A family are left 'hurt' and 'devastated' after waking up to find their horse dead on Easter Saturday morning.
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Police have confirmed they are investigating after a horse was fatally shot on a property at Norval on Friday, April 15, at approximately 8pm.
Graeme and Cheryl Cox live about eight kilometres from the township of Ararat on a rural property.
Their quiet life suits them - their home their place of peace as the dirt road naturally follows the hills and their property situated around natural bushland.
Retelling the horrific scenes they discovered on Saturday morning has left the couple angered by the "careless acts" of an individual or group of individuals on the evening of Good Friday.
"It was a full moon and very clear night," Mrs Cox explains.
"There was no way shooters wouldn't have known it was a horse they were aiming at in my opinion."
Mr Cox explained that there were people who went spotlighting in the area on occasions.
"You hear the gunshots and don't think much of it," he said.
"On the odd occasion, you see a rabbit or fox around. We don't take much notice.
"It's normally pretty peaceful out here. But since that night I now lie in bed at night and listen to see what I can hear.
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"I just can't imagine someone shooting a horse. I also believe the person who did this would have known it was a horse.
"I would also like to think if it was a responsible shooter and they thought it was another animal they would raise the alarm straight away."
Mr Cox recalled the discovery of the horse in the paddock on the Saturday morning.
"We were going to get some wood so we drove down to the gate with the trailer on and I looked across and Bobby, the other horse, was standing there and Cathy was laying on the ground," he said.
"I thought she didn't look right so I went over and had a look.
"What I came across was I could see blood everywhere. I had a look and she had been shot through the chest."
Mrs Cox said the situation was made worse knowing the horse didn't die straight way.
"She must have thrashed around by how much the blood had spread - I'm not an expert but you could tell," she said.
"She must have kept moving around - she didn't die a nice death."
Cathy was a standard-bred horse and was bred for pacing but she bled from the nose when they tried to race her in her younger years. Cathy was based in the region and the Cox family instantly fell in love from where they first met her when she went up for sale.
"She had such a placid nature and didn't have a mean bone in her body," Mrs Cox said.
"My daughter liked horse riding so we took her straight away. When my daughter moved out we kept her here.
"When she got a bit older she got a bit stubborn - but was still a lovely natured horse.
"I always told my daughter she can die on the property, but not like she did."
At 22 years of age, the horse was no young foal but had been part of the family for 15 years.
The family were so impressed by the nature of the horse they bred her and that's how Bobby, the horse that was by her side when she died, entered into the picture.
"He won't go down the front anymore and stays up the back of the property now," Mr Cox said.
"It must have scared him and he probably can still smell something."
Mr and Mrs Cox wanted to share their story in the hope someone would come forward if they know something or to deter people from doing something like this in the future.
"We just want people to respect other people's property," Mr Cox said.
"A lot of people don't care what they do to you or what they do to your property.
"Too often people don't speak out when something has happened and it's wrong."
A police spokesperson has urged anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
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