Horse shot to death Colorado Springs, CO (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Sep 18, 2005 County: El Paso
Disposition: Open
Suspect(s) Unknown - We need your help!
When Fantasia Borlina was found dead in her Ellicott pasture, her owners thought she died of old age. They discovered the next day - when a backhoe was brought in to bury the 29-year-old Arabian horse - that her right side was riddled with bullet holes.
"I went into an angry mode you cannot believe," Patricia Merkle said. "It's murder. It's flat out murder."
A $2,000 reward is being offered for information on who shot the mare between 3 and 4:30 p.m. Sept 18 at the Merkles' 50-acre property on Silver Bonnett Point near Ellicott High School.
El Paso County sheriff's investigators said the mare was shot three to five times. The shooter faces charges of animal cruelty.
"This is a pretty despicable act," Sgt. Jim Groth said. "Thankfully, it's very unusual."
Merkle and her husband, Norman, were offering a $1,000 reward. But after they posted information about Borlina online on horse chat boards, people offered to send money that allowed them to raise the reward to $2,000.
"We've gotten notes from Australia, all over the world," Patricia Merkle said.
Borlina was the first Arabian for the Merkles, who got her in 1976 when she was 6 months old. They raised Arabians for three decades.
"If you needed someone to cry with, she was always there," Patricia Merkle said. "She was the quintessential of Arabian. She was everything."
For years, the white mare was dressed in silver, white and purple for the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo parade and the Fountain Labor Day parade.
"She was family, and we feel the same as if one of our children or a sister was the one shot," Patricia Merkle said. "We are numb at this absolute cruelty."
Anyone with information on who shot the mare is asked to call the Merkles at 683-3103. References |