ARLINGTON — The horse was lost in a ravine amid the blackberry bushes. She was hungry and covered with lice.
Snohomish County animal control officers have been trying to locate the owner of the mare, found wandering Nov. 23 in the Lakewood area.
The reddish-brown or “sorrel” mare is believed to be about 20 years old and has a distinctive crooked front left leg, said Vicki Lubrin, the county’s licensing and animal control services manager.
A family found the mare on the back part of their property near the 1500 block of 188th Street NE, west of I-5 near Smokey Point, Lubrin said.
“They said the horse was pretty thin,” Lubrin said. “They didn’t know how long it had been there.”
The family tried to feed the horse and get her out of the ravine, without success, Lubrin said. An animal control officer was able to get the horse out Nov. 25.
No one in that area seems to be missing a horse, and it’s unclear how long or how far the mare had wandered, Lubrin said. The horse is receiving medical attention and saw a veterinarian on Monday.
“The horse is in pretty poor condition, and we’d like to find out who owns her and how she ended up in this location and in this condition,” Lubrin said.
Anyone with information should call 425-388-3440.
Under state law, if the county can’t find the owner, the horse will be taken to a public livestock auction, Lubrin said.
An animal brand inspector then will hold the horse for 10 days while trying to find its owner through any brands, tattoos, ear notchings or other markings. If no owner is found, the horse will be sold at auction. That’s required by law, so the new owners can receive proper documentation, Lubrin said.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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