Abused animals begin recovery

Sometimes a story in the News just hits you harder than the rest- this is such a story-

SPEAKER TWP. - Several sheep and goats haven't stopped eating since they arrived Monday afternoon at Lin and Chuck Ernest's farm.

They devoured hay tossed into their pen Tuesday afternoon and munched on their bedding when the hay was gone.

The animals' 21-year-old owner, who lives at the farm, will not be criminally charged until the police investigation is complete, the sheriff department said. The man, whose name has not been released, was arrested Monday but posted 10% of a $10,000 bond and was released from the Sanilac County Jail until he is arraigned.

The man, who told police on Monday he had been too busy partying to feed the animals, declined a request for an interview Tuesday at his home. The Times Herald has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the jail's booking records.

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http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070103/NEWS01/701030301/1002