Denver police horse dies after officer forgot he was tied in stall 16 hours without food or water

[Sunlei]

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Teeter and MC Hammer patrolled downtown Denver on Sept. 26, when temperatures were in the upper 70s. Upon returning to the mounted patrol barn, Teeter unloaded the horse and tied him to an eyebolt in the stall and removed his saddle, the letter said.

Teeter took the saddle to the tack room, but he became distracted with paperwork and forgot about his horse. Someone else discovered MC Hammer tied in the stall at 6:15 a.m. the next day, the letter said.

MC Hammer was taken to the veterinarian hospital, where he was treated for colic. It was determined that he would not recover, and the decision was made to euthanize him. The medical examiner could not conclusively conclude that his colic was caused by being tied for such an extended period of time. An internal investigation into Officer Teeter’s actions revealed he did not purposefully neglect MC Hammer. The investigation concluded and Teeter was docked 1 vacation day for violating department rules. Officer Teeter is still a member of the Denver Police Mounted Unit and was given another horse.

http://www.denverpost.com/2017/01/09/denver-police-horse-dies/

[In_The_Wind]

1. IMO: This mounted officer should be riding a motorcycle instead of a horse.

[yeoman6987]

2. I never realized horses needed to be fed that often or they die

This site is a knowledge machine.

[In_The_Wind]

5. As part of his training, the officer should have known better.

[Aristus]

3. Hell, I'd take his badge away forever.

The phrases 'criminal negligence' and 'depraved indifference' come to mind...

[In_The_Wind]

4. That was my first thought but they are already covering for his negligence.

[SoCalMusicLover]

7. That's What They Do

Civilian, Animal, their lives are much less important.

If it had been a civilian, they would charge him with murder. But he's one of our nation's finest, so it's ok.

[woodsprite]

6. As a mounted patrol officer, I would think my horse, my partner, would be in

the forefront of my mind and thoughts a good part of the day. I can't imagine not thinking of my dog for 16 hrs straight, whether she's right beside me or I'm on vacation and she's boarding. If I relied on Noelle to do my job, it would even be more frequent.

[MojoWrkn]

8. He should NEVER be allowed to have a horse or dog as a partner! Put him

on foot patrol! UNEXCUSABLE!

[Runningdawg]

9. He should be charged

identically to a civilian who assaulted a police horse.