect doesn’t occur again, and this agreement allows for a level of oversight that can aid in achieving that goal,” Lane County Sheriff Cliff Harrold told KEZI news in February of last year when referring to Davies plea deal.

Davies was also ordered to pay nearly $50,000 in restitution between Oregon Humane Society, Lane County, and Sound Equine Options, to cover vet care and boarding fees. According to the payment plan, Davies was suppose to pay $300 a month toward the restitution.

The plea agreement also limited Davies to only having four of her own horses in her care at any one time for the duration of her probation, and she was prohibited from boarding other horses. Davies was additionally required to provide regular photos of her horses to Lane County Animal Control and the Oregon Humane Society, along with access to officials conducting inspections of her horses and other animals on her property.

(Left) A photo of Gwenyth Davies with a horse that had been boarded with her. (Right) A photo taken to document the condition of a different horse that was seized from Gwenyth Davies in late 2019.

Jacob Kamins, a Special Prosecutor for Lane County who is the State’s Animal Cruelty Prosecutor, filed a “Motion and Affidavit To Show Cause” on January 15th, less than a year after her sentencing last year. This motion states Davies is in breach of her probation for failing to provide monthly photos of her four horses, providing hay and grain receipts, and failure to make her monthly restitution payments. All of which are conditions of her probation per the 2020 plea agreement.

Motion filed by the Lane County Special Prosecutor over Gwenyth Davies’ alleged probation violations from her 2020 plea deal for horse neglect.

Additional court documents obtained by NW Horse Report show the full conditions of Davies’ probation terms. Court records also show a single $200 payment from Davies’ in June of 2020, indicating she still owes $49,577.36 in restitution.

Davies’ former attorney of record had a January 2021 motion to withdraw as counsel denied by Judge Curtis Conover of the Lane County Circuit Court. The motion was later granted the following month, allowing her former attorney to withdraw from the case. Eugene attorney Jennifer Perkins was then appointed to represent Davies’ by the court. Davies’ new attorney has not yet responded to a request for comment.

It was not immediately clear what would come of a potential ruling on the motion or if that ruling would be made during Davies’ next court hearing scheduled for April 26th.

This is the second large case involving over 50 horses in Oregon alone that Sound Equine Options has been involved with in less than 2-years. SEO is a Gresham based 501(c)(3) which works with multiple law enforcement agencies and the Oregon Humane Society.

Deputy District Attorney Kamins is the same prosecutor who is now handling a more recent large horse neglect case out of Yamhill County in Oregon, by Susan Swnago and her company, Silver Oaks Saddlebreds. NW Horse Report was one of the first to break the story about Swango and continue to provide updates as her case develops.

Treasure Valley Community College “Chukar” Rodeo kicks off April 9th

NW Horse Report Staff
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Treasure Valley Community College “Chukar” Rodeo kicks off April 9th
Treasure Valley Community Collage is hosting it’s 2021 “Chukar” rodeo April 9th through the 11th at the Malheur County Fairgrounds.

This coming weekend (April 9th through 11th, 2021), Treasure Valley Community College is hosting a rodeo at the Desert Sage Event Center (Mahleur County Fairgrounds). The event kicks off Friday, April 9th, with the first Slack at 3pm mountain-time and Performance at 6pm. The rodeo will run through Sunday.

Awards include; All-around Men’s and Women’s Saddles to the high point winners for the event, Reserve all-around Men’s and Women’s Brest Collars, Spurs to Men’s and Women’s horse with the most points for the weekend, Buckles to the event winners for the weekend, and Resistol Vests to event winners for Friday’s Rodeo.

Stalls are still available for rent by contacting Lynelle Christiani with Desert Sage Event Center at (541) 889-3431

TVCC was also recently in the news after their instructor for the Equine Science program at TVCC, Wade Black, won a colt-starting championship last month in Forth Worth, Texas. Black took home a $75,000 prize from the “Road to the Horse” competition. NW Horse Report will be publishing a more detailed story about this recent win by Black.

Horse facility owner indicted on 55 counts of felony neglect, special Animal Cruelty prosecutor to handle case

NW Horse Report Staff
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Horse facility owner indicted on 55 counts of felony neglect, special Animal Cruelty prosecutor to handle case

In late February, the owner of a Yamhill County equestrian facility had 48 horses and 7 cats seized from her in a joint effort conducted by the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office, special agents from the Oregon Humane Society, and 501(c)(3) horse rescue organization Sound Equine Options (SEO). NW Horse Report was one of the first to break the story involving Swango and her business, Silver Oaks Saddlebreds in Carlton, Oregon.

Deputy District Attorney Jacob Kamins is the special “Animal Cruelty” prosecutor for the State of Oregon. (Photo courtesy of Willamette Week)

Susan Swango, 82, was recently indicted by a Yamhill County grand jury with 55 counts of Animal Neglect in the Second Degree, a Class C Felony. Deputy District Attorney Jacob Kamins, the State’s special Animal Cruelty Prosecutor since 2013, was appointed by the Yamhill County District Attorney on behalf of the State of Oregon.

While Kamins is officially based out of the Benton County District Attorney’s Office, he has prosecuted over 200 cases of animal abuse and neglect in 22 of Oregon’s 36 counties. Kamins respectfully declined to comment on some of our questions due it involving an “open criminal matter”, but he did confirm the charges against Swango and provided some of his own background. “I also regularly train law enforcement and animal services agencies, veterinarians, and attorneys on best practices for animal cruelty investigations and prosecution.” said Kamins.

It was further confirmed that Swango faces charges for fraudulent use of a credit card, but that case is being handled by a in-house prosecutor with the Yamhill County District Attorney’s Office.

As reported in our previous story, Carlton Police Chief Kevin Martinez said that Swango attempted to make fraudulent payments for her water bill with the City of Carlton for her facility. Inadequate water for the horses was one of the issues that lead to the allegations against Swango.

Evidence being collected by the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office showing one of the horses seized from Susan Swango who owned and operated Silver Oaks Saddlebreds in Carlton, OR.

Court records show that Swango was arraigned on March 24th, having McMinnville criminal defense attorney Micah Johnstone assigned as a “court appointed” attorney. However, when reached for the comment Johnstone indicated that Swango had told the court she had decided hire a different attorney and that he was being relieved by the court. Neither Johnstone or the Yamhill County District Attorney’s Office had any information regarding a new attorney for Swango at the time. Swango did not answer or return or call seeking comment, nor has she responded to our previous inquiries in February.

A pre-trial forfeiture motion is now pending in the case. DDA Kamins is also prosecuting that motion on behalf of the petitioners Yamhill County, Oregon Humane Society, and Sound Equine Options. “The motion asks the court to rule on forfeiture of the already seized animals.” said Kamins. The motion is scheduled for a court hearing with Judge Ladd Wiles on April 9th, 2021.

Sound Equine Options indicated in early March that the horses are now in protective custody and are settling in nicely. “They are being carefully refed and monitored.” according to part of a post on SEO’s official Facebook page. The same post further went on to say “Thank you all for your continued support. It’s only due to the strong community support that we receive that allows us to help in these large situations!”

A press release from Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office last month provided some details on how the community can help support the care of all of the seized horses: “Maintaining this number of horses through the prosecution process is extremely expensive. Sound Equine Options, a non-profit, is accepting monetary donations. Donations can be made through their website at this address: http://soundequineoptions.org/ways-to-help/. These specific horses can be assisted by typing ‘YCSO’ in the ‘Send an Acknowledgement to’ box on the Donation Information page.”

Oregon teen strives to be first female in PBR’s elite “Unleash the Beast” circuit

NW Horse Report Staff
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Oregon teen strives to be first female in PBR’s elite “Unleash the Beast” circuit
Nijiah Knight, a fourteen-year-old from Arlington, Oregon, is busting down barriers within professional bull riding.

In the small town of Arlington, Oregon, is fourteen-year-old Nijiah Knight who many would never guess is rising within one of many equestrian sports, just not the one most would expect. Knight has been riding in Professional Bull Rider’s events across the county. While girls may typically compete in barrel racing, pole bending, and various English-discipline equestrian sports, Knight has been following in the footsteps of her bull riding father, Andrew Knight.

While she isn’t the first female to compete in a PBR event, Knight was the very first girl to ride in the Mini Bull Riders (MBR) circuit, later making history in 2020 when she was the first girl to ride a bull at Madison Square Garden, having beat all her competitors in one of the rounds. “Sometimes you feel like you’re just part of the boys. Like, you don’t feel any different and they just accept you. But sometimes they’ll be like, ‘So I can’t get beat by a girl.’ But, you know, you just gotta show him who’s boss,” Knight told OPB.

Knight getting ready for one of her “mini” bull rides.

Knight, who weighs in at only about 80-pounds, finds herself riding “mini” bulls that weight about 10 times her own weight. Rodeo is a big part of life across small-town Oregon and throughout the country.

In early 2020, Knight was featured in articles from People and Vogue, and a handful of other national publications. However, the impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic had delayed her aspirations throughout the rest of 2020.

Knight ended up ranking number seven during her Madison Squad Garden competition. Knight is currently striving to compete in PBR’s “Unleash the Beat” circuit. This includes many of the top bull riders from across the globe.

Knight told OPB that as an Indigenous Paiute and member of the Klamath Tribes, she hopes to represent the U.S. as part of “Team Wolves” in PBR’s Global Cup, a sort of Olympics of bull riding. “There’s two American teams: Team Eagles and then Team Wolves, which is the Natives. I would be part of Team Wolves because I am Native. I think that would be so cool.” she went on to say.

Emerald Downs Announces 2021 Stakes Schedule

NW Horse Report Staff
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Emerald Downs Announces 2021 Stakes Schedule

Emerald Downs has announced 17 stakes worth $890,000 in purses for its 2021 live racing season that begins Wednesday, May 19.

The schedule features 15 Thoroughbred stakes, beginning with the $50,000 Coca-Cola Stakes for 3-year-old fillies Sunday, June 20, and finishing with the $70,000 Gottstein Futurity for 2-year-olds closing day, Thursday, Sept. 23.

The 86th renewal of the $100,000 Longacres Mile (G3) will be run Sunday, Aug. 15, anchoring a stakes double-header with the $50,000 Emerald Distaff for older fillies and mares.

Emerald Downs in Auburn, WA announces it’s 2021 Emerald Down Stakes Schedule with 17 stakes worth $890,000

The 2021 stakes schedule features four double-headers, along with a triple-header and a quadrule-header.

On Sunday, Aug. 22, 2-year-olds meet in the $50,000 WTBOA Lads Stakes for colts and geldings and $50,000 Barbara Shinpoch Stakes for fillies, and older Quarter Horses meet in the $40,000 Bank of America Emerald Championship Challenge and 2-year-olds square off in the $30,000 John Deere Juvenile Challenge Championship.

In addition to the Gottstein Futurity, Sept. 23 features two Washington Cup races, $50,000 Muckleshoot Tribal Classic for older horses and $50,000 Washington Cup Filly and Mare Stakes.

Director of Racing Bret Anderson has received applications from 69 trainers totaling 840 horses through Tuesday. Currently there are 340 horses on the grounds.

Equestrians upset over sponsorship of trainer convicted of animal neglect

NW Horse Report Staff
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Equestrians upset over sponsorship of trainer convicted of animal neglect

UPDATE 3/16 at 6:58pm: Shortly after the release of this article, via a Facebook post made on NW Horse Report, Nancy O’Dell Plunkett, President of NWGHA, confirmed that the clinic mentioned in our story had been cancelled. She further stated that Woods had “resigned from the NWGHA Board”. It was not clear if she is still a member of the organization. It was not known to NW Horse Report at the time that Woods was a member of the groups board of directors.

Many equestrians are up in arms over the recent news that the Northwest Gaited Horse Association (NWGHA) was moving forward publicly with sponsoring a clinic being presented by a horse trainer previously convicted of animal neglect over her care of multiple horses. The event had been set for April 10th, 2021. The past criminal convictions against the trainer, Janna Woods, stem from a late 2014 case out of Lane County, Oregon. KVAL News previously reported on the arrest of Janna Woods, a show horse trainer, and charges for theft and animal neglect.

Janna Woods showing one of the horses that was allegedly later neglected in her care.

On February 13th, NWGHA posted on its official Facebook page that it would be sponsoring a clinic presented by Woods, indicating she was a “TWH Trainer”. This promptly angered many people throughout the equestrian community who had known of Woods’ past or had even been involved in the efforts related to the rescue of the multiple horses she was convicted of neglecting. The ad further stated the event would be held at Springhill Stables, a equestrian boarding and riding facility near Albany, Oregon. In an interesting twist, when reached for comment, Springhill’s owners adamantly denied having any knowledge of the scheduled event.

“This is the first I’ve heard of Any clinic being held at my place of business. It was not authorized by me, nor did I have any knowledge of it…” said Liz Couzin, the Stables owner. “Until a couple of months ago, she was just the roommate of one of my boarders, and she worked with her horses. A couple of months ago she brought in a horse of her own.” She also said she was unaware of the allegations and past convictions against Woods. She confirmed there were recent discussions with Woods about “starting training out here [referring to Springhill Stables]”, but said nothing had been confirmed or mentioned further. Couzin did go on to say that “Janna has given me no reason to believe that she is anything but kind and professional.”

NWGHA’s President, Nancy O’Dell Plunkett, told NW Horse Report that she did not directly confirm with Springhill Stables about the event but was instead working with another member of NWGHA (the roommate referenced by Couzin) as well as Woods to handle that communication. Plunkett was surprised Springhill Stables was unaware, considering a month had gone by since their announcement and that they had gone as far as obtaining a “binder” for insurance purposes in order for them to have their event at Springhill. She did say there may have been a breakdown in communication with Springhill Stables.

Strawberry Mountain Mustangs, an Oregon-based 501(c)(3) non-profit, received one of Woods’ horses which she voluntarily surrendered to them in November of 2014. Woods also surrendered a second horse to another equestrian, Patty Berg-Le. According to Darla Clark, the Executive Director for Strawberry Mountain Mustangs, the surrendering of a couple horses was shortly before the criminal charges against Woods, as she continued to have other horses she failed to provide proper care for. Clark further said she was shocked after reading a statement posted by the official NWGHA page in response to being questioned on Facebook about the event: “We are not OK with horse abusers but we do believe that anyone can make mistakes and change for the better.”

It was further alleged that Woods faced multiple violations and sanctions under the USDA Horse Protection Act (HPA) related to alleged actions of “soring” dating to 2008 and 2010. According to The American Veterinary Medical Association: “Soring is the unethical and illegal practice of deliberately inflicting pain to exaggerate the leg motion of gaited horses (such as Tennessee Walking Horses, Spotted Saddle Horses and Racking Horses) to gain an unfair advantage in the show ring.”

A photo from late 2014 showing one of the horses that was allegedly neglected by Woods and later lead to her conviction of animal neglect charges

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (or APHIS) has yet to respond to NW Horse Report’s inquiries into Woods looking to confirm the records. Plunkett disputed the allegations of the federal violations by Woods: “I was the one who sent in violations [of Woods].” She explained they were only “local HIO tickets” and there would be no listed record with APHIS. HIO is short for Horse Inspection Organization. Plunkett did confirm that Woods was suspended for 6-months for what she called “minor violations”. Based on the statements it appears Plunkett was previously an investigator

According to Plunkett, until a few years ago the Western International Walking Horse Association was the delegated HIO authority for the northwest. “Since it was dissolved and there is no official HIO, any issues regarding violations of the federal HPA becomes the responsibility of any show management.” said Plunkett.

Plunkett went on to defend Woods’ involvement despite the previous convictions, as well as saying the nearly 30-member NWGHA were all supportive of Woods: “There were events in her life that created a situation.”

When asked about why Woods did not surrender all of the horses to avoid further neglect in late 2014: “Some are far more adoptable than others, this had been going on for a period of time, prior to and some after the convictions. The ones she had remaining were horses that were less adoptable but she was emotionally attached to. I can’t tell you how much this damaged her personally.” It was discovered that Woods also failed to complete her probation terms about 6-months following an apparent plea-deal with the DA. That would have deferred the charges for animal neglect had she not violated the terms of her probation.

We asked Plunkett if they had considered the past issues with Woods before the promotion of their event and whether they considered any public backlash for the announcement. “It didn’t even cross our mind because Janna [Woods] today is not the same person. It doesn’t excuse the theft, but she stole something to sell to feed the horses. She is living with another member of our group, is stable on employment history, on her medication, she does ride the horses with her roommate.”

While Plunkett confirmed that Woods would not be compensated for this particular clinic and that it was intended as a fundraiser for their association, NW Horse Report was shown social media pages that Woods’ had indeed started soliciting business online under the name “Janna Woods Stables”, although it appears that Woods does not have her own facility, nor is the business registered with the State of Oregon. She had also shared the event on a Facebook page she maintained for her business. Others expressed that while they didn’t believe that Woods should continue to be “punished”, they felt strongly that her role as a trainer was far from appropriate and set a bad precedence. “She’s not someone who should be setting an example” said Clark.

Within a couple days of our investigation, the online ads for the April 10th event appear to have been taken down on the NWGHA Facebook page. After the initial publication of this article, NWGHA confirmed that the event had been cancelled. While we informed Plunkett and her roommate that Ms. Woods was welcome to provide any statement for publication, we have had no further contact from NWGHA or Woods at the time this story was published.

Shortly after the release of this article via a Facebook post made on NW Horse Report, Nancy O’Dell Plunkett, President of NWGHA, confirmed that clinic mentioned in our story was cancelled. She further stated that Woods had “resigned from the NWGHA Board”. It was not know to NW Horse Report at the time that Woods was a member of the groups board of directors.

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