The Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals charged an Islip Terrace woman with animal cruelty for allegedly starving her horse.

The SPCA says an anonymous tip led investigators to a home on Cedarhurst Street. Investigators say Sunny, the 19-year-old thoroughbred, had gone without proper sustenance for up to a year and lost 250 pounds.

"The ribs were protruding. It was in really, really poor condition," says Roy Gross, of the SPCA. "They said the feces in the barn was piled up and so thick it was growing mushrooms, it was so old."

The agency charged Sunny's owner, 55-year-old Carol Diclementi, with animal cruelty for failure to feed the horse. No when answered her door when News 12 knocked.

The veterinarian caring for Sunny says the horse had starved for so long that his digestive system shut down. So now they're feeding him small amounts of food until he regains his strength. The vet says it'll take several months for Sunny to get back to his normal weight.

The vet adds that Sunny is responding to treatment and is expected to make a full recovery.