But where did Nuage go? He launches a desperate appeal to find his draft horse which has vanished into his enclosure

The Comtois draft horse disappeared in its pasture on December 26, 2024 in Taillecourt (Doubs). The animal, aged 23, has still not been found after several days of searching. Its owner filed a complaint and launched a call for witnesses.

“He was born with us, he never left the house”, recalls Jean-Louis Rémy. Since December 26, this resident of Taillecourt (Doubs) has still not heard from Nuage. His 23-year-old Comtois draft horse mysteriously disappeared the day after Christmas Day.

“The anger is gone, now it's disarray, sadnessconfides the unfortunate owner to France 3 Franche-Comté. But my wife is devastated.” It was she who alerted her husband who was delivering hay to the Étupes equestrian center, a few kilometers away. “We still have two horses, says the 69-year-old retiree, son of farmers. I take them out of the stable every morning at 8 a.m. to take them to the pasture near our house. At 10 a.m. she looked out the window and Cloud was gone.”

With a small group of around ten people, Jean-Louis Rémy canvassed the area for four days to try to find the animal, extending his search to Exincourt, Étupes, Audincourt and Dasle. Without success. He filed a complaint with the police.

At first we thought he had run away. He got out of his enclosure once but we found him right away at a neighbor's house. He's a pretty timid horse. The only remaining hypothesis is theft. But why kidnap a 23 year old horse? For work? For the meat? I don't understand.

Jean Louis Rémy, owner of Nuage.

An appeal with numerous photos of the lost horse was launched on social networks and already relayed by the “community” of riders, affected by this disappearance. No results there either.

“We know it happened between 8:15 a.m. and 10 a.m.indicates the sixty-year-old. Nuage is a horse who trusts man, who is haltered every morning and every evening, he is not a wild horse. But you still have to be equipped to take a horse like that, to transport it a long distance and to feed it. CCTV cameras were able to film a van or a livestock truck at the entrances to the village or in neighboring communities.”

Jean-Louis Rémy decided to put up posters everywhere in the surrounding area to collect possible testimonies. The animal is very recognizable with this very particular scar on its side. “It’s an injury he got during his foaling and it’s very deep,” explains its owner.

An owner who wants to keep hope despite everything, but who is worried about the health of his old four-legged companion. “He is not used to being carried, he must be paralyzed.”