A woman says she is devastated after a courier company lost the cremated remains of her beloved horse that died due to a serious illness. 

Kailyn Bruce, a resident of Bowmanville, said her horse, named Lionheart, had to be put down in Guelph, Ont., this past September.

Her family, she said, found a business in London, Ont. that agreed to cremate the horse. The company used a courier to ship the ashes back to the family earlier this month, but the package has not arrived yet, although it’s been three weeks, Bruce said.

“They have checked the Kitchener warehouse’s lost and found and they can't find him and that's that," Bruce told CTV News Toronto Monday. “I’m extremely upset. I don't know how they can brush it off like it's nothing."

Bruce always had a strong love for horses from a very young age, according to her mother, Cindy Bruce who also spoke to CTV News Toronto Monday.

“She wanted to go see horses as young as the age of two, and she has been around them all her life,” she said. “I just feel horrible. I want her to have closure. I want her to finish her grieving process and I think the ashes would help with that."

Lionheart was Kailyn’s first horse. She leased him four years ago, and she and her family purchased him just over two years ago.

“He was the best horse I ever had the experience to ride. He was the most stoic horse," Kailyn said.

The family said they paid almost $3,000 to have Lionheart cremated.

The cremating company used UPS to ship the horse’s remains to Bowmanville. The family said they can’t understand how such a large package could disappear.

“It’s a 60 to 80 pound box. It was marked fragile all over it. It seems like it's a big package to lose,” Cindy said.

A spokesperson for UPS told CTV News Toronto that they are disappointed that the package has been “misplaced.”

“We are disappointed the package containing the remains of a cherished pet has been misplaced in our system,” the spokesperson said. “We know that this has caused great distress for our customer and for that we are deeply sorry."

The family was told it was a "shipper's risk" item so they're not entitled to compensation.

“The last email said the package is unable to be found and the investigation will be closed," Kailyn said. She said she remains hopeful that the ashes of her beloved pet will be found.

“I'm devastated. I want my horse back,” she said.

UPS told CTV News Toronto that it will continue to search for the missing package.