STANWOOD — Two owners of a Stanwood farm must pay restitution for starving a herd of alpacas, killing at least three of them, a judge ruled in April.
James and Jennifer Thogersen, of Thogersen Family Farm, each pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree animal cruelty, a misdemeanor.
Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Karen Moore ordered the couple to pay restitution of $8,294. They were also each given suspended sentences of 364 days.
James Thogersen, 51, paid his half of the restitution in May, while Jennifer Thogersen’s restitution hearing is set for September, court records indicate.
On its former web page, the farm stated it sourced livestock from the Pacific Northwest, “providing an outlet for aged out animals.”
The livestock would be slaughtered for the Thogersens’ raw dog and cat food business.
The business was listed as permanently closed this week. Calls to the company did not go through.
In 2019, Thogersen Family Farm had to recall its raw frozen ground pet food, because it “had the potential to be contaminated with listeria,” according to the Food and Drug Administration. Ground llama was one of the products recalled.
In March 2021, Snohomish County Animal Services received a tip with an address and pictures that appeared to show two dead alpacas, according to the charges filed in Superior Court in 2021.
Animal control officers went to the Stanwood property the next day. Jennifer Thogersen reported she and her husband bought a herd of alpacas and brought them to the property a month earlier. She claimed they were already old and had health issues, according to the charges.
Later, a veterinarian reported the alpacas in the herd were between the ages of 1 and 4. Alpacas often live into their teens.
Since the herd arrived, four alpacas had already died, Jennifer Thogersen told the officers.
The downed alpacas looked similar to the animals seen in the photographs animal control received, according to court documents.
Jennifer Thogersen told the animal control officers that she was pregnant and had been relying on her husband to take care of the animals, the charges said.
James Thogersen reported they ran out of hay a week earlier, and had been feeding the herd grain out of a 2-gallon bucket once a day, during the night.
The grain bucket wouldn’t have been enough food to feed the herd, according to an animal control officer’s report. And there wasn’t enough grass to make up for the lack of food.
A trough was the only source of water, according to the charges. The water had a “film” on it and was discolored. The basin looked like it hadn’t been cleaned recently. Almost all of the alpacas were emaciated, a vet noted.
Animal control removed the alpacas from the property. While in Snohomish County’s custody, another died of starvation. An exam showed the dead alpacas had no body fat, and there were no other apparent causes of death.
Jonathan Tall: 425-339-3486; jonathan.tall@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @EDHJonTall.
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