In May 2006, Anthony Vendrella’s 2-year-old son was bitten by a horse at Glendale Farms in Milford, Connecticut. The injury required corrective surgery and left a permanent scar. Vendrella sued the farm’s owner, lost his first lawsuit and won his appeal to the Connecticut Supreme Court in 2013. The court deemed horses as “inclined to do mischief or be vicious” and found the horse’s owner liable. This case is important for animal health professionals to review as background for potential issues and to help protect the uneducated public.
Horse owners and animal health pros need to educate themselves on the liability laws in their own state, and then take steps to ensure fences and barns are secured and posted with appropriate warning signs.
We need to help people learn about horses.”
Source: EQUUS, May 26, 2022. Link.