County Investigates Accusation of Mistreatment of Horse

Riverside County Animal Services officers were on site today to investigate the death of a horse on this property. Menifee 24/7 photos: ...

Riverside County Animal Services officers were on site today to investigate the death of a horse on this property.
Menifee 24/7 photos: Doug Spoon

Riverside County Animal Services is investigating the death of a horse Tuesday on property near Menifee following accusations of mistreatment of the animal.

The story was widely circulated locally on social media, where the founder of a local horse rescue group posted a video showing the horse lying dead on the ground behind a service truck at the edge of property on the northwest corner of Menifee Road and Mapes Road in unincorporated county territory. A voice on the video is heard accusing the driver of the truck, who denies mistreatment of the animal.

Menifee 24/7 has chosen not to show the video because it is very graphic and shows an individual whose connection to the incident cannot be confirmed.

John Welsh, spokesman for Riverside County Animal Services, said officials are gathering information from reports taken by Animal Friends of the Valleys, the first animal control organization on the scene, and Menifee Police. He said he expects there to be a necropsy performed to determine the cause of death.

"My understanding is we are still getting the actual activity notes from Animal Friends of the Valleys," Welsh said. "We have been told that someone was trying to load the horse into a trailer when the horse got skiddish, bolted and rammed his head against a steel pipe corral. We believe it to be a tragic accident and have no suspicion of animal cruelty."

Trish Geltner, co-founder of Forgotten Horses Rescue, Inc. of Homeland, said there is more to the story. Although she acknowledges that the horse probably suffered a severe injury in an accident, she cites the account of a witness who said she saw the injured horse tied to the back of a truck and being dragged across the property while it was still alive.

"(The witness) said she saw the horse's legs flailing and that it was still alive," Geltner said. "She called 911."

"Horses get in accidents. I looked at the horse when we went back and shot the video. I'm sure it ran into something and it was an accident, but they sure did drag that horse a long ways. If the horse was already gone, why would they be dragging it? Their story doesn't make sense."

Geltner said after she was informed of the incident by the witness, she arrived on scene while police and an Animal Friends of the Valleys officer were there near the horse, which was dead. She said she came back later with a video camera and the horse had been moved but was lying dead behind a truck. She said information she received from the police officers on site Tuesday night was that it appeared to be an accident and the driver of the truck was trying to move the dead body away from the street so it wouldn't be a disturbing site for passersby.

A spokesman for the Menifee Police said in an email to Menifee 24/7 that officers were there only to keep the peace and that the information they received came from the animal control officer on scene.

Willa Bagwell, executive director of Animal Friends of the Valleys, said her officer responded at the request of police following the 911 call. She said when the animal control officer arrived, he realized the property was just outside AFV's jurisdiction. He took photos, talked to individuals on site and forwarded the information to Riverside County Animal Services.

According to Bagwell, AFV referred the incident to County Animal Services because Mapes Road is the dividing line between the City of Menifee and unincorporated county land. AFV responds to animal control calls south of Mapes Road and the county handles the north side.

"It's not our jurisdiction," Bagwell said. "The police asked us for assistance, so we went out there. A lot of people are saying the horse was dragged to its death, but our officer said he saw the horse dead before it was dragged."

Obviously, there are conflicting stories about how many times the horse was dragged and exactly who saw what. Geltner said she just wishes there would be less confusion and more efficient response from animal control agencies when help is needed.

"We've had to call many times," she said about incidents in the area. "We call the county and they tell us to call Animal Friends. We call Animal Friends and they say call the county. They need to get their act together. When an animal is in danger, just get someone out here, and fast."

County animal control officers were searching the border of the locked property this morning and no one was on site. Geltner said the horse was taken away by a large animal removal service early this morning. It is unclear whether the property owner also owns the horses that are housed on the property. According to Geltner, horses and other animals are brought there periodically for weed abatement. Today, it appeared most of the grass and weeds had already been eaten by the animals.

The owner of the property could not be reached for comment.

A few animals remain on the property that was the scene of the death of a horse Tuesday.



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Riverside County Animal Services 6810569407565555416

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