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Please Somebody Help Me....

10K views 43 replies 20 participants last post by  Equilove 
#1 ·
February 4th I purchased a pregnant mare. March 19th she had a stud colt. June 19th the barn owner where they have been staying decided he was holding my horses for payments that I was never informed of. He stated he sent a certified letter, but I found out yesterday that I never received it because his wife addressed it wrong. Tuesday night I went to retrieve my horses with the police and the BO stated if I paid him the money he felt he was owed I could have them. I went and got the money and when I returned he said the letter stated the money was only for my mare, not the colt. He was snatching my mare around in his driveway and I feared for her health and safety so Itook her. I was depending on being able to retrieve the certified letter from the post office stating the money I paid him was for both. Yesterday morning I retrieved the letter and it clearly states the money I paid him was for both horses and the BO referred to both horses by name and called them MY horses 5 times in the letter. When I took the letter back to the police station and returned last night again with the police the barn owner stated I never owned the colt and that he sold him yesterday.

Somebody please please help me get my baby back. He has not nursed since before 9pm on Tuesday and I now have no idea where he is. The cops said there's nothing I can do without proving the colt is mine. I have a bill of sale dated February 4th and I have pictures from March 2nd and 3rd where you can see she is still pregnant. I also have pictures from the day my colt was born March 19th. I also had a farrier come trim my mare March 3rd and he witnessed her still being pregnant.

Another thing that might help me is the BO had a mare who foaled 3 weeks after my mare, so the to are comparable in size and age.

Somebody please help me. I don't want my colt to die.
 
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#4 ·
I am waiting on lawyers and animal control to call me back. I will be leaving work as soon as someone calls me with some legal hope. I haven't been able to sleep or eat in 2 days. I think this is going to destroy me. My heart is so broken right now.
 
#6 ·
Do you have any physical evidence ready to be shown?

Any vet bills with both of them as the patients? Not at the same time, but you know what I mean.
I think he's screwed himself by saying that the only the mare was yours, and the colt has been sold when he stated in the letter that the money owed was for both of the horses, and that they both belong to you.

I'm not sure if it would actually happen, but couldn't he be charged with perjury if he tells his current story in court, and not what is in the letter?

But I'm praying that you are able to have all of this craziness resolved and that your boy comes home.
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#9 ·
http://www.horseforum.com/horse-boarding/barn-owner-holding-my-horses-hostage-127684/

Here's her original post texasgal. From what I've gathered She purchased the horses in Feb. and had a verbal agreement with the BO that she could stay there free of charge. She's been providing feed for her horses and helping do chores around the barn. Apparently he told her a couple days ago that she owed him $15 a day for board starting back in May. The 15/day is the payments she was referring to.
 
#11 ·
In both the threads you still talk about "waiting" to hear from someone.
IF all the information and documentation you have is real, then get to a lawyer immediately.. File charges. Get Animal Control involved. Forget the police,it is a civil matter and they can't do more than the law allows.
Get yourself in gear and fight for this foal.. But quit waiting, go door to door if you have to.............
 
#12 ·
I am at the DA's office now, I am getting a Restraining Order drawn up to have a judge sign stating that the BO must tell me where the colt is and that I must be able to obtain the foal and put him back with his mother until a hearing can occur. Finally a little hope, but not hoping too much because the last two days have been nothing but disappointment. After I get it drawn up I just have to find a judge who will sign it.
 
#14 ·
The termonology is a little wrong, but I can understand that with as flustered, and frustrated you must be.

I hope you can get a judge to sign it, I'm sure if you got the DA to write it up then you probably explained it very well. It makes sense that they would allow the baby to stay with the mother until the hearing. Good luck!
 
#16 ·
Drifting, in order for her to have her property returned, she has to file a lawsuit and get a court order in her favor. She just can't go to the DA and get something written up and signed by a judge.

Horses are property. The foal is 3 months old and will not die without his mother.

There's nothing a DA can do within the parameters of the law regarding property, except help her file a lawsuit against the BO. That's it. There is no magic paper that will get the foal returned to her today.
 
#18 ·
Yes, but then you could take the mare and foal and disappear with both of them if you get the foal from the BO.. Remember, just because a judge will sign the letter, it still has to get served and the BO can make himself scarce if he sees a police car drive up.
Hope you can get your foal back. Still have lots of doubts in my mind about this whole scenerio... Did you scan the letter to post like you said you would?
 
#19 · (Edited)
The petition STILL has to be filed with the courts. There is no secret, special way for you to circumvent the legal system.

All I can assume is that the DA is filing the petition on your behalf. Once it's been entered into the legal record, then a court date will be set for a hearing concerning to whom the foal belongs.

As long as the BO can prove the foal is in no danger physically, the animal can't be taken from him until the courts determine to which of you the foal belongs.
 
#22 ·
I don't think the OP should worry about scanning and posting a letter to us. She has a lot of other things to do.
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Nobody asked her to do that, she volunteered it herself.

I for one don't care one way or the other if she scans and posts it since it's obviously irrelevant, otherwise it could be used as evidence for her lawsuit.
 
#21 ·
Um, she is the one who stated she was going to scan the letter for all of us to read . She offered, we didn't ask.
Again, if all is true that is being told, then I hope she gets her foal back.
However, two sides to every story. I just can't imagine anyone would want to be hauled into court for stealing a horse, which is what the OP says the BO is doing. Just doesn't make much sense to me at all.
 
#23 ·
What is amounts to is this: if indeed the true story is what the OP has stated, with all the truthful facts, no fabrications, then she has been done a great disservice and should indeed get her foal back.
If there are some discrepencies and fabrications that are being given and the BO is within his rights, then guess a court of law will make a decision.
I don't for a minute believe the "stupid officer" just was doing what he wanted, I don't believe that is what happened. He was following what he could do, obvioiusly the letter he had in his hand gave him the reason for not allowing the foal to be taken that night. If indeed he didn't do what needed to be done, then I would have been filing a complaint against the police officer that night.
The OP will have to go to court to get her foal back.. Sounds like the BO believes the foal is rightfully his. She says its hers. I am not there, so can't say for sure, we are only reading what she is posting. Would be interesting to hear the BO's side of things.
 
#27 ·
BIRD do you mean a take possesion order needs to be sign by judge? If so Its then handed to a sheriff office and both you and the sheriff go to the barn wether BO is there or not you can get your colt back The lock on the gate can even be broke if the court order signed by a judge. Just the same as when animal cruelty is found once a court order has been made by a judge no lock gate can stop a sheriff and rescue from seizing animals. a Take possesion order means just that TAKE POSESSION.
If your in the right from what you are telling us it will all work out. You just keep doing what your doing. and good luck.

TRR
 
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