Horse shot, euthanized
Aiken, SC (US)Incident Date: Saturday, Nov 26, 2011
County: Aiken
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Samuel Stewart
A horse being trained for upper-level dressage was euthanized this weekend after reportedly being inadvertently shot by a hunter who was then cited for animal cruelty.
Approximately 6:40 a.m. Saturday, Lisa Doker heard what she believed to be a gunshot near her farm on Partridge Bend Road and went to check on her horses, Oree and Ike. She found Oree, a 7-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, breathing hard, and one side of his body was covered in blood.
Oree was transported to the University of Georgia and was found to be bleeding internally. Doker said the damage was extensive. The decision was made to euthanize the black-and-white horse.
"If he had made surgery, he would not have made recovery," she said. "It just breaks my heart. Oree was so full of love and wanted to please his owners."
Doker's neighbor contacted the Aiken County Sheriff's Office and Aiken County Animal Control.
Samuel Stewart, of Cobbs Way, according to Animal Control, was in a deer stand close to Doker's property line when he fired his gun at a buck. The bullet apparently entered Oree instead.
Authorities were able to make contact with Stewart and the owner of the property he was hunting.
"He claims to have fired at a buck and toward that direction there was a horse," said Animal Control Chief Enforcement Officer Bobby Arthurs. "I was told by the subject the deer stand was some yards from (Doker's) property. The subject has been charged with animal cruelty."
Stewart's hunting license was checked, and his gun and ammunition was confiscated. A necropsy will be performed, and the bullet taken from the horse's body will be compared to bullets from Stewart's gun.
Arthurs said the incident is still under investigation, and he did not want to elaborate on any additional charges that could be forthcoming.
Stewart had permission by the property owner to hunt on the land adjoining Doker's, according to a sheriff's office incident report.
Doker said she can tell her second horse, Ike, is missing his buddy.
Doker owned Oree since he was a yearling and had been training him for the past three years.
"He was going to be my upper-level dressage horse. It is hard to find a replacement," she said. "I don't know what he (Stewart) was thinking."
Doker has been riding side saddle since 1980 and is a member of Aiken Ladies Aside. Oree was named for Oreo cookies at the suggestion of Doker's niece.
A phone call made to Stewart's house was not returned Monday. References |
