Guest 67Mopar Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 Something came out of the woods, and with one slash to its hind leg, the horse bled to death. http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2015/06/michigan-police-look-for-horse-killing-sasquatch-or-big-cat/ http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/06/01/horse-attacked-animal-sanilac/28332665/ http://www.wnem.com/story/29210023/officials-watch-children-and-animals-after-horse-attacked-and-killed
Rockape Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 Hmm, this doesn't jibe... "I know that Beau was attacked by something, I really believe that. I don't know what it was. The vet at the time said that as far as a coyote, he really didn't think it was that because of the severity of the wound." The animal that killed the horse has not been positively identified, but a veterinarian who euthanized the animal said it was either hurt by a dog, or by smashing into a fence. One said it couldn't be a coyote, one said it could be a dog. I'd like to see the wound. I wonder if there was more than one? What exactly type wound did it have? A "slash" doesn't tell you much.
Cotter Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 Could have been a cougar. The "there are no cougars in this part of michigan" explanation doesn't fly with me. I've been down that road before! It's all hucky pucky if you ask me. Could have been a badger or wolverine as well. Possibly a wolf? Hungry and desperate. Or....maybe a dogman? They said it was 'bitten'. I would think a squatch would snap a neck or leg, or braid its mane. 1
Incorrigible1 Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 This seems a job for our resident telepathy expert.
Guest 67Mopar Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 (edited) Could have been a cougar. The "there are no cougars in this part of michigan" explanation doesn't fly with me. I've been down that road before! It's all hucky pucky if you ask me. Could have been a badger or wolverine as well. Possibly a wolf? Hungry and desperate. Or....maybe a dogman? They said it was 'bitten'. I would think a squatch would snap a neck or leg, or braid its mane. I read one article that stated that the vet is certain it was not a cat attack. Apparently, there are tell-tale signs that would he present, which were not. Something also about how most predators attack the neck area, not the hind legs. One good kick could probably take them out! I'll assume most predators instinctively know this. Edited September 30, 2015 by 67Mopar
JDL Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 Probably a coyote or two. They try to sneak in behind and bite the back of the leg on bigger animals. The horse may not have even seen it. They can work a prey animal in pairs too. One in front, one in back.
Rockape Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 They said it was 'bitten'. I would think a squatch would snap a neck or leg, or braid its mane. LOL, good one.
hiflier Posted September 30, 2015 Posted September 30, 2015 (edited) Hello All, A friend of mine years ago had a horse that gashed the inside of it's own hind leg trying to ward off some kind of biting insect. Not being wise here but it could have been either a horse fly of the large greenhead flies that inhabit the marshes of the Northeast in mid-Summer. In the case of this report if something was stalking from behind a swift hard kick by the horse could have caused the slash. A worn horseshoe with a sharp edge would do it. Not having a photo of the injury leaves a lot of room for conjecture but apparently there were no other injuries? And it seems an odd place to be "bitten? Almost like it was a surprised small animal that latched onto the the horse's Achilles perhaps and rip the gash when the horse kicked out and perhaps shook it loose while it's jaws still clamped down. If the horse bucked when bitten then the kick out would have been all the more powerful...and devastating once the animal was flung and torn loose. Just tossing my two rocks worth into the camp. Edited September 30, 2015 by hiflier 1
Guest 67Mopar Posted October 1, 2015 Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) It may very-well be something like that, be the owners of the horse said that they could hear the horses going nuts! Doesn't sound like horse flies, or a self-inflicted wound to me. Plus, it would have to be a substantial wound to completely drain the horse of blood. "Coyotes will attack a variety of livestock but sheep and fowl are at greatest risk. Coyotes pose very little danger to horses and cattle..." http://www.ct.gov/deep/cwp/view.asp?a=2723&q=325992 Edited October 1, 2015 by 67Mopar
Guest insanity42 Posted October 1, 2015 Posted October 1, 2015 Cougars have been confirmed early this year in the Upper Peninsula, while reports of sighting do exist in the Lower Peninsula. http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/02/19/cougar-video-mackinac-county/23675923/ I've spent a fair amount of time in Huron County which is the tip of "the Thumb" and north of Sanilac County. It is mostly flat and a lot of farms. There is an appreciable amount of tree groves. Cass River has a fair amount of tree cover along it, which runs northeast from Frankenmuth into the northwest edge of Sanilac County. There has been plenty of deer in the area as well. Another article on the attack, saying the DNR ruled out a cougar. http://www.mlive.com/news/saginaw/index.ssf/2015/06/cougar_not_responsible_for_dea.html This article about a week later says it was determine the injuries were not caused by an animal. http://sanilaccountynews.mihomepaper.com/news/2015-06-10/News/Horse_wasnt_attacked_by_animal.html This one provides a bit more information on the injury. "We’ve come to the conclusion basically that whatever caused the injury is undetermined, but the only thing we can rule out are animals. The wound is just too clean and, really, just very, very uncharacteristic of anything an animal would do." “The injury to the horse was consistent with the kind of thing that has been seen before with an animal running into a fence.†http://www.examiner.com/article/determination-made-that-michigan-horse-was-not-attacked-by-animal
bipedalist Posted October 1, 2015 BFF Patron Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) Could have been a cougar. The "there are no cougars in this part of michigan" explanation doesn't fly with me. I've been down that road before! It's all hucky pucky if you ask me. Could have been a badger or wolverine as well. Possibly a wolf? Hungry and desperate. Or....maybe a dogman? They said it was 'bitten'. I would think a squatch would snap a neck or leg, or braid its mane. Might have been horseman, that would be scary. Never mind, just a Centaur.... Edited October 1, 2015 by bipedalist
OkieFoot Posted October 1, 2015 Moderator Posted October 1, 2015 Biting the feet doesn't sound like a cougar. I was thinking cougars (or any cat) always tried to grab with their claws first to slow down or bring down their prey before trying to bite the neck and kill it. I didn't see any mention of claw marks found on the horse which I would expect from a cougar attack.
Guest insanity42 Posted October 1, 2015 Posted October 1, 2015 Biting the feet doesn't sound like a cougar. I was thinking cougars (or any cat) always tried to grab with their claws first to slow down or bring down their prey before trying to bite the neck and kill it. I didn't see any mention of claw marks found on the horse which I would expect from a cougar attack. I thought much the same. Cougars usually leap on the backs of the prey and bite around the throat. Death can be by suffocation or a severed carotid artery.
hiflier Posted October 1, 2015 Posted October 1, 2015 Hello 67Mopar, ...Plus, it would have to be a substantial wound to completely drain the horse of blood... From this http://sanilaccountynews.mihomepaper.com/news/2015-06-10/News/Horse_wasnt_attacked_by_animal.htmlarticle: "The owners took the horse to a veterinary clinic in Saginaw where it was euthanized." The above statement from the Sanilac County News and yours (which I quoted) are not consistent. Bleeding out usually means losing enough blood to go into shock due to low or complete loss of blood pressure. An animal that size (1200 lbs.) will still have plenty of blood in it system but not enough to offset death from blood loss. Saying the horse was completely drained of blood I don't think is accurate since the horse was apparently alive when I arrived at the vet's.
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