NEW YORK (AP) – An 80-year-old man who has been riding around the country on horseback, saying he was trying to call attention to starving children, was arrested Thursday on animal cruelty charges after investigators concluded his horses were malnourished.
In his white hat, Tod “Doc” Mishler had gained national fame galloping into communities, a God-loving cowboy whose home was a horse.
He was arrested three days after riding over the Outerbridge Crossing linking the city’s Staten Island borough with New Jersey. Veterinarians who examined his two horses said they suffered from malnourishment, dehydration and open sores.
On Monday, Mishler stalled bridge traffic as motorists stopped to stare. He was issued court summonses for blocking traffic and trespassing.
On Thursday, police announced more serious charges: two counts of animal cruelty based on examinations of the horses by veterinarians of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.