A horse believed to be stolen from his Georgia pasture was found alive in a nearby ditch three weeks after going missing, reported television station WALB News.  

A cell phone video shows Sheyenne being lifted from the five-foot ditch in a cotton field about a mile from his owners' farm. He's lost about half of his 1,200 pounds, but a veterinarian who examined him said he's likely to recover from his ordeal.

"I was worried his legs weren't strong enough to make it but he seems fine," owner Laura Davis told WALB.

A neighbor reported someone opening Davis' pasture gate several weeks ago. Another five horses were recovered at the time.

A sweet horse story from the Las Vegas Sun: a pasture on Pecos Road, just before Sunset, has lost Checkers, its friendly equine resident of the past 30 years.

The brown Appaloosa was the last of Stacy McNamara's childhood horses to remain at the family farm along a now-busy highway. Passersby often paused with a treat or pat for Checkers, who would trot over.

Although she died in late September, her admirers still stop by; instead of apples, they now bring notes.

Grab a tissue and read some excerpts from Checkers' memorial.  

Horse placenta is big news in The Netherlands currently, as soccer player Robin Van Persie is in Serbia trying a new treatment for an injured ankle.

"I am going to receive treatment from a female doctor," SkyNews quoted him as saying. "She is vague about her methods, but I know she first massages you for a long time with placenta fluid.

"I'm going to give it a try. It can't do any harm, and if it helps, it helps."

He's optimistic the treatment will have him back in the game within six weeks.

Check out ESPN Global's compilation of odd football remedies.  

Why run a marathon when you can just ride a horse?

The fine folks at The Onion recently covered the New York City marathon in true Onion fashion, with an article on victor Meb Keflezighi's "performance-enhancing horse."

Per The Onion report, Keflezighi won the race aboard a 2- to 4-year-old chestnut Thoroughbred.

Race officials investigated after reports of, "remarkable speed, unusual race-day height, and distinctive 'clip-clop' gait, Keflezighi's frequent nickering caused the other runners to speculate that he may have been using a horse in some fashion," organizer Mary Wittenberg was quoted as saying.

Read the rest and see a photo.  

Snaps to reader Leah for the weird news tip!

A woman is suing the New York Police Department after a police horse allegedly bit her on the arm, nbcnewyork.com reported.

The woman contends that she suffered permanent injuries in the "ferocious" attack by a horse named Mr. Biggs. According to the report, the (human) officer allowed the horse to approach the victim, at which time she was bitten on the forearm. The suit alleges the officer should've had control of the horse because of its "propensity to attack and bite human beings."

The best part of the story might be nbcnewyork.com's closing line: "We've left a salt block and a few carrots outside the precinct but have yet to hear back from Mr. Biggs for a comment."

A New Mexico calf might provide an example of advances in livestock prosthetic technology. Meadow, a yearling Black Angus calf, sustained major damage to her hind limbs last winter when she lost her back hooves and half of her ears to severe frostbite, the Associated Press reported.

Rancher Nancy Dickenson and her stepdaughter bought the injured calf from her owner and took her to veterinarians and students at Colorado State University. In August, vets amputated part of both hind limbs and fitted Meadow with prosthetics.

Now back at home, Meadow is able to run and graze.

"A few people have asked 'Is she going to be beef?' and I said 'Are you kidding? This is my newest baby," Dickenson said.

A prosthetic limb can be a viable option for some formerly doomed horses, potentially giving a new lease on a quality life, although there are numerous caveats. Cost and potential complications severely limit the pool of potential candidates for the procedure, but single limb prosthetics are a possibility for some. I've not heard of any equines with dual prosthetics--any stories out there?

Read more about equine prosthetics and see example photos.  

Awesome headline: "Carriage Horse Licks Car! Woman Outraged!" And even better photo from gothamist.  

It seems a reader submitted an entry to the NY Times Metropolitan Diary concerning a carriage horse that had the audacity to lick the back window of her car.

She wrote: "as soon as I put the car in reverse to parallel park, I noticed a horse and buggy. I checked my rearview mirror and couldn't believe that the horse came as close as possible to my car and started licking it, from the trunk to the back window. The horse's saliva created a film over my children's college decals."

The horror!

(Related: a few weeks ago I stopped by my truck to grab something on my way back to the barn after riding and my gelding was fascinated by the interior of the cab. He was all eyes, so I let him investigate a bit so he wouldn't be afraid. Looking it all over, he spent some time lipping the seat belt buckle before thoroughly sliming the door handle. I thought his enthusiasm was cute. But he apparently didn't get enough, as just a couple days later he ran his teeth all the way down the side of a friend's truck when she parked it briefly in the field to unload something from the back. You can now see a pinstripe of tooth tracks in the paint. Thanks dude.)

Behaviorist Sue McDonnell tackled the topic of car chewing a couple years ago. Excerpt: "I don't really know what attracts horses to chew on vehicles, but I have sure seen the behavior develop in otherwise normal, healthy animals." Read the rest.

Snaps to reader Pat for the Weird News Sighting! Is there something you'd like to see on the Weird Horse News blog? You can always comment below, or feel free to e-mail me.