A clip showed Trigger the horse being pulled at least 100 meters along in the snow by its reins. Photo / via Facebook
A clip showed Trigger the horse being pulled at least 100 meters along in the snow by its reins. Photo / via Facebook
A Colorado couple who shot a widely shared video of a horse dragged by a rope hooked to a pickup truck is facing criminal charges.
Prosecutors announced Tuesday that 59-year-old John Saldate and 33-year-old Amber Saldate were charged with a misdemeanor count of animal cruelty.
Authorities began investigating Sunday afterthe video of the horse at a ranch near the mountain town of Grand Lake drew outrage after it was shared on social media. Authorities later seized the horse.
A clip showed Trigger the horse being pulled at least 100 metres along in the snow by its reins.
A woman narrating the disturbing footage is heard saying: "This a**hole refuses to leave the ranch, so John's pulling him across because he's being a douchebag."
It's not clear if the Saldates have a lawyer. Before they were charged, Amber Saldate told KCNC-TV that the horse had had behaviour problems but what they did was stupid.
On Monday Mrs Saldate spoke out but asked not to be named or pictured.
"You make one bad decision sometimes and it can destroy your life," the woman told CBS4. "I've lost my job over this, I've upset a lot of people. I made our horse go through something that he shouldn't have. I was wrong."
Sheriff Brett Schroetlin says a veterinarian found no obvious trauma to the horse Monday but gave it pain medication.
