SHELBY — A stolen horse and Debi Metcalfe’s subsequent search for her has turned into a full-time mission for the Cleveland County woman.

Ten years after her horse, Idaho, was taken, Debi has become an expert in horse recovery, theft prevention and identification.

"It’s just day-to-day work for me," said Debi.

She, along with help from her husband, Harold, founded Stolen Horse International and NetPosse.com, and set up a volunteer network to help people find their own stolen or missing horses.

"We do a lot more than stolen horses," Debi said. "That’s how we were started, but we do so much more now."

Her priority is working with people whose horses are missing first. That comes ahead of fundraising and other functions.

"We try to stress that even if the horse is not found alive and well, it’s better to know than have questions," she said.

Inspiration

Debi has empathy for the people she helps.

Her own horse was stolen in 1997 and recovered just under a year later because of Debi and Harold’s persistence in their search.

At first, they didn’t realize Idaho was stolen but after looking for her for hours, they noticed their fence had been cut.

That’s why Debi recommends that people with missing horses treat them as a theft. 

"If you wait, the horses get farther away," she said. 

Because the couple didn’t have anyone to guide them, they had to figure out how to generate leads with help from an investigator at the Sheriff’s office here. The couple learned to blend in at horse sales and had other people put out fliers for them. 

The couple eventually put up a flier in a convenience store in Tennessee where they had driven and gotten lost. 

Ironically, the person who called in the final tip about Idaho was also lost and walked into that same store, Debi said. 

That tip came in one week short of a year since her theft. Idaho had been through five owners in that time.

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Saturday, Dec 22 2007, 11:26 pm, Emily Killian, Shelby Star