The police in Hampton, N.H., the state’s busiest beach town, are investigating whether the four police horses they use for summer patrols were abused, accoring to an AP article on www.concordemonitor.com.

A routine veterinary checkup last week found that the horses, which are boarded off-season on a family farm at the Tide-Water Campground, were severely underweight, police Chief Jamie Sullivan said.

“Actively riding the horses this summer seems unlikely,” Sullivan said.

Police are still waiting for an official report from the veterinarian, but a preliminary investigation found the horses had worms and probably were not fed properly, he said