For years The Devoted Barn has always brought in "tough and hard to treat" animals in order to provide them rescue and care. They post their sad stories and ask for donations while promising only the best veterinary care. The truth is, many of these animals suffered instead of receiving the renowned care that was promised to them (and to donors).
FRANKIE:
Frankie is a Belgian draft horse mare that arrived to the barn on October 1, 2021. She has a condition called Chronic Progressive Lymphedema (CPL) and requires careful and correct management to ensure quality of life for the horse. Below are photos of Frankie's leg when they rescued her, after she had intensive care at a hospital in Texas, and updated photos now. There have also been reports of a very strong odor coming from her leg. You can see all of the bloody discharge all over her pen. Think about these wounds out in the mud. Think about these wounds in the summer dealing with biting insects. So what would you say? Is Frankie getting amazing professional care and living a quality life?
September 2021 on intake
September 2021 after intensive care in Texas veterinary hospital
Photos taken March 2023
HONEY:
Honey is a feral dog that was living in Texas with a severely infected mass on her foot. The Devoted Barn agreed to take her in and get her the proper care. She arrived to the barn May 17th 2022. https://www.facebook.com/TheDevotedBarn/videos/544430393901809 In this video Melissa describes the horrible stench of infection coming from Honey's wounds. Honey did not immediately get vet care. She did not have surgery to amputate her leg and free her of pain until June 9th. So where was Honey kept during this waiting period?
Honey in the old feral dog room May 29-30th, 2022 among filth and debris.
Why did Honey not IMMEDIATELY get the care she needed? Why was Honey stuck in a junk filled room in the barn scared and alone for weeks? As a reminder, The Devoted Barn was COURT ORDERED to not have anymore dogs on the property after Rose Township won their court case. The only dogs remaining at the property should have been the seven dogs mentioned in the affidavit signed by the DB attorney. This just again goes to show how well Melissa obeys rules and legal orders.
DEEDEE:
Deedee was a pregnant cow with a partial leg that came from a far western state and had to travel thousands of miles to arrive at The Devoted Barn. Once here, she failed to stand for several days due to how weak she was from the trip. Labor was induced and could not deliver the calf. The decision was made to deliver the calf via cesarian section and the calf was not viable. Deedee then was hoisted up in an effort to save her. Volunteer accounts of this are horrendous. Instead of making the choice to let Deedee pass with dignity, she suffered until the final second. Deedee just died, and was tortured the entire time she was in the care of The Devoted Barn.
They claimed that it was imperative that Deedee come to the rescue so that she could get a prosthetic for her leg. We know that Kenny never wears his prosthetic any more, and Melissa claims that he does just fine without it and is in no pain. So why was it so critical to transport pregnant Deedee thousands of miles and cause her so much stress that ultimately killed both her and her calf?
SHEMY:
Shemy was a foal that came to the barn 9/10/20. He came as a bright eyed, healthy foal, with the exception of constricted tendons. The Devoted Barn posted about this sweet foal with severely contracted tendons for many months, tracking his progress, until he suddenly disappeared. What did the vet say about his tendons? Was a surgical repair an option and if so why was it not considered? Shemy was paraded around the barn doing "PT" for months. Read about OSU recommended treatment for contracted tendons here. Shemy never was splinted or received any medical or surgical procedures to attempt to repair his tendons. We are skeptical that he was even on consistent pain medication. Instead, he was kept in a dirty stall where he developed sores from laying constantly in filth and dragged around the entire property in severe pain. He also developed a prolapsed rectum and was never sent to the hospital for treatment. Shemy existed at the barn in pain for several months before the decision was finally made to let him go. Please see the difference in the photos from when he came versus what he looked like in the end. The life in his eyes was completely gone.
https://www.facebook.com/TheDevotedBarn/videos/347756199760560 (Shemy 9/15/20)
https://www.facebook.com/TheDevotedBarn/videos/1798207266997106 (Shemy 12/12/20)
HANNAH:
Hannah is an ex racehorse who came to the barn October 2021. In her introduction, it was stated that x-rays showed that the horse had bone chips in her leg and she would need surgery to repair it. https://www.facebook.com/TheDevotedBarn/videos/237567845072288 Hannah never had surgery to clean up these bone chips. She was never on consistent pain medication. Suddenly in 2022 the story of Hannah's injury changed. She no longer had bone chips in her leg, now she has "significant soft tissue damage." So which is it? In a June 30, 2022 report from Oakland County Animal Control, the below photo of Hannah was attached showing her long front feet (the reason for the call).
What is interesting, is the vet for The Devoted Barn was asked for Hannah's medical records and they were not supplied. He only supplied AC with records for Huey (another horse on prolonged stall rest at the barn). So what, if any, medical care HAS Hannah received? And why has her diagnosis changed? Hannah is STILL on stall rest as of March 2023. Below are photos from this past month of her standing in a dirty stall with minimal bedding and no hay. She is thin, covered in dermatitis and still favoring her left front leg. What is the plan for Hannah? Why is she in this condition? What medical care is she actually receiving?
KENNY:
Kenny came to live with The Devoted Barn in late 2018. His leg was severely damaged from a traumatic birthing experience. Because of this, his leg was amputated and as he grew he was fit with a prosthetic device. Based on posts, it seems that Kenny last went to see his vet, Dr.Muir, at Ohio State in August of 2020 to have his prosthetic adjusted. https://www.instagram.com/p/CEAU7Vbhu8P/ His bill for that trip alone was $2,400.
Since then, there have been no updates of Kenny going back to OSU for adjustments. In fact, Kenny has not been wearing his prosthetic leg at all for almost two years. Why doesn't he wear his leg anymore? It has to be painful for such a large animal to maintain such an unusual posture all day. Here is a video from July 2021 showing Kenny moving about without his leg. https://www.tiktok.com/@melborden5/video/6983813585386458374?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1 (If the link does not work, the video has been removed by the poster)
Photo of Kenny's prosthetic leg covered in dust and cobwebs- March 2023
These are just a handful of stories of animals being failed/have been failed by The Devoted Barn. Start to notice the pattern, animals are frequently brought into the rescue with very severe issues, injuries or sad stories. Their sad stories bring in DONATIONS. What happens when these animals aren't miraculous success stories? Well, they either die or are put in a hypothetical (sometimes) dark corner of the barn to be forgotten. Ask what happened to animals like Teddy, a horse pulled from a kill pen summer of 2022 and was never heard of save for a couple videos introducing him. Ask what how long it took them to finally give Pearl (a horse saved as a mercy case) a dignified crossing. Ask when the last time Kenny (3 legged cow) was visited by a vet for an evaluation to monitor any arthritic changes after his prosthetic leg was permanently removed. We are not going to stay silent in our efforts. These animals deserve a voice and we are here to give it to them! The choices being made are not in the best interest of the animals and The Devoted Barn is NOT being transparent about the care being provided for them. How many more animals have to fade into the darkness when these bad decisions/lack of decisions fail them????
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