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11 Animals Slaughtered At Nonprofit Farm For Kids

By Melissa Garcia

DENVER, Colo. (CBS4) – Police in Denver are investigating the deaths of 11 animals slaughtered overnight on a nonprofit farm for children.

Urban Farm at Stapleton on Smith Road near Havana Street is an independent nonprofit organization that provides agricultural and environmental education to urban children, youth, and their families.

What would have been a day of celebration on a stock show victory turned into a day of mourning when a volunteer arrived at the farm around 7:30 a.m. Sunday to find nine sheep and goats dead in their pens. Two rabbits had been decapitated.

Urban Farm
(credit: CBS)

The state veterinarian was present on scene alongside crime scene investigators working to figure out what lead up to the deaths.

A Denver police spokesperson said the carcasses would undergo necropsies to determine the animals' cause and manner of death.

Police said that gates on pens that were normally kept shut had been found unhinged.

According to Urban Farm board members, cages had been cut open.

"It's pretty clear that the deaths were not natural," said John White, a spokesperson with the Denver Police Department.

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White said that two stray dogs were found at the farm, and had been taken into the care of animal control.

"We're looking at the possibility that they could have played a major role in the death of these animals," White said.

Harold Skramstad, President of the Urban Farm board of directors said the animal deaths was devastating.

"It's just unbelievable," Skramstad said. "How could something like this happen? Who could do something like this?"

Skramstad said that children had raised the livestock all the way from birth to the marketplace.

He said that the nonprofit touches an estimated 10,000 Denver metro area children each year.

"Here's a place where a kid, no matter what their background, can find a special place for themselves," Skramstad said. "It allows them to accomplish something. To feel good about themselves, to make a difference in their own lives."

Urban Farm
(credit: CBS)

While the animals can be replaced, he said the relationships the kids had developed with them were irreplaceable.

"They were animals that kids were taking care of, that kids had a relationship with. And that's doubling devastating for us," Skramstad added.

As police investigate, Urban Farm programs will go on as usual. Nine animals currently at the stock show will stay somewhere else until it's deemed safe for them to return.

Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.

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