Silenced Suffering: A Tragic Tale
- Jun 1, 2023
- 22 min read
I’m not even sure where or how to start this, so maybe a little background information might help. I had been a long-time supporter of TDB even prior to Buster’s arrival. I attended fundraising functions and even made friends with people I met at them. Logistics kept me from becoming a working volunteer for many years. I admit I did have to step away from following TDB for a while as I was troubled with things I was seeing play out in Newport. The excessive need for money to care for the animals, as a continuous flow of animals kept being brought in bothered me. As did the constant legal battles and watching how Ms. Borden was actively engaging with her followers to disrupt innocent people’s lives. We only had her word that these people were doing “horrible acts”, but never any facts or proof were shown. And now she is doing it to me too. Ms. Borden, publicly threw my name out on one of her live video’s accusing me of having a “narrative” and of “lying”. She who makes multiple videos about her daughter being subjected to so many things on the Not Devoted page, yet she was freely throwing my grandchildren, specifically one of them, out there. She also stated that I “couldn’t handle” Strawberry in my home, but I can and will publically show that is just more slanderous lies. Ms. Borden, didn’t give any examples of where I have “lied” nor can she prove that I have lied because I haven’t. You see when she stated in her Live video that I left on “good terms” that was a blatant lie and I have the documentation to prove that too. Yes, I did contact her over 18 months ago about fencing I saw. I had even contacted her about getting some FREE fencing, but she would have to drive a couple hours and remove it. She declined and continued to have issues with the cows getting out and received citations for it.
I’m capable of continuing to help animals, even when their Director was giving a variety of reasons why I “left” TDB and still continues to put animals in unsafe, questionable conditions. I contacted her about free hay, but she would have to bale it, I contacted her about free spent grains from a local brewery. All of these situations I contacted Ms. Borden about would have helped the animals. Not bad for a disgusting, vile human being as I was referred to by her. Ms. Borden brought up my family, but forgot a few details as to keep the focus on her and her victim role, so let me explain that a bit more. My family worked harder at building pig enclosures and multiple repairs at TDB than I can even explain. And they did it because they love me, were very worried about me, but also know that helping animals brings me great joy. So for Ms. Borden to put out her OWN score card on what “she” had done for my family is laughable. I think my family’s help far went above and beyond the value of a couple horse rides and an anniversary cake, but I thanked her profusely for those too. Now I have one of Ms. Borden’s most loyal devotees using the alias of “Steve Trent” coming after me with more slanderous lies and trying to blame me for something that completely falls into Ms. Borden’s lap. But for those willing to read through this with an open heart, mind and soul, you will know no one would make this up or lie about something so tragic.
Now, it’s important to share on here that there was a time prior to the story that I am about to tell that I had to step away from following TDB. Maybe it was during that time a dog named Lefty arrived at TDB. I don’t know if his story was ever FULLY shared to people, but it would end up playing a significant role in my life, my family’s lives, the livestock caregivers lives, and so many others…but especially Frannie’s life.
THIS IS FRANNIE’S STORY
Part 1 I attended my orientation and was told of an upcoming work bee for pig enclosures as the Michigan Department of Agriculture had been called out about the lack of them. Being someone who’s always willing to help, I agreed to attend the work bee on the Barn Family Page for the structures. Being a good wife, I included my husband to come help (much to his dismay J) and he brought another family member out to join the fun. Well, there was a young man there who was helping out with the animals while going to college and another volunteer, who had gone through orientation herself when I did, and that was it if I remember correctly. To say we were thrown into a mess is an understatement. Posts had been placed, but not correctly, materials weren’t there to even start constructing the structures. The location for these structures was immediately questioned, but Ms. Borden showed us how to get down to the pig area with our cars and trucks and left, only giving few answers to how she wanted them built. In the end, the pig enclosures were somehow completely dumped on a new volunteer’s lap with MDARD breathing down our backs, because again, the leader of TDB didn’t have herself prepared to give proper care to the animals she continuously takes in. Yes, a couple work bees were held with a great group of people from Detroit and I was so appreciative of their help. They are great people and this was far too much for a man working a full-time job, who had NO desire to spend any extra minute he had there. He would meet me there after his work day and work into the evening using his car headlights. My daughter would bring him food when she would come to get her toddler I was caring for. This was our life for months. I’d wander around and help out in the dog room on occasion when help was needed, but it was so hard for me to breathe in there with the ammonia from the urine. We finished the pig enclosures literally as snow was forecasted the next day. I’ll insert it here that Mel and another volunteer, did spend a day working on the smaller pot belly structures. She’ll want that noted.
Now it’s December and family is coming to visit from out of state. They have heard all about everything we’ve been doing at TDB and I’m excited to share the place with them and give them a tour. It’s December 22, 2019 and I take them into the dog barn first as I want to show my daughter, Gypsy. I love this dog as I swear I heard her say to me, “Help Me” on my orientation day when I walked in. I want to see her reaction to my small people as I dream of her coming to live out her days at my house. We are getting ready to go and my daughter inquiries about how much time they spend in their cages, and do they ever get out of this room. I said a few can be walked, but most of them never leave. So I decide to take one of the dogs with us. Knowing I also have these little people joining us, so decided that I needed to pick a slower dog. That would be the fatal decision I unknowingly make. I pick Lefty because he is older, he supposedly has cancer and honestly is starting to look half dead. He deserves to get a walk, right? His card says, “High Prey Drive.” Okay, check. But to be honest almost every dog in there had “High Prey Drive” on their card.
Next stop are the pig enclosures. They want to see the famous Parker and Nugget, because over the years my daughter had also started following TDB. It is posted no dogs inside this area and I am immediately stopped by Charlene and Roxanne working livestock that day. I ask them to please show my family members Parker and Roxanne does. Charlene is closer and brings up the prey drive and no dogs in that area. I stay by the gate and take notice of her words. There is a set “dog path” the volunteers are given to walk the dogs and we are on it as you were allowed on the outside area by the pigs. I only bring this up as “Steve Trent” was trying to say I wasn’t where I was allowed to be. They finish with the pigs and we are on our way to the sheep and goat area. It’s a nice walk around a pond and I’m busy answering questions as the youngest is giving Lefty pets as we walk along. There is a road/path that turns and goes along the back part of the sheep/goat enclosure. My oldest little person is asking me a question wanting to know where it goes to, while the others head to the fence. I make a VERY distinct decision remembering what Charlene had said and place Lefty on my left side, literally on the edge of the area inches from the swamp there. It keeps the whole roadway space open and him away from the livestock, facing in a different direction with me on the side towards the livestock. With what knowledge I had, I felt I was being very safe.
I glance over to see the joy on my little’s faces, this sheep named Frannie (as I would find out later) has come to the fence and they are all loving on her, including my daughter. I don’t know if it is in that moment that I turned my head to look at my family, but I am suddenly spun and taken with my hand still fully secured to the leash. Literally in a flash, Lefty has lunged and grabbed Frannie’s neck. I end up in a position standing over Lefty as I was caught so off guard. My youngest little’s arm is still in the same square of fencing that Lefty’s mouth is in, while my daughter’s arm is in the other one. Lefty has literally just missed getting them in his kill shot of Frannie.
My mind is working at warp speed, I’m yelling to the youngest to get his arm out. He is neurodivergent, so processing what is happening is difficult at first for him. I’m telling the kids to move away, as I’m remembering that you should never stick your hands by an animal’s mouth, but I have to try and save Frannie. There is a nerve that runs in the back of the mouth as the jaw bones meet. I put 2 fingers in on each side and start to try to apply pressure as Lefty is now literally pulling Frannie’s neck through the square of fencing. So I am squeezing him behind the shoulder blades with my knees forcing him as forward as I can to try and counter him. I remember reading that if you lift a dog by his hind legs during a fight they will release, so now I have my daughter doing that also. Sadly it isn’t working as I’m telling her higher. I know Lefty walks with a painful leg so I was sure that would make him release. What it did was make him shift his bite and now he has me also in his grip. My daughter says, she’s dying and gives up. To which I reply “not if I can help it.” You can literally hear the breathing leaving her body and Frannie’s color is starting to turn blue. I look over at the kids as some are crying, one is asking if she’s dying and one is purely in shock. I can feel and hear that his bite on me is literally down to the bone now, it is then I hear my brother’s voice say to me, “Choke him out”. And I remember my brother telling me how to choke a dog out by covering their nose. With my free hand I cover Lefty’s nose and he tries to shake my hand off of it. I am still fighting with him to keep pushing forward as he’s still countering to pull Frannie through the fence square. The pain through my finger as he shakes his head is piercing and only makes me madder, so I tighten my grip covering his nose. My daughter is saying something about a stick. I just know that Lefty’s eyes are starting to roll back in his head and yet he is still set on his kill. He is weak enough though now and my daughter is able to get the stick between his teeth enough to free Frannie and myself. This wasn’t seconds, this fight was minutes and one of the most frightening things was the look of pure pride and evil on Lefty’s face afterwards.
The fight might have been over, but the nightmare had just begun. I wanted this dog gone and locked up immediately. I was bleeding pretty bad, but we had to get Frannie help. Do I send two young kids off by themselves to go and find Charlene and Roxanne? I have no other choice, someone has to help Frannie. So I stay there holding onto this dog not knowing what his next move will be, but know he lives for a kill and does it with precision. Praise God as my panic starts to take over that something could have happened to the littles, I hear the Gator and know Charlene and Roxanne are coming. We point out the sheep for them and start to head back to the dog barn. I don’t want anyone else to get near Lefty as I now know this dogs soul, but my daughter is determined I need to get my hand washed and cleaned. I remember reluctantly handing him over to someone. I think it was another dog volunteer as I head to Mel’s house to wash my hand. Ms. Borden is light and kind, but we have littles that are still trying to process what has just happened and they are worried about me. But Ms. Borden knows things that I don’t, in fact I haven’t even fully learned them until today.
I drive my family members back home and quickly head back to TDB to see how Frannie is doing. I am immediately met by Charlene as I approach the barn regarding what I know about Lefty’s history. I am taken aback by just the question as I don’t know what she means or is getting at. I answer, “No”, but it’s more like a question and she quickly seems to realize I have no idea what she is talking about. It is then that I find out Lefty has a mauling history with 2 prior kills or as Mel would later tell me, “He didn’t kill the dogs, but harmed them enough that they had to be put down”. I am horrified to learn this and still haunted to think that I subjected my littles to what I did, because I was never given the information to keep them safe and away from this legally labeled “Dangerous Animal”. Lefty's court case file can be found here.
I only learned today that he not only had the two prior kills, but had been in 5 dog fights!!! He‘d lunged for the office cat while being taken out on leash by the Lapeer County AC. I literally learned all of this today as I thought it would be wise to get more information on Lefty’s court case since this TDB alias “Steve Trent” has been on a mission to try and blame this all on me and say that charges could have been brought against me, and I was walking the dog in a posted area not allowing dogs, etc.. I know there will be many more of the loyal TDB followers that will come for me for speaking the truth, but I wasn’t the Director who signed the legal papers from Lapeer County Animal Control agreeing that I was taking possession of a legally labeled “Dangerous Dog” and all that implies in keeping people and animals safe around him. Lapeer County AC had contacted 8 different rescues and Sanctuary’s to take in Lefty and due to his prior kill history, no one would accept him. They even contacted a place as far away as Utah. At Newport, Lefty was shown in Lives by himself in the Medical House. I honestly thought he lived there as I was told he had cancer, but there was SO much more to his story. I had attended a dog volunteer training meeting in Mel’s house so she was there and spoke. I took endless notes on each dog, nothing was said about Lefty’s prior fights or kills. Just a high prey drive and that he could only be by Ammo. For a time, Lefty and Ammo even shared a kennel, but then there was a fight. Why was it even considered to put Lefty with another dog knowing his history?!! His last dog kill was a shepherd. So you put another shepherd in with him?!!! Why were we as innocent volunteers put in unsafe positions and not allowed to make our own informative decisions regarding a deemed dangerous animal?!!! The answer isn’t because I walked a dog to close to a fence. The TRUTH is Ms. Borden doesn’t care about the laws she is supposed to follow or the innocent volunteers who just want to help the endless flow of animals at TDB.
It’s also really important to take note that the Oakland County Animal Control officer was given some background information on Lefty’s prior kills in a complaint they received, but looked the other way regarding them when they came to speak with Ms. Borden. They also didn’t ask for proof of the continued veterinary care Ms. Borden claimed the sheep had received because Frannie only saw a vet on the initial day of the attack. But to answer many people’s questions as to HOW DOES TDB CONTINUE TO GET AWAY WITH ITS HORRIBLE CARE & MISMANAGEMENT that right there is part of the answer. (And it appears that Oakland County AC is going to turn their head again and give the multiple cows back to TDB that they had abandoned during the eviction. Though she was just threatening to put down animals due to her lack of donations a couple days earlier). Keeping matters quiet wasn’t as much about protecting the volunteers that she was choosing to NOT be “transparent” with, but about saving herself. You see, the only thing I am guilty of is believing what I was told by Ms. Borden at the time, and not looking into Lefty’s legal case until now.
But let’s get back to Frannie and give her the dignity she didn’t receive and deserves. She was put in a stall while we waited for Dr. B the vet to arrive. Charlene and Roxanne were great about going over her and trying to find her wounds. You could hear the air escaping as she was breathing and we were pretty sure that her airway had been punctured. Dr. B was having a hard time getting his finger in there to feel around her airway and without any diagnostic equipment; he simply sewed up her couple puncture holes. Frannie was given a couple injections and Mel was told to call Dr. B if she wasn’t doing better within a couple days.
I have not slept a wink as my daughter and I keep reliving the events of the day. We struggle to see where the mistake was made that caused Lefty to attack like that, and worse we keep trying to think of what we could have done different, harder, sooner, anything to have gotten him to release Frannie quicker. We worry that there are other wounds that might have been missed that could help with her breathing. We talk about the cold stall she is in because the window is broken and it is drafty and so cold. Every breathe of that cold air has to hurt with an open airway. And as we are going over everything, the youngest little appears because he was having a bad dream about “that dog”. My daughter leaves to care for the little and get some sleep. As a Grandmother, I am left crushed that I have put my family into this situation and left them with these scars. If only Ms. Borden had been truly transparent. I NEVER would have even brought my family close to a dangerous animal, especially one with Lefty’s history.
12/23/2019- 8 am, I am already contacting Mel on Frannie’s condition. I tell her to look at her left side too as my daughter and I question if it might be involved also. I receive no answer back from Ms. Borden, so I contact Charlene to know if she knows anything about Frannie. At 12:16 pm, I contact Mel again regarding what I am told as it wasn’t good news. I offer to pay for another vet visit from Dr. B, but I also state that I don’t have money for MSU. (I say this because Ms. Borden has always stated how expensive MSU is over OSU and was why she was taking Kenny the tripod cow there now. It wasn’t until my nightmare with Strawberry that I would learn about the outstanding bill TDB had with MSU) I ask if OSU would give an estimate of the cost. I am completely desperate that we can’t lose another animal. I finally hear back from Ms. Borden that she isn’t around the farm because she’s out Christmas shopping and states someone would call if they needed anything. But it did appear Frannie needed further care. I tell Mel in a PM how when things calm down I’d like to talk about Lefty and his attack. I give some details because I am so fearful this will happen again. I also state that we have to do everything we can to make sure Frannie can pull through and to let me know if there’s anything I can do to make that happen. There are PM exchanges of Ms. Borden stating she will take the blame since she assumed everyone “knew” Lefty’s story, but I wasn’t focused on blame. I wanted to talk about what happened as this wasn’t a simple prey/predator situation it was being labeled. It was a pure evil killing machine and more needed to be done to protect the volunteers and animals. The attack itself would never be discussed any further with me by Ms. Borden. I was left alone with the most horrible thoughts of myself ever.
I know the Livestock crew had been with Frannie during the day. The farm coordinator thinks she might have had bloat, so they were rubbing her belly. The thought of her being alone in that cold stall is too much. Besides maybe if I rub her belly some more it might help her. (It just dawns on me as I’m writing this that Frannie’s never had bloat from the grain as it was believed, but from the air entering her body cavity with every breathe she took in!) So that night I go to sit with her and pray. I am begging God for a Christmas Miracle.
12/24/2019 - I wake early and head to the barn to check on Frannie as I couldn’t stand another morning of waiting to find out how she was doing. I take cut up apple, pear and carrots as I hear Frannie likes those. She eats a few and I continue to rub her belly. I will do anything to help her. People start to arrive to do chores and I can’t quite face them yet, so I leave. I know they will do everything they can for Frannie. I message throughout the day with Charlene about Frannie and things she needs. I also call Ms. Borden and let her know that Frannie is obviously NOT doing better and since Dr. B said to call him back if she wasn’t doing better, can we call him back? I have repeatedly stated that I will pay for another visit. She agrees that she will call him.
Though it’s Christmas Eve, no one in my family is really in the Christmas Spirit as we are all so worried about Frannie. The littles keep asking their parents or me about her, and now the fear that Lefty could hurt me again has started to surface with them and the youngest little doesn’t want me to go back there. I go to Christmas Eve Mass and take a little container with me to get Holy Water. I again return to the barn that night, but this time my husband takes me as he is worried about me as I haven’t slept in a couple days. It’s horrible as Frannie is SO cold to the touch and I’m trying to get her cuddled into me so I can cover us and share my body heat. It isn’t enough and a sheep isn’t like a dog, who loves a good cuddle. Her breathing is even worse and now I can’t get her to eat anything. I bless her with the Holy Water I’ve brought and continue to beg God for our Christmas miracle. The tears won’t stop again and my husband declares it’s time to go.
12/25/2019 - I am back early to check on her as I couldn’t really sleep again without hearing her breathing. And breathing has only gotten worse. It’s too much for me and besides I agreed I’d spend some time at home today, so I leave Frannie. I know Charlene and Roxanne are doing chores today and there isn’t anyone better there for giving the animals the best care ever. That part is just another factor into all of this for me, I have gotten to know the livestock people from working on the pig structures. They love and care for these animals, they are good people and to know that I was involved in something that is bringing them pain and pain to TDB family is often too much for me. I don’t go back to see Frannie on Christmas night.
12/26/2019 - I arrive at the barn and head directly to Frannie’s stall only to be greeted by the sight of a blue tarp covering her. I am devastated that we didn’t get our Christmas miracle. I am trying to figure out if my prayers were technically answered in that Frannie is now pain-free and breathing freely, so she did get her Christmas miracle?
I later message Ms. Borden that I saw the blue tarp and I ask her how much do I owe her as I assume she has followed through on her word and called Dr. B. I don’t owe her anything because Frannie was allowed to slowly suffocate to death. No vet was ever called back like she stated to the Oakland County Animal Officer in that report.
Frannie died a slow gruesome death by someone who was more interested in her Christmas shopping than an innocent animal’s life. An “accident” that never should have happened if Ms. Borden would have followed through on what she legally agreed to with Lapeer County AC. I know 100% it never would have happened on my watch had Ms. Borden been transparent with her volunteers, because I never would have risked my littles to a legally deemed dangerous animal. Whoever would?
The only thing TDB came up with to “protect” this from happening again at the time was 2 leashes on any dogs being taken for a walk. Lefty NEVER got away from me and someone would have known that if they’d only talked to me, so a second leash wouldn’t have done a darn thing to protect anyone or any other animals. But all dogs would go out with 2 leashes from then on. Later signs were put up, but not when alias “Steve Trent” claims. I can tell you that the one thing I knew would protect the sheep and goats was a second barrier around their enclosure. I would go to Home Depot myself and buy supplies to try and protect the livestock along the dog path side of their enclosure once Spring hit as it hadn’t been done. Sadly I didn’t have the hand strength to get it done on the day I was out there trying. Thankfully one of the Livestock Coordinators and her partner would get it done. I would also like to state here that when I did come back to TDB after Frannie’s passing, I walked into the dog room and was met with a hug from someone. It was the last thing I could have ever expected and I melted in her arms. I have never done that before, but her act of kindness touched me forever. I said I had to run to measure something at the pig structures and I did, but honestly was looking for an escape at that time to regroup. Little would I know that there would be a livestock person working down there. She would say something kind to me and the tears started to flow and she hugged me. Those people are still at TDB and the animals are lucky they are. I met many good people during my time there. Most have unfriended me now, but I understand speaking your truth on what happens at TDB isn’t acceptable and if done, you are now “a Hater”.
In the meantime, Lefty would slowly continue to decline as he was an old dog (12-13 years). As volunteers, we were often worried we would find him frozen to death in that freezing barn when we came in the morning. However legal matters that Ms. Borden had agreed to follow would become a moot point and Lefty would be removed from TDB property to go live with Angela, the dog coordinator. The dog that 8 different rescues or Sanctuary’s wouldn’t take because of his kill history was allowed to get another kill and dog fight under his belt, but he brought in a lot of PR and donations to TDB. So laws and people’s safety didn’t matter. Angela was beyond lucky nothing happened to her innocent neighbors as she was harboring a dangerous animal. It should also speak volumes of the ethics and character of these people.
Frannie deserved so much more than what her life was given. When she was promised that she would be cared for and promised a safe place to live out her Happily Ever After, the person who promised her that should have meant those words (just like she did to Wilbur, Maria, Louise, Lester and all the others). Even if Ms. Borden wants to stick to her story that Frannie died from pneumonia, it is possible she would have survived if only Ms. Borden would have allowed her to receive further medical care. Frannie was sweet and quick to share love and kindness with those who came by her enclosure. She was good, and I’m so sorry she was so failed by Ms. Borden. You can only imagine the further mental anguish of being involved in something like this and having your hands tied to get the medical care the animal needed.
There is another Chapter to Frannie’s story that I only learned about recently as I wasn’t aware of everything going on “behind” the scenes with Frannie, the Livestock crew members and Ms. Borden. I’d hoped to never have to relive this moment so publicly as I still relive it in my dreams. But with TDB’s Steve Trent and Ms. Borden’s recent slanderous lies on the internet, Frannie deserves her story and truth to be told. She deserved so much more.
Part 2
Two children came down to the pig area where Roxanne and I were doing chores. It was December 22, 2019. They were yelling for help and said that Lefty had lunged through the fence and grabbed Frannie by the throat.
Roxanne and I drove over to the sheep/goat pasture. Frannie was grasping for air making a “honking”sound. Her neck was bleeding from a large open wound. We carried her to the upper barn and got her in a stall. We called Melissa. I called Livestock Coordinator. I then called Dr, B or Bezek, who was the farm vet for livestock. Dr. B looked at Frannie and said he could stitch her neck up, but there could be a puncture/hole in her trachea. He told us if she was still grasping like this the next day she needed to go to MSU/OSU. He stitched up her neck/throat area. He gave her pain medication and a shot of antibiotics.
On Dec 23, 2019, the livestock coordinator reached out to me and said Frannie is the same. Same would mean she was grasping for air and no better. At that point I thought Frannie would go to MSU/OSU for help after Dr. B’s advisement, but she did not.
We came back on Christmas to do chores. We arrived Dec. 25, 2019 at 9:00 am. Frannie was worse and still there in her stall. Her head was hanging low and touching the ground. She would not eat or drink. At this point there had been no other vet care except Dr. Bezek’s visit on Dec 22, 2019. We had told Melissa she was the same and suggested getting her to MSU/OSU for further vet care.
We checked on her all day. She got progressively worse. We got done with chores at 4:00pm. Roxanne and I were very upset. We were crying. We said she needed veterinary care or at least to be euthanized as she was suffering.
We decided to go to Melissa at her house. We told Melissa we wanted to take Frannie to MSU. That we would leave and go right away, Melissa then told us the rescue had no money. Roxanne and I said we can raise the money. She then told us her family was over for Christmas Eve and she couldn’t go because they were opening presents. We were both upset and told her Frannie is suffering. We could take her to MSU and she continued to say “No”. I said could you call Austen, (horse vet) to come euthanize her. She said she would have her kids check on her. Not sure what her children would have been able to do for Frannie. That we could not? Really she needed to go to a University Vet Hospital where they handle large animals and livestock.
We walked off Melissa’s porch knowing Frannie was going to die. The next morning I was told that Melissa’s daughter went to check on Frannie and she was dead. So she died that night or the morning of Dec. 26, 2019
REST IN PEACE NOW FRANNIE
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