The tail of a four-year-old quarter-horse named Remi has been tragically cut short.
Losing a tail is not beneficial to any horse, but for an
equestrian show animal it can be a career killer. Owner
Lea-Ann Oosterhoff can't help but
wonder if that was why her
highly-trained ride was attacked on Monday.
Prince George RCMP are looking back over the full 24 hours prior to the discovery of Remi's missing tail. The complaint was called in early Monday afternoon. Oosterhoff is sure it happened sometime between 10 a.m. and noon.
"I was actually there at the time, I was riding my other horse in the arena," while Remi was in his paddock, said the long-time local horse enthusiast.
"It was a malicious, vindictive act."
Two things led her to believe the attack was a deliberate attempt to
curtail Remi's showmanship qualities.
One, the horse was stabled in the last available paddock at the municipal equestrian centre, which would require the assailant to either climb the chain-link fence along busy 18th Avenue across from the Aquatic Centre and commit the crime in the view of anyone driving the road, or else walk the full length of the outdoor horse facility past many easier and more secluded horses.
Secondly, the horse's tail was not shorn with a knife or sheers. Oosterhoff found remains of a caustic substance on the tail.
This acidic paste burned the hair off on contact.
Also of note, whomever applied the paste did so in a manner that would burn the bulk of the tail hair off, but not do damage to the fleshy nub the hair of a horse's tail grows from, indicating someone who knew more than a little about horse
anatomy.
None of the hair remained at the scene, making Oosterhoff think it wasn't the work of a misguided animal vandal out to make mischief.
"The file is ongoing and open, but it just happened so there is still a lot to look into," said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass.
"The investigator and a supervisor will be determining the next course of action. The investigators understand that this isn't just a bit of mischief, that significant financial interest could be linked to the horse."
About three feet of hair was lopped off Remi's tail, police
estimated.
It once flowed to the ground but now a ratty bob is all that remains.
"It isn't just about showing him in the ring, horses need their tails," said Oosterhoff.
"That is cruelty to animals, when you take away a defense tool."
Expensive and less than ideal extensions are likely the only option for Remi in order to be showcased again.
"We went all the way to Texas for him. This was supposed to be his year," said Donna Oosterhoff, Lea-Ann's mother and supporter in their family's many horse
endeavours.
It would take an estimated five years for the tail to grow back to a similar length, she said, which would put Remi into his last couple of years as a show horse, and definitely past his prime.
If anyone has any information that can help the investigation, they are asked to call RCMP at 250-561-3300 or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS /
www.pgcrimestoppers.bc.ca.
