Petting Zoo Operator Gets 90 Days In Jail For Animal Abuse
(STMW) -- A woman who had a menagerie of animals–from llamas to rabbits to mini-donkeys–on two Kane County farms has been sentenced to 90 days in jail for starving and abusing the animals.
Stacy A. Fiebelkorn, 36, agreed to the sentence Friday in exchange for pleading guilty to cruel treatment of animals, a Class A misdemeanor, according to a statement from the Kane County state's attorney's office. She was also sentenced to two years' probation.
In court, prosecutors presented evidence that Fiebelkorn subjected her rabbits, alpacas, llamas, goats, chickens, turkeys, ducks, mini-horses, horses and mini-donkeys to cruel treatment by starving and abusing them at a farm in a rural area along U.S. 20 near Hampshire.
Fiebelkorn also ran the Mini Zoo Crew petting zoo and a rescue operation at a farm near Maple Park.
Veterinarian Dr. Susan Brown testified that most of the animals were undernourished, many even emaciated. Some of the animals, she said, "were like living skeletons," and a baby alpaca had trouble walking or standing upright.
On March 3, 2014, county animal control workers went to the farm after a report of a dead horse, and found other dead animals, as well some in need of food, water and medical treatment, according to prosecutors.
"There is a national consensus that animal abuse should be treated as a serious crime. This sentence reflects that expectation," State's Attorney Joe McMahon said in the statement. He also thanked all the volunteers who took in or cared for the animals.
In addition to jail time and probation, Fiebelkorn must undergo a psychological evaluation, prosecutors said. She is barred from owning, possessing, controlling or caring for any animals during her probation.
Fiebelkorn, who lives in the 1000 block of Borden Drive in Elgin, is eligible for day-to-day sentencing and received credit for one day served in the Kane County Jail after her arrest, the state's attorney's office said. She had been free on $150 bail.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2015. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
