Horse Shot to Death

ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) - A horse is found shot to death. Now it's owner and DNR officials want answers.

The shooting happened sometime during the day Thursday. The horse's owner, 19-year old Mary O'Connor is devastated. O'Connor says the horse was a gentle pet and part of her family for more than 9 years.

"When I found him, he had a direct bullet hole right in the middle of his forehead," says O'Connor about the discovery of the 24-year old quarter horse's body.

The horse was named Rocky. His body still lays where he was gunned down, in an area to the side of the O'Connor's house on Hursh Road.

"It's one of the last places you'd never expect a stray bullet or anything to go because there's no woods or anything," says O'Connor who says hearing gunshots from the woods behind her house is common.

DNR officers searched Thursday for the bullet that killed the horse, but their attempts to find something to begin their investigation failed.

"We also would have to have an individual behind a gun that pulled the trigger," says Conservation Officer John Salb, "That's even more of a challenge right now."

O'Connor says other officers told her there had been two similar horse shootings in the past two weeks, but not in Northeast Indiana. Like officers, she's left with a lot of questions about the incident. Even more burdensome for her though, is missing her family member.

"I want to find out whoever did this," O'Connor says, choking up. "Someone going around intentionally shooting horses, I mean, there's something not right about that."

The person who shot the horse could face charges for animal cruelty and criminal recklessness. With little to go on, DNR officers are asking for anyone with information to come forward. Specifically, they are asking anyone who was driving along Hursh Road Wednesday to think back if they saw anything out of the ordinary.

If you have any information that could be helpful, call 1-800-TIP-IDNR.