Steer to be shown at rodeo dies after attack

LA PORTE, TX (KTRK) -- The FFA program teaches youth about the importance of hard work and responsibility. One local student did just that, investing his time and care into an animal only to see it suffer after a strange attack.

"It's pretty serious and kind of unusual case," said detective Matt Davidson with the La Porte Police Department.

Detective Davidson says he's never seen a case like this before. A steer cared for in a barn off North H Street was deliberately attacked.

"The calf up to that point had been very healthy and the student had raised this calf for nearly a year preparing for a show," he said.

That student, who does not want to be identified, is a senior at La Porte High School. He was about a month away from showing a steer when on Monday he noticed it wasn't acting normal.

A vet later determined it had been severely injured. His insides were split open.

"The cause of the perforation was an intentional act caused by a person," said Davidson. "It was a cut with a sharp instrument internally."

The student's steer was the only one injured. Detectives say no other animal was touched, which raises more questions about who and why this would happen.

"To me, it's a very callous and hardened person that did this," said Davidson.