A MERRIWA family is still coming to terms with the loss of four mares after they were killed by a lightning strike in the early hours of Monday morning.
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While farmers are celebrating the good rains, the thunderstorms that accompanied the low depression have cost the Kean family, from Yippy Ky-A Paints, dearly.
The Keans breed thoroughbred-type Paint Horses for halter and performance work.
Each Paint is an individual, different from all others due to its distinctive colours and coat markings.
Kristy-Lee Kean said she did her normal feeding of brood mares and stallions on the property, on the Scone Road just out of Merriwa, on Monday as she would normally.
“I’m not sure why, but I had this feeling to go and check the ‘girls’ in the back paddock where we had seven horses about 100m from the house.
“As I got into the paddock I initially thought I had three horses standing, while four looked to be sleeping with the Herefords,” she said.
Mrs Kean said horses will lay down if they feel safe and secure.
“In the morning our horses will sometimes lie on the ground to catch the sun and warm up,” she said, “so I wasn’t too worried.”
But it didn’t take long for her to realise what had happened.
“The children were inside and I rang my husband, Alexander, on the phone pretty upset and said, ‘The four mares are dead’, and he came over and checked them out.”
Mrs Kean said there were no entry or exit burn marks, so she guesses the lightning must have hit very close to them and killed them.
Multiple deaths of livestock from lightning are usually due to ground current causing electrocution and not a direct strike.
“We didn’t even hear the storm, or see any lightning, so it must have happened while we were asleep.
“One of the mares we lost was six, two were aged seven and the fourth one was much older, she was about 18,” Mrs Kean said.
The Keans said they rang their vet at Dartbrook Equine in Scone after the discovery and the vet verified it was a lightning strike.
“It was a very short phone call because they knew we were upset and they sent their condolences,” she said.
Mrs Kean admitted the strike has put a bit of a hole in their breeding program.
“We had them booked in at the vet clinic on September 5 to go to the stallion for AI and that won’t be happening now.
“They were beautiful mares, mares you couldn’t get again, but at least they were ours and not one of the mares or stallions we have on agistment.
“Thank goodness we didn’t have to deal with that,” she said.
