An equestrian trainer who was seen on videos dragging a horse and appearing to make it bleed has now been charged with animal abuse, TMZ Sports has confirmed.
Two clips were shared on a Facebook page last week … with one appearing to show Ontario woman Solstice Pecile pulling a horse in a moving vehicle while on an isolated road.
In the footage, it sounds like Pecile is yelling at the horse while fiercely yanking the animal by its muzzle.
“Walk!” Pecile says in the video. “Good girl.”
In the other video, which appears to be the aftermath of the pulling session, the horse seems to be bleeding from its hooves. The woman appears to have the horse’s blood on her hands, and she can be heard calling the animal the R-word while seemingly chastising it.
“Awesome. Fantastic,” Pecile said sarcastically in the video. “Why are you a r*****? Hmm? Why? Why? Why?”
Northumberland Ontario Provincial Police opened an investigation into the vids after they surfaced online … and according to a spokesperson for the Ministry of the Solicitor General, Pecile has now been charged with causing distress to an animal.
If treated as a minor offense and assuming it’s her first offense, Pecile faces a $75k fine and potentially 6 months behind bars. If treated as a major offense, she faces up to $130k in fines and up to two years in prison.
The 23-year-old is due to appear in court for a hearing on the matter in January 2023.