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.
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.
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, 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 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.
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.”
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 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.
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.
UPDATE: This story was updated after its original publication to include details of a response from Phillip Metcalf made a day after it was released.
While many equestrians may take to a horse sale consignment event as a great opportunity, concerns are being raised concerning one such upcoming event in Redmond, Oregon, located in Deschutes County. On March 4th, Philip Royce Metcalf, who has also used the alias of Royce Bisio, created a Facebook page titled “High Desert Horse Sale Redmond Oregon May 28th 2021” and immediately started posting details about an event that was to be held at the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center on May 29th. Metcalf further shared this page and other posts on multiple equestrian targeted Facebook groups.
Metcalf further disclosed that he runs a company called “High Desert Select Horse Sales”. Aaron Fiedler, Press Secretary and Public Information Officer for the Oregon Secretary of State, told NW Horse Report that the Corporations Division did not have any record of Metcalf’s purported business. Records for a business Dependable Horse Training & Shoeing, LLC registered in 2005 were discovered and do list a “Phil Metcalf” tied to the company. That company is listed as inactive due to “administrative dissolution” dated in 2006. Based on a Facebook page and other social media pages, Metcalf has also been known to trade under a name of “R&R Horses Select” and “Metcalf Horse Sales”, none of which were found registered according to Fiedler.
The concerns shared by those who have done business with Metcalf (aka Royce Bisio) expressed that he has had a history of “shady” and “unethical” transactions related to the sales of horses and tack equipment. Their concerns were increased with their allegations that Metcalf may be using the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center to legitimize his latest business transactions.
The Crook County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that Phillip Metcalf currently has an outstanding warrant for a probation violation. While not related to any financial crimes or business practices, court records show that Metcalf actually has multiple outstanding warrants out of both Crook and Deschutes counties, as well as several charges related to DUI from 2017 and 2018. The warrant from Deschutes County is for failure to appear and stems from a case in which he was charged with DUI, Recklessly Endangering Another, Reckless Driving, and Refusal to Take a Test for Intoxicants.
A 2018 photo of Phillip Metcalf (aka Royce Bisio) upon booking, Crook County Jail.
Multiple people who spoke with NW Horse Report that know Metcalf have alleged he has continued to regularly operate a motor vehicle, despite the fact that Metcalf’s license was suspended by a court in 2019 and is effective through June of 2022. Metcalf also had a charge from early 2018 for Criminal Driving while Suspended, indicating it is not his first time engaging in the alleged operation of a vehicle while suspended.
On the event page created by Metcalf, he posted that those wishing to consign a horse should mail checks or money orders made out to “High Desert Horse Select Sales” and mail them to an address in Redmond. However, the address appears to have several discrepancies and may not actually point to a specific location. It was also unclear how Metcalf would be able to deposit checks made out to this business name as banks typically require documentation with the Secretary of State to be presented in order to open a bank account with that tradename.
We reached out to the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center for comment regarding the May 29th event, which is also still displayed on their website and lists Metcalf as a point for contact. Facility Director Geoff Hinds confirmed that Metcalf had signed a contract with them for the event personally, not under the business name that Metcalf is soliciting payments under.
Hinds’ said that per the contract, Metcalf is not required to make his first partial payment to the county until March 16th, with other monies being due at a later date before the event. “We do not discriminate with those we do business with. It’s no different than the rules for individuals who would rent park or other government facilities.” said Hinds. Additionally Metcalf would be required to provide proof of insurance that meets the facilities requirements, but that they do not currently have a process or policy to verify business registrations with the Secretary of State online database.
Phillip Metcalf and his purported business “High Desert Select Horse Sales” is scheduled to hold a horse consignment sale on May 29th at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds.
In speaking with Deschutes County Commissioner Patti Adair about the county involvement and circumstances around Metcalf’s unregistered business and current outstanding warrants, Adair said it was “very concerning”. Adair disclosed she herself is an avid equestrian and wants to ensure other equestrians are protected from being “taken advantage of”. While she was also unsure if someone with active warrants out of Deschutes as well as other Oregon counties should be permitted to contract for the use of county facilities, Adair went on to say “I definitely want to check into this and get back to you.” NW Horse Report will either update this story when we receive any updates or provide a follow-up story.
The owner of a A Bit Less, an equine consignment store in Bend, revealed that it had itself had issues with the purchase of a saddle from Metcalf in the summer of 2020. The owner of the store, Heather Naasz, indicated that upon meeting Metcalf to buy a saddle he had for sale, the saddle was missing the stirrup and leathers for the saddle. Naasz said she went ahead with the transaction and paid Metcalf, believing a story that he needed to retrieve them from another location where they were left by mistake.
Naasz said Metcalf then gave her the run-around for months via countless text message conversations. She has yet to receive the stirrups promised by Metcalf despite having paid for them with the saddle in full. Several of the other stories detailed to NW Horse Report have a similar claims stemming from discovered issues of unfair trade practices.
COURTESY PHOTO – A photo from inside of A Bit Less, LLC, an equine tack consignment store in Bend, Oregon.
Naasz was asked if she had any recommendations for those looking to consign any sort of property for sale, including horses. “I always make sure our customers understand our straight forward contract at the time of consignment, whether it be length of consignment, fees, or timeline. We also use a POS system designed just for consignment stores.”
Under Oregon law (ORS 698.640) there are specific legal requirements for any individuals or businesses engaged in consignment sales. Violations are considered unlawful trade practices.
Trevor Hall, a former acquaintance of Metcalf who runs a farrier business in central Oregon said that Metcalf has gone as far as misrepresenting horses during sales, having directly witnessed Metcalf “drugging” horses and passing the horses off as safe and/or beginner horses. Under Oregon law, it is a misdemeanor crime to “sell or offer for sale a horse that is drugged, tranquilized, or otherwise sedated without the consent of the buyer.” (ORS 165.825).
Hall said that in one particular case, Metcalf sold a drugged horse to a family who needed a very good kid-safe horse for their child with down-syndrome. Hall said the that everything was fine the day of the sale, but the family then quickly discovered that the horse had tendencies that were incompatible and opposite of what Metcalf had allegedly told them. Several days after the sale, Hall had been asked by the family to come shoe the horse. Hall indicated that not only was the horse not kid safe, he said that horse was unsafe for him despite feeling he is a “fairly qualified horsemen”.
NW Horse Report did independently verify the the source of the allegations with the family in question. They confirmed they purchased the horse from Metcalf for $5,000. After their discovery they attempted to reach Metcalf who then “ghosted” them. They claim he later answered one of their calls, but only threating to call the police for harassment. They said they briefly spoke to a Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputy, but ultimately just gave up pursuing the issue with Metcalf.
The family then detailed the spending of another approximately $7,500 over 9-months with a trainer to work with the horse multiple times each week, hoping to have progress that would allow them to use the horse. At the request of the family on a bona fide fear for their own safety, their names are being withheld.
While Hall indicated that he thought Metcalf had “…promise and potential to be a real asset to equestrians by doing good business, he decided to go for the quick buck. I don’t wish him any ill will, but I don’t want to see others getting taken advantage of either.” said Hall. When asked what he’d tell others looking to buy from Metcalf, “Avoid at all costs. He preys on those that don’t know better and haven’t heard of him.” Hall further went on to confirm that Metcalf has also been involved in the export of horses for slaughter, another allegation repeatedly made by others across social media.
Multiple posts over the last couple of years show numerous claims about Metcalf, including on the “Oregon Horse Buyer Beware” Facebook group. “Royce Bisio [an alias used by Phillip Metcalf] bought the horse under false pretenses last fall.” said one of the posts. “Lied about everything this horse knows and then deleted his ad once called out on it. He is a horse flipper who takes horses to auction regularly, often by lying to owners”.
We reached out early in our investigation to Mr. Metcalf requesting information about his event. He provided little comment but indicated he would email us information shortly after a “new website” for the event was up and going. He did state that he his business was “fully licensed and insured”, a claim that is questionable considering the statement from the Corporations Division, at least in Oregon.
Metcalf further claimed that Facebook was “glitching” and not allowing certain updates to be posted. A post made a few days before our story also said he was working on the website, but as of publishing it appears that post was removed from the page. We reached back out to Mr. Metcalf seeking comment on the many allegations and have not heard back before initial publishing.
Following the initial release of this story, Phillip Metcalf contacted NW Horse Report, going on at length claiming he was being “defamed” and “bullied by people who have bad reps themselves”. Metcalf further said NW Horse Report was “lying in its reporting”, going on at length. “My business is licensed, you better [expiative removed] check that, you probably not spelling it right.” said Metcalf. When it was explained that our investigation involved speaking with the Oregon Secretary of State, he said: “they aren’t looking it up right either, I’ll send you the damn paper in my wallet that will prove it.”
Metcalf has yet to provide any documentation he indicated would contradict the State’s data about his business. When asked if he could provide the actual registry number so as to avoid any possible confusion, he refused to disclose it.
Metcalf also said he didn’t have to have the horse sale permit until 30-days before the sale, something that NW Horse Report had not previously made mention of. It was determined that the Oregon Department of Agriculture would require Metcalf to obtain a “One Day Horse Sale License”. Among the requirements is an application and $25 license fee, a $25,000 minimum bond or irrevocable letter of credit, facility inspection by ODA, and a deputy state veterinarian employed by the licensee must also present on the sale day.
Metcalf further went on to claim that he has yet to solicit and monies from those wanting to consign their horses. Despite having his own posts that do solicit money and entries being brought to his attention, he simply responded saying “I haven’t gotten any money yet, so it’s not soliciting.” He further went on to say: “I’m still going to have this sale and it’s going to be a great family friendly environment, the other stuff is just a bunch of [expiative removed]”.
Metcalf further claimed the event was actually going to be an auction, having a “legitimate auctioneer coming”. When asked who the auctioneer was: “I’m not going to say, it’s none of your business.” remarked Metcalf. This raised further confusion as to the event being a straight forward consignment sale or an bidding auction, which continues to be unclear with the latest rounds of posts by Metcalf on social media.
Metcalf initially disputed our reports about his outstanding warrants, but eventually admitted that one of the warrants was due to classes related to his DUI being cancelled from COVID. “the sheriffs said I didn’t need to worry about it until after this COVID stuff is over.” said Metcalf. When asked if he intended on reporting to law enforcement about the warrant, Metcalf said “oh yeah, I’m going to call them right now and clear this all up.”
This story was updated after it’s original publication to include details of a response from Metcalf following the initial story.
UPDATE 3/13: Following this story being published, Oregon HORSE Forum decided to re-block and deny re-entry to a number of individuals associated with the ethics complaint against Wacker. It was further discovered that several other group moderators had close ties and friendships with Wacker. Additionally Oregon HORSE Forum claimed that those individuals were being denied reentry for allegedly “One of the main reasons that OHF has been so successful is that we do not promote or engage in drama. When a group of people join with the same agenda, we stop it before it can escalate.” said Gartner.
However, individuals posted that they had been banned by the group before and/or again without having made any post regarding Wacker on Oregon HORSE Forum. Gartner further proceeded to criticizedNW Horse Report for it’s reporting of the Wacker case and the allegations against Crouch on its group, differing greatly from statements made by Gartner and others made outside the group. It is unclear if they have criticized Pamplin Media Group who has had much more in-depth and frequent reporting regarding Angie Wacker.
Following the initial breaking story from Oregon City News regarding a high school equestrian coach found running afoul of Oregon ethics laws, NW Horse Report learned from multiple sources alleging that the popular equestrian Facebook group, “Oregon HORSE Forum”, was engaged in questionable censorship of any news regarding Oregon City High School equestrian coach, Angie Wacker. Wacker was found guilty of State ethics violations last month. A Final Disposition order for Wacker has yet to be released by OGEC on her case.
Wacker, who is still currently the coach for Oregon City High School’s OHSET equestrian team, was found to have violated four counts of Oregon ethics laws by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC). She, along with several Oregon City School District officials, are now subject to additional investigations from the Oregon Department of Education as well as the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission. Having convicted Wacker, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission has launched a new investigation into whether the Oregon City School Board broke other laws in voting not to fire Wacker.
Following the initial story by Oregon City News, NW Horse Report also released its initial story on Wacker’s violations and questions regarding improper injury reporting, bringing further attention to additional issues that were uncovered of alleged check fraud by Wacker. Read that story here
Oregon HORSE Forum is one of the largest Facebook groups for Oregon equestrians, having a current membership of over 12,000 members. The Group is currently setup as a “private” group, meaning that Facebook users must be approved prior to seeing or being able to comment on posts made by other group members.
In the days following the initial story from Oregon City News on February 11th, tips came into NW Horse Report showing shares by Facebook users of a news story about Wacker from Oregon City News being removed without any explanation. It was additionally claimed that several of those who were complainants feared sharing the story on this Facebook group, stating it would result in them being “banned” from the group. Although, several individuals associated with the complaints against Wacker found themselves blocked from Oregon HORSE Forum starting around this time.
Further material provided to us indicated that other people not associated with the Wacker case may have innocently shared the same news story, unaware that a moderator of Oregon HORSE Forum Facebook group, Polly Crouch, was friends with Wacker.
A screenshot of the Oregon HORSE Forum as seen on Facebook. This is the group that individuals alleged was being unfair moderated by a friend of Angie Wacker, a coach found guilty of Oregon ethics laws and under additional investigations.
It was discovered that Crouch currently rents a house and horse barn from Wacker, the same house that was part of the alleged retaliatory termination of a residential lease held by a former parent and student-athlete of Wacker’s. Additionally, the complaint to the State’s Ethics Commission alleged that Wacker used her position to arrange for a student-athlete’s family to lease the house owned by her Husband.
In documents released by the Ethics Commission, it explains that the issues related to the lease where just beyond the 4-year limitation for the commission to have investigative authority and were not addressed any further by the commission.
On March 8th, we reached out to Pam Gartner who is the Admin for the Oregon HORSE Forum Facebook group. While Gartner stated that while she had only glanced at one of the stories about Wacker, she was unfamiliar with any ties between one of her moderators, Polly Crouch, and Angie Wacker. She also said she had no knowledge of improper censorship and actions by any of her moderators, including Crouch. She stated she had no relationship herself with Wacker, but did state that “most people in the show world know the Wackers and have had positive things to say about them.”
Gartner further went on to explain that the group she created was done so about a decade ago, having been the result of other Facebook groups that she said where “unfairly censoring discussions about a particular [horse] trainer”. She further explained that she had always meant for the group to be a place where people could appropriately discuss issues and differing opinions, so long as people are threating others.
When asked if she knew others had alleged Crouch was improperly using her role as a group moderator to ban users and remove posts related to discussions related to Wacker, Garter explained she wasn’t sure of the extent of any of Crouch’s alleged actions. She said if the allegations were true, including removals of posts sharing such news stories, that it “would be extremely inappropriate”.
“I have removed many moderators in the past for doing such things” said Gartner. She further explained that while she was also Facebook friends with Crouch and had only met in person once or twice, they really didn’t know each other personally.
Gartner did confirm that Crouch had taken some moderator actions on users who had shared articles on the group discussion page, including requiring preapproval of posts. However, she stopped short of confirming if Crouch had actually removed the posts which were no longer on the group page, stating that her moderation log on Facebook wasn’t showing the actual posts ever being removed.
Gartner also explained that she was unaware about the any removals/bans that may have been made by Crouch recently against those who had spoken out about Wacker.
She did go on to explain that the management team for Oregon HORSE Forum would ban any users which blocked the personal profiles of herself or any of the moderators. Several individuals told NW Horse Report that they have blocked or been blocked by Crouch, perhaps providing an explanation for the reason they were banned from Oregon HORSE Forum.
We asked Gartner if she had been contacted by anyone who had issues with any of the moderation of her page, which she said she had not. She further stated that anyone who feels the moderators are overstepping should be brought to her attention and that she would address it “fairly, without bias”.
Stephanie Nolte, who’s daughter was previously in Wacker’s 4-H program, discovered that sometime between the middle to late February that she was banned from the group, despite not having had any discussion on the group regarding Wacker. “I have never posted anything negative, slanderous, or business bashing. I do like to follow the page to keep up to date on what is going on in the horse world and sometimes offer advice on what has worked for us.” said Nolte.
Another individual who came forward during the ethics investigation, Amanda Barton, also discovered she was blocked from the page sometime in late February. Barton was also one of the individuals who received “cease and desist” letters, following parents who appealed the school districts decision to retain Wacker in 2019. These letters were sent not by Wackers primary attorney, but a second attorney she had retained. Pamplin Media Group reported that Oregon Ethics Commissioner Nathan Sosa, a Hillsboro-based attorney, said Wacker “put significant pressure” on parents and the district to ignore issues and keep Wacker in her position as coach.
“This is a place for you to ask or offer advice, chat about horse related issues, share your success, and upcoming events. Discussions are welcome. Please allow differences of opinion, and do not attack members if they do not support your views. There are topics that the horse community will NEVER agree on! Foul language will not be tolerated.” a statement from the Oregon HORSE Forum’s About section.
She also confirmed that those under 18 years of age are not permitted in the group as the discussions and business of the group should never involve minors. This statement raised further questions regarding an incident involving Crouch as a group moderator going back to 2017. In that case Crouch messaged via Facebook a 16-year-old student-athlete, who was also allegedly part of Wackers OHSET team at OCHS and her 4-H program. The message about the student being Facebook friends with another girl who requested to join the Oregon HORSE Forum.
“I’m curious if she is 21…and also curious why you would be friends with someone like her?” said Crouch to the minor. The minor student replied “I thought she was friends with [name redacted] when I was younger, and when we were close. I might have been thinking of someone else though.” Crouch went on to say “Not really someone you need to be associating with… even just [on] Facebook. People judge other people by the friends they keep.” Crouch followed-up at the end confirming she “denied and blocked” the other girl from the Oregon Horse Forum.” It was unclear the age of the other girl who requested to join the group at the time.
Considering Gartner’s policy where they would only permit those who are 18-years of age to join the group, we asked Gartner if a group moderator like Crouch should be involving minors when reviewing the applications of other adults. She further indicated that “anyone under 18 is not supposed to be involved in any matters concerning the [Oregon HORSE Forum], just not appropriate, that’s always been my rule,”
The day after Gartner spoke with NW Horse Report, it appeared Crouch was no longer a moderator of the group. In our call with Gartner she expressed that anyone who feels they were improperly removed or blocked from the group should contact her for assistance. Multiple individuals, including Nolte and Barton, have since reported that they were successful in reaching Gartner about being blocked from the page, or would be reaching out shortly. They said Gartner was prompt in restoring their access to group page on Facebook, for which they were thankful.
We reached out by email to Ms. Crouch for comment on March 8th regarding the allegations that she was abusing her moderator role with Oregon HORSE Forum and unfairly blocking users on the group. She has yet to respond upon the publishing of this story.
