A horse owner is angry and heartbroken after her horses were allegedly sold to a Southern Alberta slaughtering plant and killed without her knowledge or permission.

Kathy O'Reilly had been boarding her horses Coca and Bella at an acreage just outside Stirling for about four years.  
 
Earlier this month she received a sad phone call saying the woman who owned the property had passed away.

"He told me that the bank was foreclosing on the property, and that I would have to move my horses by the end of this month.  My daughter showed up to move them on Saturday, with a horse trailer and stuff and they weren't there,"
says O'Reilly.

She was initially told the horses had been sold to an auction market but after making further inquiries she learned Coca and Bella had been sold to Bouvry Exports, a company that operates a horse slaughtering plant near Fort MacLeod.

O'Reilly contacted RCMP who are looking into the allegations.

She has now received confirmation the horeses had been slaughter the day they were brought in which she says raises some serious questions.   

"How do they not provide proof of ownership to the packing plant? The other issue is why is there not a hold on horses that are brought there in case they are stolen?" says O'Reilly.

CTV News contacted Bouvry Meats and were told they can only say the RCMP is investigating and that there is no fault on the part of the company.
 
RCMP say their investigation is in the very early stages and an officer with the Livestock Investigation Office has been assigned to the case.
    
O'Reilly lives in Southern Alberta before moving to Port Hardy, B.C. and has had both horses for over 20 years.

"They were family. My kids grew up with them.  You know at the end of the day, nothing is going to be able to bring them back," says O'Reilly.

RCMP say they may have an update on the case Tuesday.

(With files from Terry Vogt)