In Belize, the media spotlight is usually trained on stories about human welfare, and rarely are issues of animal welfare covered. So when we got a call from a concerned resident from Lord's Bank about the cruel and inhumane way a horse was left to die, we figured we'd take a look.
The story goes that a horse which once trekked thru city streets as carriage puller, was taken to Lords Bank for care by its owner. Somehow a couple of teenage boys got a hold of the horse and took it on a joyride without permission. That left the horse with a broken ankle and that's where Jim McFadzean picks up the story.
Jim McFadzean Reporting
Almost five days after this gray gelding horse, said to be no more than 4 to five years old, allegedly collapsed under its weight due to a broken ankle, no one in this village of a little over a thousand has come forward to lay claim to the now decomposing corpse. Residents of Lords Bank say the horse was left to suffer unnecessarily.
Jim McFadzean
"Max, how did the horse ended up here?"
Max Tejeda, Lords' Bank Resident
"Well I really don't know you know. A guy came and told me that 3 boys who I know well runs this horse here to death, when I say to death is because he is dead right now, he drops in a big hole and breaks his ankle and that's how the horse end up here right now."
Jim McFadzean
"How long has the horse been laying there?"
Max Tejeda, Lords' Bank Resident
"I think about 3, more or less."
Jim McFadzean
"That's a long time for a horse to be laying there and not getting any kind of treatment from a vet."
Max Tejeda, Lords' Bank Resident
"That's a fact, people around here should have call some authorities to say that a horse is here crippled, we have the humane society who could have come in and do something about it; this is totally nonsense and slackness."
Authorities from the Village council, the health department and yes, even the humane society were notified of the animal in distress, but according to this one resident, everyone seems to be passing the buck, whilst the horse spent its last days in agonizing pain.
Jim McFadzean
"Mr. Augustine you call the humane society. What was their response when you told them about this horse?"
Norman Augustine, Lords' Bank Resident
"Well Jim in communication to the humane society they explain to me that it was very costly to dispose of the horse, they did not have a vet available and that we would need to identify a back-ho and in reality the owner of the horse should pay all expenses relating to removing it or getting it medical attention."
Jim McFadzean
"Except right now nobody knows who the owner of this horse is."
Norman Augustine, Lords' Bank Resident
"As far as I know we do not know who the owner of the horse is but I can tell you that it has been in pain from Saturday and now as you can see its totally gone."
By law, the onus is on the owner to dispose of the horse, but without anyone claiming ownership, Village councilor, Walter Sosa told Seven News in the interest of public safety the council was acting immediately to dispose of the horse.
Jim McFadzean
"When was the council made aware of the horse and what's your plans now because the horse is dead?"
Walter Sosa, Lords Bank Village Councillor
"This morning my nephew call me and he tell me the horse die, I knew about it from Sunday and this morning he ask me what will we do about it and I told him we will try find the owner and if I can't find the owner well we will take in our own hands. We will try find a back-ho from somewhere and bury the horse at the spot where he died because it's an area where you can bury the horse."
Jim McFadzean
"How soon you plan on doing that because the horse is already in a state of decomposition, we were there just a while ago and its close proximity to residences there, its posing a health hazard."
Walter Sosa, Lords Bank Village Councillor
"Definitely it will be tomorrow morning, we will find help somewhere and by tomorrow morning that horse will be bury. We will find a way how to do it, we will try get a back-ho to dig a hole and get it done."
Jim McFadzean
"You guys said you know about the horse situation since Sunday, there was no way to contact anybody to try to put this horse out of his misery?"
Walter Sosa, Lords Bank Village Councillor
"No, what happen is that some kids were taking care of the horse and they say that the horse was trying to get up, we thought that it would have gotten up later on but this morning I find out that the horse die."
We spoke with Senior Public Health inspector, Mark Bernard who says his department was contacted but the caller or callers did not leave the necessary information, such as the name of the owner of the horse and its location, and says, had he had that information he could have relayed it to the Ladyville police who could have put the horse out of its misery. Just before news time 7 NEWS received a call from Village Councillor, Walter Sosa, that the council was able to locate a backhoe, and that the horse has been properly disposed of.
We note that only a few months ago, a horse was run over on the Northern Highway, just on the outskirts of Sand Hill, and was left to die. Residents in the area had to endure the putrid smell of decay which lasted for almost two weeks before the animal was removed.
The Most Comprehensive Research Ever On The Roots Of Violence In Belize
You can view and download the PDF version of the report here:
http://issuu.com/7newsbelize/docs/male_social_participation_and_violence_in_urban_be
