Strange series of mutilated horses in France

Maat

The Living Force
FOTCM Member
For some times, there are been several cases of dead horses found with a missing ear in several area of France. Two papers about it from a local newspaper. Warning there are disturbing pictures

From the Vendée to the Puy-de-Dôme, the enigma of horses found dead with one ear cut off

Last June, a dead horse with a severed ear was discovered in a meadow near Châtel-Guyon. Two other horses have been killed in the same way recently, in Moselle and Vendée.

The discovery, in mid-February, a few days apart, of two dead horses with one ear severed, the first in Moselle and the second in Vendée, moved the horse-riding world greatly. And deeply disturbed Clothilde Paret. The co-director of the National School of Animal Osteopathy in Châtel-Guyon and her teams experienced exactly the same nightmare last summer.

The sharply cut ear

On 16 June, Oasis, one of their mares, was found dead with a gaping hole in place of her right ear, in a meadow near the stables of the establishment, in Loubeyrat. The cut-out part was not found.

We were stunned. The cut of the ear was clean. Oasis still had grass in his mouth. She must have died instantly.
Clothilde Paret, co-director of the National School of Animal Osteopathy...

How did she die? Why such pre- or post-mortem mutilation? Eight months later, the mystery remains. The animal's body hasn't been autopsied. The veterinarian who examined it found no evidence of fracture or attack by a wild animal. The grass around the body was not lying down." Oasis was in a 70-hectare meadow with 50 other horses. The day before, everything was fine. »

Clothilde Paret first thought of lightning or a hunter. "But the mare was unmarked and a stray bullet would have done some damage. " Attack by another equine? "Horses don't attack like that. They'd have to be in a confined space and still... " The similarity with the equally enigmatic dramas that have recently occurred in France is in any case astonishing. On 12 February, in Moselle, a four-year-old horse was found dead, with one ear meticulously cut off, in a meadow at the Château-Salins agricultural college.

No trace of poison

Two days later, in the Vendée, the Demon Trotter of the Médoc disappeared in the same scenario, at Girouard's equestrian training centre. His body bore no marks of violent blows. "The autopsy revealed a cardio-respiratory arrest and the absence of poison in the blood," revealed Philippe Boutin, the trainer of Démon du Médoc, who filed a complaint with the gendarmerie. An investigation is underway.

For me, this can't be the work of just one person. I still had to catch my horse.
Philippe Boutin, trainer of Demon du Médoc

His protégé was a rising star on the racetrack. His tragic end resulted in a great deal of media coverage. "I didn't think it would make so much noise," says the coach. "But it's important to get the word out. It could happen to anyone. I love my horses more than anything. It's a big financial loss, but more importantly, it's an emotional one. »
1584699909984.png
For Clothilde Paret too, three mutilations in less than eight months is starting to do a lot. "Every owner knows what it's like to take care of horses. If idiots are having fun doing this kind of thing... it's not his responsibility to stay in his corner. »
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

A new case of a horse found dead with one ear cut off, in Loubeyrat (Puy-de-Dôme)

A 3-year-old filly was discovered lifeless, with one ear severed, in December 2018, in Loubeyrat. A tragedy that brings to two the number of horses presenting the same mysterious wound in this commune and to four, in total, in France.

She first thought of a beast. A fox or that kind of four-legged predator that prowls the countryside. "But it doesn't seem to me that the ear is the foxes' favourite dish," Carole Gardarin thought again. So how do you explain the death and mutilation of First Avenue, one of her fillies, on December 1, 2018, at a place called "Le Colombier", in the commune of Loubeyrat? The animal was found lifeless in a meadow. Its ear was cut off cleanly.

Macabre series

His owner, for lack of explanation, had not divulged the tragedy. Until she discovered our article of last February 27, on this strange and macabre series of horses discovered dead, with one ear cut off, in the Puy-de-Dôme and two other departments.

First Avenue appears to have been killed in a similar manner and underwent the same ablation as Oasis, a mare from the national school of animal osteopathy in Châtel-Guyon, on 16 June 2019, a stone's throw from Le Colombier, in the commune of Loubeyrat. And according to the same modus operandi as two other equids that disappeared last February, in Moselle and Vendée.

My horse was three years old, he let himself be stroked easily. I discovered him with his head in the hay and an ear torn off. At the time, it was impressive. I didn't find any bite marks or wounds on his body.
Carole Gardarin


The mystery is the same as for the three other equids attacked later, also young and in perfect health. Their corpses, apart from this gaping hole in place of the ear, bore no trace of violence. Lightning, a wild animal attack, a hunting accident? None of these hypotheses seem to hold up in the face of the initial findings.

The autopsies carried out on the horses of Moselle and Vendée did not bring more elements, except the absence of poison in the blood. More in-depth analyses are being carried out in a laboratory in Lyon. Investigations by the gendarmerie in these two departments are also continuing.

The mystery remains

Why these murders and what's the significance behind the severed ear? The work of a serial killer? Satanic ritual? There are many questions. And still unanswered.
1584700154219.png1584699909984.png1584700154219.png
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Des chevaux mutilés puis tués dans toute la France : policiers et gendarmes face à "un grand mystère"

MISCELLANEOUS FACT - Several investigations for "cruelty to animals" have been opened in recent months after horses, ponies or donkeys were tortured and then killed by one or more individuals. Law enforcement agencies are seeking to identify the perpetrator(s) of these acts of rare violence.

It is the owners of the animals who, most of the time, discovered them on the ground, inanimate. With eyes gouged out for some, ears cut off for all, these horses, donkeys or ponies, guarded by their owners in different regions of France, were killed after being tortured with rare violence at night and sometimes even in the middle of the day.

Thus, for several months now, several preliminary investigations have been opened on these multiple mutilations of animals found dead in different regions of France. A sordid phenomenon that remains unexplained to this day.


The first facts in 2018
Thus, on 30 June last, the public prosecutor's office in Amiens was seized of three incidents that occurred in the spring: one at Quend Plage, on the coast, and two at Berny-en-Santerre, in the Haute-Somme, concerning horses or ponies found dead with their right ear severed. Three preliminary investigations have been opened and "regrouped under the authority of a single investigator to study all possible connections", says the prosecutor of Amiens, Alexandre de Bosschère. Entrusted to the gendarmes of the research brigade of Péronne, they aim at the crime of "acts of cruelty towards an animal".

In the Puy-de-Dôme, a preliminary investigation was also opened in the spring and entrusted to the gendarmes of Les Ancizes for two similar incidents that took place six months apart between the end of 2018 and June 2019 in the same village. "But the owners did not initially press charges before other cases were reported in the French media," said Clermont-Ferrand public prosecutor Eric Maillaud.

Other cases have been reported elsewhere, notably in the Aisne, Vendée, Moselle, Loire and Lot. Have the investigations led to the identification of a common profile? The magistrate said that his public prosecutor's office is "in contact with the other public prosecutor's offices to try to establish comparisons and possibly combine investigations, but for the moment this is not the case," the prosecutor added.

Gratuitous violence? Satanic rituals?
Both magistrates and investigators are wondering about the modus operandi of the perpetrator(s). A common point about the bodies of animals has alerted them because out of at least eleven cases since 2018, all the quadrupeds killed have been found with one ear severed. "A priori the ear was not torn off by another animal, the cuts seem to have been made by an instrument but we have no leads, all this remains a great mystery", comments Eric Maillaud.

"Is this a challenge launched on the internet? A challenge? The impulse of an individual? All the tracks are being considered," Bruno Wallart, commander of the gendarmerie company in Riom (Puy-de-Dôme), told AFP in an interview. "These gestures are reminiscent of satanic rituals and fetishism. But maybe it's not that at all. Maybe it's just kids' bullshit or even gratuitous nastiness. This track is being considered, but it is not privileged," a source close to the case told LCI on Monday. "The ear being cut off, it must mean something," another source close to the investigation insisted to our editorial staff.

In a note dated June 30, relayed in the columns of Le Parisien this Monday, the Central Service of Territorial Intelligence (SCRT) also mentions the possibility of a gang of killers acting alone or in association, with "a real desire to harm equidae in general while keeping an ear as a trophy". "The traces noted on the nostrils let us presume the use of a nose twister, an accessory requiring knowledge and skills in the equestrian world to handle it efficiently", also notes the SCRT in its note taken up by our colleagues.

Horses accustomed to human presence
Among the animals that lost their lives in these atrocious conditions, different profiles and animals often accustomed to the present of the human being. On 12 February, a 4-year-old horse named Gold des Luthiers was found dead and mutilated in the agricultural high school of Château-Salins in Moselle. The animal was in an enclosure with fifteen other horses.

Three days later, on 15 February 2020, Démon du Médoc, a trotter with 126,000 euros in earnings to his credit and a more than promising future, was discovered in his paddock in Girouard, near Les Sables-d'Olonne (Vendée). He, too, had a lifeless body and mutilated ear.

On 6th June, Lady, one of Pauline Sarrazin's mares, was found dead in a field not far from Martin-Église (Seine-Maritime) and Grèges. The 16-year-old animal had numerous wounds on the head and once again the ear was cut off .


InScipio, Loïc Crampon's 14-year-old donkey, was found dead with his ear cut off and an eye gouged out on 19 June. He was killed during the night while he was in a field with other animals. The four-legged animal participated in the Christmas market on the Champs-Elysées and was used to seeing people.

For the coming months, animal lovers and investigators fear new acts of cruelty. "Until the perpetrator(s) are arrested, we don't see why it should stop," said a source close to the case. "Unfortunately, witnesses are few and far between and no one is putting CCTV cameras in his field," said a source close to the case.vestigations could take time."





 
Thanks for the update, Christine. It's something I've addressed to in that thread :

 
'Barbaric' horse killings put French countryside on alert


World News

August 11, 2020 / 9:05 AM / Updated 2 hours ago

'Barbaric' horse killings put French countryside on alert

Geert De Clercq

PARIS (Reuters) - French police are investigating a spate of killings of horses involving mutilation of the animals’ bodies.

The latest in Cortambert, a village in the Saone-et-Loire region, occurred overnight on Friday.

The horse’s right ear was cut off, one of its eyes was gouged out and its genitals had been cut away. “This is absolutely barbaric,” a local official said.

A Paris police spokeswoman said there had been about 10 similar cases across France since the start of the year, most in the north and many taking place in secluded meadows.

She said there were also cases between 2014 and 2016 and that similar killings and mutilations of horses had been reported in the past in Belgium and Germany.

But the high number in France was unprecedented over such a short period.

“We do not understand the motivation. Is it a satanic rite, insurance fraud, some macabre trophy hunt or an internet challenge? We don’t know. It is very traumatising,” she said.

She said all types of horses had fallen victim, as well as one donkey, and that mutilation of an ear was a common factor. No meat had been taken from the carcases.

National police are assisting local investigations of cases, and France has sent alerts to other European countries’ forces, she said.



Reporting by Geert De Clercq; editing by John Stonestreet
 
New aggression of horses: flight of aggressors

An animal shelter manager surprises two men with knives. He fights with one of the two while the other man attacks one of his ponies. The two men then flee in a 4x4.
The man is injured in the arm and two ponies were savagely mutilated with a pruning knife.
He made a robot portrait of one of the attackers.

 
This was posted today on SOTT -


Fortunately the horse is going to survive, but the preps were able to escape. Hopefully the police have some clues and maybe next time the owner will rope the sickos.

Also, just adding what the Cs recently mentioned on this topic for additional context within this thread:

(L) Well, I guess inquiring minds want to know: What's going on here?

A: Satanists are widely active in these times.

Q: (L) so you're saying this is the work of some kind of Satanic cult?

A: Yes
 
Another article which assesses the situation regarding mutilated horses

Here is the translation :

Where have there been cases of mutilated horses in France in recent months?

Since the beginning of 2020, dozens of cases of horse mutilations have been reported in France. Find here our interactive map, which lists these acts.

For months, the horse world has been in shock, the list of reports of mutilated horses, donkeys or ponies is growing longer and psychosis sets in. In Alsace, after a few false alarms or cases not confirmed as malicious acts, an investigation has just been opened by the police following the discovery of a seriously injured horse in Pfastatt.

The latest figures from the gendarmerie, transmitted on Wednesday, September 23 to the newspaper Libération, show 344 reports of mutilated or lacerated horses. Of these, 55 correspond with certainty to intentional injuries committed by human hands. For about a hundred, however, the experts concluded that the causes were accidental or due to scavengers. Verifications are continuing for the others.

At the beginning of September, the number of investigations opened amounted to 200, including 30 proven cases, and "for 20 to 25% of the cases, there is no doubt about the human origin," explained General Jacques Diacono, head of Oclaesp, the central gendarmerie office that coordinates investigations. A toll-free number (0 800 738 908) was also set up on Wednesday, September 9 to help horse owners.

In some cases, a morbid mode of operation emerges. Ears cut off (most often the right one), eyes torn out, blood drawn, laceration of the flank or genitals... investigations are therefore continuing to identify the torturers and to find out their motivations: sacrifices of satanist, fetishist or sectarian rites? Challenge on social networks or the darknet? Role-playing game inspired by a video game or a series? To which would have been added an unhealthy mimicry, settling of scores?

A certain expertise

In any case, some authors seem to demonstrate a certain expertise, or even technicality, note the investigators: the use of a lasso and a twist nose (an instrument used by professionals to immobilize an equine animal), the use of curare in at least a quarter of proven cases (commonly used as an anesthetic by professionals in the animal world), or even "lacerations performed with precision" and the ability to approach, usually at night, fearful animals.

And after horses, ponies, donkeys, in France and abroad, the phenomenon is now also claiming victims in cows, calves, sheep...

Where have there been reports of mutilated horses in France in 2020?


1602271543626.png
(grey : alert lifted by the investigation - red : animal killed and mutilated - yellow : wounded and/or sedated animal)

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
 
In the U.S., a booby trap camera filmed a creepy "zombie deer".

x1605762697_12.jpg.pagespeed.ic.NNrOWszJOu.webp


In the forest zone, a trap camera captured something shocking and impossible. Thus, a deer appeared in the frame with a wound that is incompatible with life. The damage stretches all over the back, the tissues are completely torn. Nevertheless, the animal walks quietly and seems to be in no pain at all.

Anyone, even far from veterinary medicine, will say that the deer should be dead. It is amazing how the creature has not died of blood loss. Moreover, it behaves as if nothing had happened.

It is important to note that there is no blood at all along the back, where the flesh is removed to the bone. It looks as if someone used a special drug and only then began to remove a part of the body with a special tool.

On the Web, you can find many stories of mutilation of livestock, but all the animals were dead after the manipulations. The deer somehow survived. Cameras recorded it on October 17 and 18. All is well with its creation, if not to take into account the huge wound.

The footage was made in Illinois, in the Midwest of the USA. The local hunter Chris Evans hardly believed in what he had seen. Back in September, the male was intact, and what happened to him was a mystery. Experts believe that an animal will not be able to walk with such damage for a long time: it will either be eaten by coyotes, or a deer will freeze in winter. It is amazing how the infection has not yet got into the body.

It is not recommended to watch the video faintly, because the footage is really creepy. It is possible that local hunters will catch the creature, help it or relieve future suffering.

 
Eight new sheep slaughtered in Arthez-de-Béarn https://larepubliquedespyrenees.fr/2020/12/15/hui
publié le 15 décembre 2020 à 7h24.
This time, eight sheep were killed a priori by stray dogs in the Arthez-de-Béarn sector.

Owned by the Guessab family, the sheep were attacked on Saturday, December 12, at nightfall, on their property on the road to Cagnès.

After the damage inflicted on Bergoué and Bourdalat (our edition of December 12), dogs are still scouring the town in search of sheep.

After this new attack, no less than six owners have now been affected. In total, around thirty sheep were killed in the town in a few weeks.

“The eight shredded sheep were scattered all over the field,” said Guessab, in shock. Finding such carnage really hurts when you are attached to your beasts.

They were there to the delight of the children and also maintained the land. " The gendarmes came to see the damage and a new complaint was filed. The municipality once again draws the attention of individuals with ewes and sheep to the need for increased surveillance and optimal safety of their animals.

Notice no injuries to the legs. And looks more like a surgical cut, thus the removal of the heart. Just saying!

oila-qui-porte-a-une.jpg
 
Hello,
Just an anecdote collected from the farmer of my village in the Ariège who delivers my firewood. I share it with you because it made me think of the horse business. There are similarities!
While talking to him, he told me about their ewe born on the farm and found dead in mid-August with both ears cut off very cleanly, no blood, and at first sight no trace of claw or struggle. And that in the middle of the day after their lunch break. She was a bit like a pet for their farm and did not send her to the mountain pasture, he buried her but did not think to make a declaration to the gendarmerie, nor to push his observations. Probably because it upset him, but perhaps also because of a certain fear. At first he was evasive, fearing to be taken for a madman, but once he was reassured he seemed happy to talk about it a little. According to him, another farmer who had his flock in the mountain pasture found a dead ewe in similar conditions 2 or 3 days apart.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Bonjour,
Juste une anecdote recueilli auprès de l'agriculteur de mon village ariégeois qui me livre mon bois de chauffage. Je vous la partage car elle m'a fait penser à l'affaire des chevaux. Il y a des similarités!
En discutant il m'a parlé de leur brebis née à la ferme et retrouvée mi-août morte les deux oreilles coupées de façon très net, pas de sang, à première vue aucune trace de griffe ou de lutte. Et cela en pleine journée après leur pose de midi. Elle était un peu comme un animal de compagnie pour leur ferme et ne l'envoyait pas en alpage, il l'a enterrée mais n'a pas pensé à faire de déclaration à la gendarmerie, ni à pousser ses observations. Sûrement parce que cela l'a bouleversé mais peut être aussi une certaine crainte. Il a au début été évasif craignant d'être pris pour un fou mais une fois rassuré il m'a semblé contant d'en parler un peu. D'après lui un autre éleveur qui avait son troupeau en alpage a retrouvé une brebis morte dans des conditions similaires à 2 ou 3 jours d'intervalle.
 
Today I heard about it. It is some kind of scourge in the US, but I can't find anything about it on the forum. According to news it's right know in Asia and Europe. From what I heard it was discovered in 1970, but the sudden "boom" started in 2023. Anyone heard anything about it?
 
Back
Top Bottom