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Oct 22, 2008 11:39 pm US/Pacific
Prized Horse Among 4 Animals Shot Near Livermore
LIVERMORE (CBS 5 / BCN) ―
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Choctaw the horse was among 4 animals shot and killed near Livermore Tuesday night.
CBS
Two horses, a calf and a cow were found fatally shot on residential properties in unincorporated Contra Costa and Alameda counties Wednesday morning, and a motive for the killings has not been established.
Contra Costa County sheriff's deputies received a report of the dead animals at about 8 a.m. and responded to Collier Canyon Road, which runs across the counties' borders, Sgt. Paul Beard said.
The animals were shot sometime Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, but their owners said they did not know who killed them or why they were killed, according to Beard.
"They're definitely upset," Beard said of the horses' owners.
The horses lived in a pasture in the 7400 block of Collier Canyon Road in Contra Costa County, according to Beard. Two other horses were in the pasture when the shooting occurred, but those horses were not injured.
The calf that was killed was from a residence on Collier Canyon Road in Alameda County, Beard said.
A fourth animal, a cow was also found shot and killed. Investigators say it might be related to the other killings.
Officials determined the horses and calf each sustained one bullet wound, the calf's being to the head.
The horses' owners had necropsies performed on their animals and the horses appeared to have been shot with 22-caliber bullets, according to Beard.
No shell casings or stray bullets were found on the properties, though, Beard said.
Authorities are continuing to investigate why the animals were shot, and the horses' owners are offering a $5,000 reward for anyone leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever is responsible for their animals' death, Beard said.
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