The Havasupai Tribe says three animal abuse cases in its tribal court have ended in convictions since the tribe promised last year to make animal-cruelty offenses a top priority.
The Arizona Daily Sun reports that two other individuals have also had animal cruelty charges filed against them in the past month.
Animal treatment concerns arose two years ago with federal authorities arrested a tribal member for abuse of his horses. The arrest brought widespread attention as well as calls for increased regulation, enforcement and pressure on trekking companies that use pack horses.
Pack animals like horses, mules and donkeys, the majority of which are owned by tribal members, are used to haul tourists' gear to and from the famous blue-green waterfalls on Havasupai in the Grand Canyon.
