SALEM, Ohio — The former owner of Pure Gold Stables in Salem, Ohio, is expected to enter a plea in the animal cruelty case stemming from five dead horses found at her farm last year.
Heather Birkmire was scheduled to go to trial in November on five counts of cruelty to animals and another four counts related to the improper disposal of dead or destroyed animals. After a status conference hearing on Oct. 28, the case was reset for a plea and sentencing hearing on Dec. 29.
If the fines for all nine charges were imposed at their maximum amounts and each was considered individually, Birkmire would have to pay up to $4,750. She could face up to 570 days in the county jail if found guilty on all charges. Birkmire is prohibited from keeping any companion animals as a condition of her bond.
A farrier discovered the skeletal remains of four horses locked inside a round pen at Pure Gold Stables off of State Route 45 on Oct. 26, 2025.
A report from the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office described teeth marks on the wood, suggesting the horses tried to chew their way out. Buckets in the pens contained only remnants of straw, and the decomposed horses were still wearing winter blankets, indicating they likely died months earlier, over the winter.
According to the Columbiana County Prosecutor’s Office, necropsy results confirmed evidence of dehydration and starvation. The skeletal remains of a fifth horse were also recovered from a burn pit on the property.
The degree to which the horses suffered is not merely speculative. Fabian Pike, shelter manager for the Columbiana County Humane Society, released a lengthy statement on his Facebook account Oct. 30 weighing in on the case.
“These are the most painful ways for a horse to die,” he wrote. “Without food or water, this type of death is agonizing.”
Pike offered a detailed and at times graphic overview of how prolonged lack of food and water can cause worsening dehydration, digestive problems and physical decline in horses, potentially leading to organ failure and death.
“I believe that no amount of words or justice can truly provide relief for what has happened. The outcome of this trial or any plea deal may not make sense to many. However, I want to say that I believe together we can make a difference in addressing future crimes against animals, whether they are livestock or companion animals. They all need to be protected from monsters like this,” he wrote.
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