Jennifer Carrillo thought Snap, her tall American saddlebred, could be a show horse one day. Instead, his life ended before he could compete in an arena.

On Nov. 3, the horse was found shot to death in the Salt Lake City pasture where he was kept. His body was butchered and the parts that were taken indicate he was killed for meat.

Snap's monetary value was $1,200 to $1,500, but he was priceless to his owner, who is devastated by his death.

"There are heartless people out there," the West Valley City woman said. "To me, this is a heinous crime."

Carrillo, who has 19 other horses she keeps at several locations, had tried to start a business breeding lines of horses that were disappearing, but it never really took off. She decided to keep and care for her animals for the rest of their lives unless she could sell them to a good home.

Six-year-old Snap, whose full name was Living Treasures Snapdragon, was bred by Carrillo and was one of the horses she had hoped to have trained one day for competition. He lived on a 200-acre property at 5600 West and California Avenue in western Salt Lake City with three other horses she owns.

The four were slated to be moved to a new location on Nov. 3. When Carrillo arrived that day, she rounded up three of the horses but Snap was nowhere to be found.

The driver of the trailer who was to transport the animals went looking for Snap. He came back 10 minutes later.

"He said, 'I found him. Only half of him is there,' " Carrillo said.

Among the parts taken were legs, loins and hindquarters. A bullet had gone between his nostril and his eye, exiting near his ear, she said.

Sgt. Zach Todd, of Salt Lake County Animal Services, said the horse took several minutes to die. He is not ruling out any motives but from the way the horse was cut up, it appears the killing was to get meat, he said.

Possible charges in the case are theft or a misdemeanor count of animal cruelty, according to Todd. Animal torture is a felony but prosecutors would have to prove the offenders meant for the horse to suffer, he said.

Todd has received calls about people who like horse meat but said those tips are too general and he's looking for specific information to lead him to the perpetrator. "Just because you like horse meat doesn't mean you're a person of interest," he said.

American Dog Rescue, the Humane Society of Utah and individuals have put up a total of $10,000 in reward money for information about the case. One supporter also paid for the necropsy.

Gene Baierschmidt, executive director of the Humane Society of Utah, said the killing was egregious.

"We think this was a cruel and callous act, especially if the horse was still alive when it was dismembered," he said.

Carrillo thinks Snap's personality might have made him vulnerable: He was a friendly horse who approached strangers to be petted.

From the blood she saw spread over the grass, Carrillo believes Snap wandered around after he was first shot. As he got weaker, he stopped and dropped his head, leaving a pool of blood below where he died.

Carrillo, who had Snap buried in the pasture, wonders what the killer or killers were doing as they watched the horse die. Did they laugh? Had they petted him before firing the shot? Did they care that the animal was suffering?

"Did they notice how beautiful he was before they killed him?" Carrillo asked. "The person who did it is a coward, no matter what they wanted the meat for."

pmanson@sltrib.com —

Reward offered

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever killed and slaughtered a horse that was found dead on Nov. 3 at 5600 West and California Avenue. Call Salt Lake County Animal Services, 801-559-1120.