LAKELAND, Fla (WFLA) — The founders of a Tampa Bay horse farm are reacting to animal cruelty cases, in which some of the horses were sent to them for rehabilitation.

Erika Gilbert with Grune Heidi Farms in Lakeland said horses eat 24/7, so it upsets them to hear stories of people purposely starving horses. Gilbert showed 8 On Your Side the rescued horses at the farm. She said they rehabilitate 30 to 35 horses a year.

“This one we just rescued,” Gilbert said. “There’s no meat. There’s no flesh. Ribs are definitely prominent. You can see his bones and that’s, that’s not good.”

She said to nourish them back to health, it takes a lot of money, and high-quality food. Though she said the work it is worth it, especially when they see some of the worst cases of malnourished horses.

“It’s very depressing and it’s sickening because there is no need for it,” Gilbert said.

The rescue took in horses from Palm Beach County after a woman was arrested for several counts of animal cruelty and confinement without food, water, or exercise.

“When we had them, all we basically had to do was provide food, training, and the basic rehab that we do here in order for them to find a home,” Gilbert said.

Also this week, a Polk County man was arrested and is accused of animal cruelty after the death of his horse. Deputies found six horses they said were extremely underweight. The owner admitted to not feeding the horses for two weeks.

“This was absolutely, unequivocally a horrible scene,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.

Gilbert said those cases are examples of a mental health crisis, though she said it’s not an excuse for neglecting animals.

“When you see all these hoarding cases, that’s mental health issues,” Gilbert said. “These people will not stop doing what they do. As soon as they’re released with a slap on the wrist, they’re going to go out and accumulate more horses.”

She said, at the end of the day, the animal, cat, dog, or horse, suffers. Especially when others don’t bring attention to it.

“They could drive past a starving horse in a pasture, and no one would ever call,” Gilbert said. “We all need to help.”