Horse pulling carriage along Court Ave. found 500 pounds underweight, now receiving care at ARL

DES MOINES, Iowa — A horse providing carriage rides along Court Avenue is now in the care of the Animal Rescue League of Iowa. Police and animal services say the horse was malnourished and hundreds of pounds underweight.

In the past horse intake cases for the ARL typically happen in rural areas, not in the heart of downtown Des Moines. But, after multiple witnesses saw the horse named Bruce pulling a carriage in the downtown area, they knew something wasn’t right and alerted authorities.

“It was at a parking lot that we observed Bruce. It was actually while he was being worked. So, there was an interview with the person, trying to get as much information as we could, but in our good conscious we couldn’t leave the horse that way. So, the horse was actually taken at that time,” said Josh Colvin, animal services manager at the ARL.

At that time Bruce was not only working in 90 degree heat, but veterinary staff at the ARL deemed him to be 500 pounds underweight.

Des Moines police charged Bruce’s owner, Ramsey Zimmerman, with livestock neglect, a simple misdemeanor. Bruce was placed into the care of the ARL until a disposition hearing could be held to determine if Bruce would be given back to Zimmerman. On July 12, a judge ruled that Bruce should not be returned.

“The ARL and other agencies have advocated for years for harsher punishment. We have to work with what we can do within the law, and when you see a severely emaciated dog , or in this case a horse, you want harsh penalties. But we work with what we have and in this case, the best piece is that the ARL was awarded custody of the horse. So now they can care for it, they can bring it back to health and they can find it a good home,” said Sgt. Paul Parizek with the Des Moines Police Department.

Currently, the ARL says that Bruce has gained back roughly 100 pounds and is continuing to make progress.

For those wanting to make a donation to the ARL to help, you can donate at their website here .

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