The owner of the stallion killed at Olds College last September is speaking out on the incident for the first time.
The owner of the stallion killed at Olds College last September is speaking out on the incident for the first time.
Allan Neurauter of High River, who specializes in standardbred horse breeding and racing, said he remembers receiving the news on a weekend morning that the 15-year-old standardbred stallion he had loaned to the college for its equine breeding program was dead.
"I wasn’t happy," he said. "It’s something that you didn’t expect. Death with animals is one thing but to have them die in that manner was another."
Police and college officials believe one or more persons opened a number of the school's equine science program's horse pens sometime between 10 p.m. on Sept. 8 and 7:45 a.m. on Sept. 9, releasing as many as seven animals, including five stallions, into a feed alley. The alley's end gates were closed, locking the horses into the alley. Neurauter’s horse, named Clintons Cigar, was found dead from a kick to its head on the morning of Sept. 9 and another stallion was found with injuries to its legs.
Stallions will fight each other to establish dominance and many believe the horses were put together deliberately to fight.
At the time of the horse’s death, Neurauter thought someone from the college’s equine sciences program may have been involved, but he no longer feels that way.
"There’s such a passion in that group and a caring, they’re so committed to the animal, I can’t see someone turning like that."
Neurauter, who has loaned stallions and mares to the school’s breeding program for 15 years, purchased Clintons Cigar in Chicago in December 2002 and loaned him to the college the following month.
At the end of breeding season each year, the horse would return to Neurauter’s High River farm.
After Cigar’s death, the college offered Neurauter compensation, which he turned down and suggested the school invest the money in a surveillance system for the horse pens.
The college ended up using the compensation money to install a pair of security cameras in the pens in April.
"It’s sad that it had to come to this but that’s the way it is nowadays," Neurauter said.
In March, he took a new six-year-old stallion named Bunkmeister to the college to replace Cigar.
When asked if it was difficult to trust the college with a new stallion, he said he had no doubt the school would take every step possible to keep the horse safe.
"I knew the incident was a one-time incident. I knew probably some security measures would have to go into effect," Neurauter said. "Knowing the people at the college, I had all the faith that they would protect them the best they could. I didn’t have any qualms about it."
Police reopened the investigation into Cigar’s death in April and questioned a Mountain View County man about the incident after receiving an anonymous tip.
After interviewing the man, however, police believed they did not have any grounds to charge him and are now looking for new leads in the investigation.
Marion Anderson, coordinator of the college’s equine science program, has known Neurauter for 30 years and said she is frustrated that justice has not been served in the case of Cigar’s death.
"This was a despicable act and someone needs to be held accountable for that," she said, adding she now doubts the person or people responsible for the death will be found since so much time has passed.
Neurauter, who was bestowed with an honorary degree from the college on June 1 for his relationship with the school’s equine program, said he’s still looking for "closure" in the matter and is appealing to the community to continue helping police in their investigation.
"I’m just hoping that anybody that does have any information, please come ahead, step up and let the police know. That’s all we can ask for."
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