September 28, 2006

Community in uproar over suspicious death of pet horse

Almaden Endurance Riders offer $11,100 reward

By Jeanne Carbone Lewis
Staff Writer

An alleged horse shooting on Almaden Road has residents concerned for the safety of their animals in the rural area.

“They murdered the horse,” claimed one resident who preferred to remain anonymous due to reprisals. “It looked like they had a handgun and held it under the horse’s head and shot it. It went right through the animal’s head.”

The incident apparently happened Sunday night, Sept. 17. The owners found the animal the next day on their property.

City of San Jose Animal Care and Services spokesperson Julie St. Gregory said in a phone interview that a bullet was not discovered and because there weren’t any witnesses to the incident, the cause of death has not been determined.

“The officer wasn’t able to tell if the horse was shot or got poked by a stick,” said St. Gregory.

The owner was unavailable for comment and it is unknown whether the owner will order an autopsy.

The news quickly spread throughout the community, and many knew the horse’s owner and own horses or board their animals nearby. Some believe the horse was killed because of the recent building of “mega houses” nearby.

“It was blood lust,” said nearby neighbor Steve Lenheim. “They killed someone’s pet. Colt was a big puppy dog and never hurt anyone. I’m still in shock.”

Another resident likened the attack to “a terrorist” and that there had been animal cruelty incidents in the past: ducks and cats killed, horses tails’ burned. One resident shared that a horse was shot approximately 15 years ago, but survived the incident.

“They move into the new, big houses in a rural area with animals,” said another concerned resident. “Then they don’t like the smell or the flies. [The horses] were here first. I believe it was a random chance of a person or persons with a gun and the horse being at the fence. Blood lust to kill a horse.”

News of the incident spread quickly to the Quicksilver Endurance Riders [QER] who have offered an $11,100 reward for any information that leads to an arrest of whoever was responsible for the death of the horse.

“The club donated $1,000 and we’ve received individual donations added as well,” said QER President Maryben Stover. “They do not wish their names known because quite frankly they are afraid the person or persons will come after their horses.”

Anyone with information about the incident should contact Animal Control Officer Rodriguez at (408) 578-7297 or QER at www.qser.net.