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My horses were sold without my knowledge

12K views 67 replies 29 participants last post by  Kyleen Drake 
#1 ·
TLDR: My leased out horses were sold at county auction when they were found roaming loose and an owner couldn't be found. I want one of those horses back.

The details. I leased out two horses to a girl who lives in the county next to me. She signed a contract and I delivered them myself, with the help of my boyfriend. That was in October. By February, I could not get in contact with the girl, so I decided to go investigate. My horses were not there. Hadn't been in what looked to be a long time. Great. I immediately called the county sheriff and reported them stolen. After a few days of investigation, they located both horses. They had been found roaming near a busy road and taken in. After a month of nobody claiming them, they were sold at auction. Where was the lessee during all this? Nobody knows.

Now my horses belong to someone else. Legally. Sold without my knowledge, let alone my consent. The only way, to my knowledge, to get them back, is to buy them. The morgan mare in particular must be returned to my family, somehow. But if the new owner isn't willing to sell, are there any legal paths I can take here to get my mare back? I have plenty of evidence that she was mine and was leased out. I have a witness, contracts, and fb messages between myself and the girl. The girl who, by the way, claims she still has them, and even sent me pics of "them". Help!
 
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#5 ·
Yeah that's a sticky situation. It's going to depend on your state laws.

I'd consult with a lawyer.

If you cannot buy your horses back from the new owner (you might not be able to, if they were considered abandoned as churumbeque said), but you can always go after the leasee for the cost of replacing said horse(s) or the value of the horses.

I don't ever plan on leasing my horses, but if I would ever do so for some reason, I'd for sure make monthly visits to the horses. Just so things like this don't happen. How unfortunate.
 
#7 ·
I preface this with I am not a lawyer:

If you buy stolen goods from a thief (for example), you are not entitled to keep it -- the property must be returned to the person who truly owns it as the thief cannot sell something to which he/she does not have legitimate title in an attempt of making an illegal deal (the theft) legal by selling the stolen goods.

However, your situation is different from the above mostly because of the fact your horses were 'abandoned' in that they were found wandering. There is law in place in most areas that deals with that which, as you found out, is an abandoned animal is sold at auction and that action is then classified as a legal deal. Most municipalities/counties are required to advertise or take some steps of some sort to find out who the owner is (If the owner is found, by the way, there probably would have been some sort of fine or repayment of costs incurred in their keeping) -- what those steps are would be outlined in their bylaw(s).

My thoughts are that the best way to get them back is to buy them back assuming the people will sell them; you need to go after the girl for costs incurred; you really need to help of a lawyer to walk you through this as it can get tricky.
 
#10 ·
It annoys me when people who lease off site ruin it for everyone else. I have two horses on lease, I will have them both until the day they die. I'm responsible about it and neither owner has been out to see them for years and they trust me fully to care for them. Irresponsible leasers just irk me because some of us take it pretty seriously.

I would lawyer up. Sounds as though you'll need it.
 
#11 ·
Update

I talked to a lawyer. He pretty much said what I expected and what many of you expected, that the only thing I can do is buy her back, and sue the girl that leased her.

After going through two people, which took some time to get a hold of, I was able to talk to the new owner last night. He didn't really say that he wouldn't sell her, but also didn't say that he would. He gave the horse to his daughter, and I suppose he will talk with her about it. I told him Bunny's background, how we had had her for 18 years, since she was a baby. He seemed to think that the three months of money and riding that he had in her already was a lot, lol. Anyway, I was respectful and to the point. I offered to pay him double what he had spent on her, which he said was around $1000. He seemed to consider it, but as of right now, I don't know what he will do. I will give him some time, probably a week, so as not to make him feel pressured or harassed. All I can do now is wait.
 
#12 ·
Wow, this really stinks. Another reason to like animals more than people.:icon_rolleyes:
How far away do these people live? If they do refuse to sell, would they be willing to stay in touch, facebook, anything? If they should decide to sell her in the future, ask if you could get first call. Is this their only, first horse? There are girls who decide horses really aren't their "thing" I don't understand that thinking, but it does happen.
Just the more you can get to know about them, the better.
Please do keep us informed, we will be wondering what happens.
 
#14 ·
He seemed to think we didn't care about her if we leased her out, to people who weren't going to take good care of her. That's when I explained her history and how much we love her. He didn't have anything to say to that, so I guess it was agreement that we do care about her.

The daughter he gave her to just had a baby, and also, they are boarding Bunny, which is why he has so much money in her for three months of ownership. I'm hoping these things will work in my favor for getting her back. I plan to call him again tomorrow to ask. It would be great if I could talk to the daughter, since this is no child but an adult, and probably the one I most need to talk to.
 
#16 ·
This seems so wrong. Technically he bought stolen property. Why should it matter if it was a horse? If someone buys a stolen car do they get to keep it?

You should get her back & HE should sue the person who sold to him.

I wouldn't offer a slim dime but I'd tell him I'll take it to Court, prove I owned it & get my horse back.
 
#18 ·
She'd have to take him to court, Natisha.

So very few horses are registered in their owner's name, so it's not really comparable to a stolen car. If someone steals your car, it's at least registered to you and you have proof.

Without proof she owns the horses it's a he said-she said kind of thing, unfortunately. A copy of the lease agreement would be helpful, but since the horses were found running loose and nobody claimed them, it's going to be difficult to get a judge to see it her way.
 
#19 ·
It is a very messed up situation. Technically, he can't sue the people that sold her at auction, because it was actually legal. The irresponsible person I leased them to abandoned them, and the county followed Alabama laws in dealing with the horses. This guy is the legal owner now, as jacked up as that is. Legal owner, but not the rightful owner. I had no clue to look for the horses, as the girl assures me to this day that they are with her. She is absolutely at fault, and all I can do is sue her. Unfortunately, that won't get my horse back. ?
 
#24 ·
I can't imagine someone coming to me with all of this and me NOT giving them back their horse!

Have you heard from him or his daughter at all? Sounds expensive for them or board a horse with her just having had a baby. Maybe offer to lease her to them once she's ready to start riding?
 
#25 ·
I've been hesitant to tell him she's a registered Morgan. If he feels like he has a valuable horse he may not let go of her, or make me pay more. If I have to tell him I will, but until then I can just prove in other ways, like the lease agreement and maybe some family photos. I won't be deceitful, if he asks if she's registered I'll tell him, but I'd rather not give him any reason to want to keep her.
 
#29 ·
I need to try at least once more. His daughter was actually having her baby last time I called. Convenient, perhaps, lol. But I've creeped on fb and found it to be true. Maybe if I call at a less intense time I'll have better luck. I need to try to talk to her, since it's apparently her horse. Also, the man already thinks I don't really care about the horse. If he only gets the one call from me he may assume himself right and never call me back. I've really got nothing to lose here. If I piss him off I'm just as well off then as I am now.
 
#32 ·
Yesterday I called the man again. He was nice, he seems like he will work with me if his daughter is OK with it. But, he hasn't had a good chance to talk to her about it. The baby was early, so it's in the ICU, and she has to have surgery. He said they could be there another month. It's a rough time for them, and I told him that I would just wait for things to settle down, and asked if he would call me whenever the time is good for them. I told him that I didn't want to crowd them and that I hoped everything worked out ok. He assured me earnestly that he would call, and said that he had kept my number from the first time I called. All I can do now is wait.

As for legal moves, the Sheriff knows the situation. They said she's legally his, and all we can do is sue the girl I leased to. The lawyer I called said the same thing. I really think Alabama needs a new law about the recovery of lost horses sold at auction, concerning what should happen if the owner comes along later with proof of ownership wanting their lost horse back.

I will be sure to keep everyone updated!
 
#33 ·
It all depends on your local laws and maybe the county laws of where they were being leased. If you have registration papers, which show the coloring and any markings of such horses, you might have something on your side. I would definitely consult an attorney who is familiar with laws in both places, and has the legal jurisdiction to file a suit for you. This way you kill two birds with one stone. That being said, the law is tricky. If they were deemed abandoned before you called the sheriff to report them, you could have an extensive and expensive legal battle to fight uphill. However the fact remains that you owned them, and leased them to a negligent party. You could end up just getting the value of the horses and the financial loss in the form of money back. Sorry about your situation.
 
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