The skeletal remains of 14 horses discovered in a Black Forest barn Friday were covered with lye and tarps because their owner claimed not to have enough money to dispose of the carcasses, according to an El Paso County Sheriff’s Office search warrant.

Sherri Brunzell, who was cited for class-one misdemeanor animal cruelty Monday, told investigators that the horses died from colic and that the animals had not been seen by a veterinarian for several years. Brunzell alleged she and her husband were giving the horses medical care themselves “due to the expense and the unsatisfactory results,” the warrant stated.

According to the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, colic can be contracted by horses because of bad feed and unsanitary water. Brunzell claimed she felt it would be better to spend the money on feed for the horses than on veterinary bills, according to the document.

Sheriff’s Office Det. Mike Boggs said eight of the 10 horses appeared to be in good health and weight, although two “were thin, but not emaciated and the hooves on five of the horses were excessively long.”

Horse remains were found in a large green dumpster in a barn stall. The remains of 13 other horses were covered with lye and tarps inside the barn, according to the warrant.

In the warrant, Boggs affirmed it was necessary to have a veterinarian used by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in equine investigation cases to examine the live horses. Investigators with the Sheriff’s Office mounted unit were called to a property on the 5400 block of Burgess Road, off Milam Road, Friday afternoon and determined the live horses were not in “imminent danger,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a previous statement.

On Monday, the Sheriff’s Office returned to the Black Forest property with Elbert County veterinarian Dr. Randy Parker of Range View Equine Associates, who determined that the horses should be removed. In a phone interview with The Gazette, Parker declined to describe the condition of the horses but said they were safe at a large animal facility.

The Sheriff’s Office has not said what killed the 14 horses, nor if necropsies will be ordered for each of the animals.

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Contact Andrea Sinclair: 636-0235

(The Gazette/Jerilee Bennett)