Horses Removed from Sanctuary Recovering at Forest View Farm

It's been about a month since the Cook County Sheriff's Officeand two of the horses removed from the property are starting to bounce back.

Beethoven and Picasso, thoroughbreds taken in by Forest View Farm in Tinley Park, were malnourished and craving attention when staff pulled them off the Dazzle's Painted Pastures property. Barn manager Terri Wenninger said there's no shortage of food or love for the pair, who were named by barn staff.

"What Beethoven and Picasso need more than anything right now, is a lot of food, a lot of love, a lot of attention that they've been missing out on, and they're definitely getting it," Wenninger said.

The horses were living primarily outside at the facility located at 5555 W. 175th St, and were fed only hay by the facility's owner Dawn Hamill. While other horses on the Painted Pastures property had no trouble maintaining their weight, Beethoven and Picasso showed signs of malnourishment, with protruding ribs and dull coats.

"I've been by there quite a few times. Most of the horses are pasture-looking horses, there's no muscle tone to them, there's no grooming," Wenninger said. "They just look like backyard pasture horses.

"It wasn't that she wasn't feeding them, it's just that a bale of hay wasn't enough for the ones who were on the thin side."

Hamill, 41, was charged with eight counts of neglect of owner's duties and two counts of cruel treatment. Hamill is the director of operations at Painted Pastures, 5555 W. 175th St., in unincorporated Tinley Park. Police, the Animal Welfare League of Chicago Ridge and Cook County Animal Control removed 63 dogs, 31 cats and six rabbits during the almost five-hour raid. Investigators also removed 30 horses, ponies, sheep, goats and llamas.

At her March 11 court date, Hamill's attorney argued the animals removed in the raid were on the property without her consent, according to a Sun-Times Media report.

The Cook County Sheriff's Office Animal Crimes Unit received tips that poor conditions at the nonprofit, no-kill sanctuary were endangering the animals there. After an investigation that included surveillance of the shelter, officers obtained a warrant to search Painted Pastures, a news release said.

Investigators found dozens of animals in unsanitary and unheated conditions, sometimes without food or water. Eight puppies who were exposed to the canine parvovirus, a highly contagious disease spread by dog-to-dog or feces contact, were discovered in an unheated garage without provisions. All of the cats at the sanctuary had respiratory problems, and many had ear and eye infections, according to the release.

Picasso and Beethoven will be available for adoption once they both reach a healthy weight.

Joe Vince contributed to this report.