Source: By Pat Raia as published on The Horse
“It was a very difficult scene…”
Federal authorities in Oregon are investigating the deaths of three wild horses in a case eerily similar to shootings in 2011 that also claimed the lives of several wild horses.
Capt. Dan Smith of the U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations said that on Oct. 13, federal officers responded to a call. about two injured horses discovered in the Ochoco National Forest near Pineville, Ore., in Crook County. Once on the scene, officers found a third injured horse, Smith said. The horses—two adults and one juvenile horse—had been shot, he said.
“It was a very difficult scene,” Smith said. “One horse was found mortally injured and officers had to put it down at the scene.”
The deaths were similar to the March 2011 deaths of three other wild horses, Smith said.
In that case Crook County Sheriff’s Department personnel discovered three wild horses dead in the Ochoco Forest. A joint investigation by the Forest Service, the County Sheriff’s Department, and the Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife Division revealed that the two stallions and a pregnant mare had sustained gunshot wounds. A yearling accompanying the mare was unhurt.
Smith said that all the incidents took place on National Forest Service land that is home to wild horse herds. He said the area in which the horses were found is frequented by both woodcutters and hunters.
“Hopefully somebody saw something,” he said.
Smith declined to speculate on why the shooter might have been in that part of the National Forest.
In meantime, Smith said U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations welcome tips from anyone relative to the case.
“We’ve trying to find out who is doing this and any little bit of information is important to us,” Smith said.
Tipsters with information about the case should call 541/383-5798. Callers must indicate whether or not they wish to remain anonymous.
Related Articles
- Wild horses shot to death east of Prineville; reward offered (oregonlive.com)
- 3 wild horses fatally shot in central Ore. (kgw.com)
- Media War on Wild Horses and Burros Continues (ppjg.me)
Categories: Equine Rescue, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
I say the NFS paid the shooter….. just sayin
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I agree Tami. NFS was probably behind it based on info I’ve heard
where horses wandered into their territory and came up dead from
being shot and then disappeared before the media got wind of it.
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It is unimaginable that someone would do something like this , to the Horses, i am hoping also that somebody saw something !!!this has got to stop !!!!!
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So very senseless!! No respect for the horses/animals.. period… Hope and pray that there are no more of these incidents. Surely someone knows what happened.
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Well lets see PSAs and i wouldnt put it past the agency, however this is to strike fear into people protecting wild horses, to feel like they could be Humanely slauvhtered. Or the they are shooting them because they are angry were stopping killer buyers. But i actually say, their are people who simply hate horses and they do it because how could a horses get financed and their lives paid for whem they have to work for a living, again the word greed.
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Strike fear into people protecting wild horses.
Not gonna happen. Ever. 🙂
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To leave one suffering is sadistic.
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The fact that it was two Stallions, and a pregnant mare, yet left the yearling standing… for me anyway… Points to a Mad Cattle-rancher… they “think” they own all of the PUBLIC lands.
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There are definitely people out there who deserve to be shot themselves. Murderers.
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and Once Again, The ShOoters WillNever Be Found. I Have No Faith In Any Part Of The Government. What Did They Do With The Foal At The Mares Side? Kill It ToO? Again, Another Reason Why I Dislike Hunters.
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R.T. and others who report on horse shootings:
It might be important to know the gender of the horse when we hear that a horse has been shot. With herd sizes decreasing, we need to know if one gender or the other is being targeted. What may appear to us as random meanness or random evil could actually be coldly, calculated evil. Gender alone won’t answer that question, but this factor along with other information about contingent herds may. It is entirely possible that this is an inside job by either one of the federal aencies or one of their non-officially-governmental partners. This would not be the first time that such an incident has occurred.
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I would chalk this sorry situation up to the Gov’t. shutdown. Folks out hunting or otherwise in the area knew there would be no reporting for some time, and likely just did a little target practice. Hopefully they will be able to trace the cartridges, but the article doesn’t spefically mention if they were shot with a shotgun, rifle, pistol or arrow.
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Probably Hunter’s with a bloodlust, they hate and want to destroy all beautiful life
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Here is a partial list of our WH&B killed on our public land within the past few years – the list is not complete – there are more.
2 wild horses killed near Virginia City Nevada September 2013
http://virginiacitynews.com/wild-horses-killed-in-mound-house-p5517-1.htm
1 burro killed and butchered January 2013 Primm Nevada
http://www.pe.com/local-news/topics/topics-environment-headlines/20130129-mojave-desert-reward-offered-in-burro-death.ece
6 dead burros March 2012
Rangers found on March 13, 2012, six dead burros. Five adult animals were shot, one foal died when the jenny (mother) was killed. The evidence collected indicates other animals may have been shot. The incident occurred within the (BLM) Lake Pleasant Herd Management Area
http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/A-pregnant-burro-and-4-others-shot-dead-BLM-offering-reward-to-catch-shooter-142892545.html?gallery=y&c=y#/news/local/A-pregnant-burro-and-4-others-shot-dead-BLM-offering-reward-to-catch-shooter-
11 wh&b killed spring of 2012 (four separate killings – Nevada and California)
The BLM is investigating the shooting deaths of nearly a dozen wild horses and burros in four separate incidents in California and Nevada since late January.
The most recent killings, discovered on April 9, involved one horse and two burros on BLM land near Black Rock Canyon in Pershing County, Nevada, about 150 miles northeast of Reno. Five days earlier, two wild horses were found shot to death in Lassen County, California, near the Nevada border. Six other mustangs were killed earlier in northern Nevada — three in Eureka County in January and three in Lander County in February.
http://org2.salsalabs.com/o/6931/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=1204078
2 Wild Horses Shot in Idaho
http://www.blm.gov/id/st/en/info/newsroom/2012/january/wild_horses_shot_.html
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This could also be someone that will kill a wolf if they see one. Generally when a wolf is found shot and killed it is some AHole that hates wolves. This could be the same type of thing only its wild horses they hate.
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I think they hate the advocates of any kind – maybe Tim Slapington relocated to Oregon.
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No place short of Hell wants him!
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Another very sad and disturbing story of our beautiful and innocent horses being harmed. Corruption is everywhere, but I hope and pray this is not an inside job! We better hope that if we want justice to prevail, they find the scumbags who so viciously murdered them.
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I’ve had a horse shot in our pasture, so I know how disturbing it can be.
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So they put down one horse immediately. What EXACTLY happened two the other two that they had to be put down?
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