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December 7, 2009

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Nine wild horses die after being shipped to Colorado

Friday, Feb. 20, 1998 | 4:11 a.m.

The horses were shipped to Colorado from the National Wild Horse and Burro Center in Palomino Valley north of Sparks.

They began dying shortly after arriving Wednesday night in Canon City south of Denver.

According to the BLM, a veterinarian at the Canon City holding center said a preliminary examination of the horses indicates they may have ingested some type of toxic chemical.

The horses were among 50 that were trucked to the Denver center.

BLM officials said the truck left Nevada on Tuesday afternoon and arrived the next day.

That night, some of the horses starting showing signs of distress.

By early Thursday morning, one had died, and three more died during the day. Five others died that night.

All the horses suffered high temperatures and rapid heartbeats.

"The problem appears to be limited to the horses on one truck," said Tom Pogacnik, who heads the BLM's wild horse adoption program here.

No health problems have been were detected among the nearly 2,000 horses that remain at Palomino Valley or the 400 at Canon City, Pogacnik said.

Tissue samples were taken from the dead animals for analysis. Results will not be known for at least five days, the BLM said in a written statement.

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