Mercer County man gets 3 months for cruelty to horses

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A Mercer County man has been sentenced to three months in jail for denying animals water and feeding them moldy hay. The Bismarck Tribune reports that Shanan Weigum of Zap was sentenced Monday (Dec. 20, 2021) after pleading guilty to felony animal cruelty. South Central District Judge Cynthia Feland also ordered Weigum to pay more than $76,000 in restitution and fees. According to court documents, sheriff’s deputies in February found 15 dead horses and 11 dead foals and fetuses on Weigum’s property. They also found a donkey and 39 horses in poor condition along with four dead lambs.