Horse killed by ?

[jimmyj]

Just learned yesterday that a horse on the farm behind mine got killed somehow over the last 2 weeks. Apparently the owner found it dead and torn to bits in the pasture (it's a big pasture and goes over a hill so it could not be seen from the house). I don't know the details yet (day or night, etc) but they think it was wolves or coyotes. Too bad nobody called before the tracks were gone - the owner of the land really could not tell what they were but he doesn't have any experience with that sort of thing.

It raises a number of questions:
-did the horse die and get eaten?
-did the varmints run it down?
-if so, what varmints were involved?
-how long was it between when they last saw the horse and noticed it missing?
-have there been any signs of predators around the horses in the past?
-how do they care for the horse? Was it in at night or left out all the time?

I wish I had got to see the pasture before the big melt we had to see if there were tracks from a chase or whatever. I'm going to set up my game cam back there and see what I get.

I hope to talk to the owner of the land soon, any other questions you think I should ask? If the carcass is still around maybe I can see some indications of what brought it down.

 

[20 20]

We have had a terrible time with coyotes. The other night there was one at the front door one at the back and a few others circling the house. They seem to have no fear, I've chased them off but they come right back. The next encounter will result in gun fire!!

 

[jimmyj]

If they're that bold they gotta go. No doubt about it. Too many of the danged things around as it is.

 

[jinman]

Jim, I'd expect a fresh kill to have some meaningful tracks, but if the carcass has been there for awhile, there's no telling how many varmints have come and gone, leaving no way to discover what originally happened. The same is going to be true of bite marks and wounds on the carcass. There've been too many opportunities for everything from domestic dogs to vultures if it has been there for very long. Putting up a camera to watch what comes to the carcass might give the best clues. I think that's what I'd suggest. That would give some idea of the kinds of animals you need to protect against. At any rate, forensics on an old carcass may be pretty tough. The bones and what size bones have been broken/chewed may be the only clues to the size of the orignal predators.

 

[EddieWalker]

I think the first questions should be about the age and condition of the horse. If it died of natural causes, old age or the weather. After it's dead, the scavangers will come out of nowhere.

Where I'm from in CA, Mt. Lions were becoming a problem with livestock. The lions are protected there, so the only legal way to kill them is to call the game warden and have them do something about a problem animal. Being protected, they have overpopulated the state and have become a problem in rural areas. Sheep, goats and house pets are very common prey for them, but sometimes they'd take down a cow or horse. From what I've been told by the few game wardens that I know, most of the time, they would the horse and claw up it's hind quarters. Actually killing a horse was still fairly rare, but it did happen.

Ferrel Dogs running wild cause allot of damage to livestock too. I've never heard of them going after horses, but they are terrible on smaller livestock and pets.

I've never seen a wolf and don't know anything about them first hand. My thought is that if they were responsible, they would have done it before and will do it again. Preditors learn their behavior and repeat it.

If other horses or large animals are being killed, it will become common knowledge real quickly. If this is an isolated case, my feeling is that it's not a predator, but more likely the horse died of some natural or weather related cause.

Eddie

 

[Bird]

I'll never forget in the early '50s when two dogs running together killed one hog that I know of, attacked our milk cow but were scared off by my Dad, and killed a horse across the road from our place. Those were definitely the same two dogs. There were no witnesses or proof, but from all appearances, I'm sure they were what killed my horse, too.

 

[dodge man]

In my opinion, coyotes wouldn't kill a horse. They have been known to work in packs and bring down larger animals, but I don't think it common. On the other hand if the horse was old or sick, who knows.

 

[Unclebuck257]

I think the first questions should be about the age and condition of the horse. If it died of natural causes, old age or the weather. After it's dead, the scavangers will come out of nowhere.

Where I'm from in CA, Mt. Lions were becoming a problem with livestock. The lions are protected there, so the only legal way to kill them is to call the game warden and have them do something about a problem animal. Being protected, they have overpopulated the state and have become a problem in rural areas. Sheep, goats and house pets are very common prey for them, but sometimes they'd take down a cow or horse. From what I've been told by the few game wardens that I know, most of the time, they would the horse and claw up it's hind quarters. Actually killing a horse was still fairly rare, but it did happen.

Ferrel Dogs running wild cause allot of damage to livestock too. I've never heard of them going after horses, but they are terrible on smaller livestock and pets.

I've never seen a wolf and don't know anything about them first hand. My thought is that if they were responsible, they would have done it before and will do it again. Preditors learn their behavior and repeat it.

If other horses or large animals are being killed, it will become common knowledge real quickly. If this is an isolated case, my feeling is that it's not a predator, but more likely the horse died of some natural or weather related cause.

Eddie

Eddie's questions regarding the age and the shape of the horse prior are the ones to ask. His other statements are right on the money too. If that horse just died, for whatever reason, the critters did what mother nature intended them to do and they cleaned up the carcass.

Horses can live 25 or more years, if they have a good life and conditions, but like all living things, certain parts give out prior to death. In a horse it could be their teeth, if they are really older, causing them trouble eating and thus weakness and eventually death. The original age and condition question, prior to death, is very important. Before I did anything, or got upset about preditors, that's what I'd want to know, because apparently your neighbor didn't keep this horse close to home or keep a close eye on it.

 

[charlz]

Do you have wolves? In the areas of Montana and Idaho where they have been re-introduced their population is now about 500% larger than what the biologists had predicted. More and more stories of them killing livestock are getting around. They have seriously trimmed down the elk population in Yellowstone and elk herd counts throughout Montana are way down. Elk are moving down into the towns because of the wolf pressure.

Horses are generally larger then elk and I have never heard of coyotes taking down an elk much less a horse. Maybe if it was already half-dead. The northern coyotes are also larger than the ones in most 'southern' states.

The conspiracy theorists say the wolf re-introduction is the largest anti-hunting campaign ever launched.

 

[20 20]

In my opinion, coyotes wouldn't kill a horse. They have been known to work in packs and bring down larger animals, but I don't think it common. On the other hand if the horse was old or sick, who knows.

I think any preditor in need and in the right circumstance will kill just about whatever. If coyotes ran the horse until it was tired or if the horse were allready weak, I would think a pack would have no problem taking it down. It is a shame that the horse was missing for 2 weeks, hard to figure out what happened.