Puzzle A: 111 is Pepper; 112 is Lily; 113 is Peanut; 114 is Tuck; 115 is Spunky

Puzzle B: From here, the answers become more complicated ...

September 26 – 1997 – the date that Debi and Harold Metcalfe’s spotted racking horse mare was stolen from the family’s pasture in North Carolina;

September 17 – 1998 – the date that the Metcalfe’s recovered their horse in Tennessee and, unbeknownst to them, the beginning of NetPosse;

September 6 – 2015 – the day the Ridgeways discovered all five of their beloved horses had been sold by the boarding facility and the day NetPosse volunteers stepped up to help;

September 7 – 2015 – the day the Ridgeways’ five horses were sold at auction and the day NetPosse volunteers began the recovery process;

September 15 – 2015 – the day the Ridgeway’s final horse was deemed safe from slaughter and on his way home.

Puzzle C:

4000 – The amount in cash the horse dealer demanded from the Ridgeways in order to buy their horses back;

300 – The approximate number of horses scheduled for auction on September 7, 2015, at New Holland, Pennsylvania;

5 – The number of horses to be found and pulled from the New Holland sale out of a sea of 300-plus horses;

24 – The hours ticking by between the demand for payment and the time all horses were run through the sale;

4 – The number of Ridgeway horses found by volunteers after being purchased that same day by killer buyers;

No matter how you look at this situation, it all comes back to the five horses that disappeared from a pasture in South Carolina and the aftermath that ensued, with the final horse’s fate not yet known.

The Truth of the Matter

Now that the puzzles are solved, what about the mystery? What happened to cause the Ridgeways to have five healthy horses taken from them without a clue of the situation that was unfolding?

First, let us address the rumors that these horses were stolen but authorities refused to seize the horses or charge anyone criminally. Instead, these horses were released to sell by local police because the matter was considered civil. Law enforcement officers are called to enforce the law, not to decide disputes on the spot between two parties without having all the facts. Therefore when a civil situation arises, it is in the best interest of all parties to appear in a court of law, present evidence of their claims, and allow a judge to rule on the law and issue a verdict. The events of this situation evolved on a Sunday afternoon into a holiday morning, in rapid succession, and officials had to make quick decisions. Once it was understood that there was an agreement to board in place – whether verbal or written – officials had no choice but to deem this a civil matter and not criminal.

Next was the assumption that these horses were confiscated for back board owed by the Ridgeways. In any agreement for board and care, the facility has a legal obligation to pursue any monies owed according to the laws and statutes of the governing jurisdiction. Usually this is resolved by a lien law and certain steps must be taken by the facility to validate any claims of monies owed. Without this, the claim is no more than one person’s word against another’s. If handled properly, the owner/manager of the board barn will make a demand for payment and the horse owner will respond within the given amount of time. If the situations becomes a court matter then any supporting documents like a written agreement or cancelled checks would be presented and a judgment rendered for one of the parties. While details of this case cannot be disclosed publicly, Debi Metcalfe not only worked directly with the Ridgeways but also with other parties, including several law enforcement divisions to determine what caused the pasture owner to sell these horses to a third party in the manner in which he did. Early information allowed Debi to feel comfortable in her decision to assist the South Carolina family in this quest, and Debi has every reason to believe that legal remedies were not properly utilized in this situation.

That is the simple breakdown of this case. But the clock was rapidly ticking. Time was not on the Ridgeways’ side. This happened on a weekend and holiday weekend at that; the very next day, the New Holland auction was being held despite the holiday. There was no way for the Ridgeways to gather $4,000 in cash when banks were closed until Tuesday. There was no time to file an injunction and get a stay to prevent the horses from being sold until the matter could be brought before a court.

NetPosse was not established to be judge and jury. It exists in order to help locate, and when possible, recover stolen and missing horses. In the Ridgeways’ case, Debi Metcalfe, the president and founder, had to make a decision as to whether or not to accept the case and how to move forward. After more than 17 years of experience handling stolen and missing horse cases – criminal and civil – NetPosse has policies and procedures designed to acquire the information needed through its Web site and reporting process to gather necessary information. Once Pam Ridgeway completed the NetPosse report on her five horses, Debi felt compelled to move forward. Since this would be processed as a civil case, any legal issues could be sorted out later.

While corresponding with NetPosse’s newly appointed case managers, who assist those utilizing the organization’s services in their individual cases and areas, Debi followed her well-versed gut instinct to rapidly proceed.  She knew it was imperative that volunteers be in place to intercept and transport these horses if they were able to be saved. This was also the first time that Debi had setup a fundraising to acquire emergency funds, if needed, to pull these horses from auction. However, Debi was well aware of the urgency and the network of volunteers rallied around the Ridgeways and NetPosse, willing and ready to do what was necessary to recover these five horses.

Some of this story is best told in the words of those directly involved, beginning with Pam’s discovery of her missing horses and how she then turned to NetPosse while in the midst of her despair:

[Mom] told me to try to calm down, to think about anyone who could help and to pray. After searching the internet, I found NetPosse. I didn’t immediately recall having used the organization a while back when Lilly had been missing years before but was found soon down the road. Recalling little of that time as my mind was racing, I contacted them to see if they could help me now. When they were able to give me instructions about what to do, I began to calm down a little, but was still scared, crying and worried about what might happen to my “babies.” I knew there were slaughter houses and I was so scared they would end up there. I did not know what I would do if that happened.

After a stolen or missing horse listing is live on the Web site, a NetPosse.com Alert is issued. As soon as the alert for these horses was posted on Stolen Horse International’s Facebook page, many people stepped forward immediately with names of others who were attending the auction and even pictures of horses waiting to be sold. Amazingly, more than one person who was attending the auction shared pictures of the exact horses NetPosse was seeking. It was a small victory as these horses could not be held by law enforcement and were sent through the sale within a few hours that same day, but the pictures had the hip numbers clearly visible.

This is when the real work began for NetPosse Volunteers. After verifying the evidence that these horses were sold through New Holland, Nancy Diaz, one of those providing the original pictures, worked directly with one of NetPosse case manager’s, Cassy, and together they were instrumental in the quick purchase of the two paints. Later that evening, Nancy was able to buy and pull Tuck.

Cassy spent the better part of Monday and Tuesday on the road. Once Lilly, Peanut and Tuck were secured, the efforts were focused on the final two. Looking back, Cassy’s determination was evident, “We knew that the others were heading to areas where we could lose them. Calls were made to put Pepper on hold for 24 hours in the new buyer’s hands with the understanding that it was only a 24-hour hold. If cash money was not in hand, Pepper could and would go to a slaughter house. With time running out, we had to move quickly to save Pepper and still find Spunky.”

Recounting those events, Cassy says that the Ridgeways left their home and started the long haul from South Carolina to New Jersey to buy back Pepper. From there, the owners drove to Nancy’s home and picked up Tuck. As Pam stepped out of the truck, she said, “Tuck raised his head and ran to the gate nickering at me.” With Tuck and Pepper safely on the trailer, the Ridgeways then headed to Cassy’s home to be reunited with their paints and begin the trip back to South Carolina. That left only Spunky, who belongs to the Ridgeways’ son, to be recovered.

The Final Hail Mary

By Wednesday afternoon, Debi felt sure it was too late to save Spunky. By all accounts, it appeared as though a young boy’s horse had been shipped to slaughter in Canada. To say this discovery was disheartening is an understatement. Apparently, there was a mix-up in the hip numbers. From the original auction picture, it looked as though Spunky was hip number 110. This misunderstanding led to almost two days of chasing rabbits. The 110 horse was actually a two-year-old colt purchased by an Amish man. Debi worked with Cassy to determine Spunky’s auction number. It soon became clear that it was at the other end of the spectrum, and volunteers needed to hunt down more numbers. Valuable time had been lost, but in the crush of all that had occurred in such a short time span, added to the stress and exhaustion for those volunteers literally working without sleep, not everything plays out as one wants. Reminded of Halo – a case with several similarities – Debi knew she could not give up on Spunky.

When Thursday morning dawned, Debi and the NetPosse volunteers surged ahead with renewed energy. Former NetPosse Core Volunteer, Jana Bailey, used a contact at the Canada slaughter plant to email the documentation regarding Spunky in the event he arrived there for processing. This was at six in the morning while most people’s alarms clocks were just sounding. By lunchtime, a Hail Mary had taken place. An unnamed source, who works to pull horses from these dealers’ lots, led NetPosse directly to Spunky. His paperwork had been processed by the dealer and all that was left was to load him on the shipment to Canada. The semi-truck and trailer were on the way to the yard.

Waiting for the next Tuesday to arrive, the Ridgeways slept very little. The fear lingered that Spunky could still be shipped across the border. When the time came, Nancy met with the source and excitedly laid her hands on Spunky. Quickly loaded, she then transported the quarter horse toward the last leg of his journey before he could be reunited with his family and pasturemates. Before shelling out more money, though, Spunky had to be positively identified from the dealer’s paperwork to be sent with him to Canada. Without a doubt, it was Spunky, and without hesitation, Cassy personally made the final payment to ensure Spunky’s safety only moments before he was lost. The joy at finding him was to be delayed, however, as the dealer would not allow him to leave the lot until the following week, once new paperwork and Coggins could be obtained. Those next few days stretched out endlessly as the Ridgeways were ready to put this part of the ordeal in the background.

The news of Spunky’s certain recovery was met with elation from across state lines. His young owner wept to know that his horse was also coming home soon. Because the horse had been in a feed lot for a week and exposed to many other animals, it was agreed by all parties that Cassy would quarantine Spunky at her farm until he was cleared by a vet to travel the final stretch … finally home.

So What’s Next – What is to be Learned?

There are many lessons to be learned from this story. First, it is important to note that this is not about slaughter; it is not about a board dispute; it is about what happens every day and can happen to anyone. It is about stepping up and doing the right thing when the times comes. It is about not giving up until all hope is lost because the moment you quit is when it is over.

It is also critical to understand that this was not a success story because of Social Media. It is a success story because of people. There are countless NetPosse volunteers and supporters who literally worked around the clock from the moment the plea for help went out. While Facebook played an important role in gathering help at the auction houses and feed lots before, during, and after these horses were sold, it is only one tool utilized by NetPosse in its efforts to recover stolen and missing horses. Click this link to learn more about how NetPosse works: https://netposse.com/newsviewer.asp?id=563

Puzzle D: 632, 7, 116, 1, ONE

Today, the Ridgeways are immensely grateful to all of those who responded so quickly to the NetPosse call for help in their greatest hour of need. They will do all they can to repay those who helped and pay it forward to others who might find themselves struggling with this situation in the future.

What NetPosse did was beyond my wildest hope. I had no idea there were other people out there who cared about what happened to MY horses … My mind was so full and my heart was pounding. I felt as if I was moving in circles. As time passed and NetPosse began to locate my horses, I began to feel some relief, but I was going to have to buy them back and I still wasn’t able to get to my money. No one can imagine the relief I felt when the volunteers put up their own money to save my horses – and others willingly donated to the emergency fundraiser. I thought – no one does this for someone they don’t know. Why would these people be willing to put up their own money to save MY horses? They didn’t even know I was telling the truth. But surge ahead they did! No stopping until they recovered all of them. What they did was unbelievable. When word came they had my 2 Paints, I was relieved for them, but still frightened for the other three. Then came number 3, then 4 and then 5! How could they have accomplished this in such a short period of time?

I can never do or say enough to express how much the people connected to NetPosse mean to me. It reminds me there are GOOD people in this world who are willing to help others and their beloved animals. There is no way to repay them for what they did for me, my family and my horses. I will be forever grateful to everyone who was involved in the effort to recover my horses. Maybe one day I will be able to help someone else like they helped me.

Answers to Puzzle D:

632 – The approximate miles between heaven and hell – or Gaston, S.C. and New Holland, P.A.;

7 – The total number of horses brought in by the dealer who picked up the 5 Ridgeway horses;

116 – The actual hip number of Spunky that wasn’t known until he was picked up to return home;

1 – The last single horse in a kill pen waiting to load on a trailer headed across the border – finally safe;

ONE – Never Underestimate the Power of One – One organization – One massive effort to save five innocent horses – One infinite number of volunteers, supporters and donators who made recovering 4 horses possible in 48 hours and the final One possible One week later.

It is important to realize that this quick and massive recovery effort would not have happened without the assistance of all of the volunteers, supporters and donators. While it is impossible to list them all and some have requested to remain anonymous. NetPosse and the Ridgeways greatly appreciate all of those who stepped up to help in any way – big or small – all of the combined efforts are what made this story such a success. Not 1, 2, 3, or 4 horses were recovered, but ALL FIVE! Way to go NetPosse Network and all of you who made a difference!

NOTE: All monies donated to this cause are being refunded if requested or will be used for other NetPosse educational programs since the Ridgeways paid for all expenses. The Ridgeways have covered all expenses to date, including reimbursing Cassy when she purchased Spunky out of pocket from the horse dealer.

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© 2015 by Angela Beck for use by Stolen Horse International – www.NetPosse.com. May not be reproduced in whole or in part without express written permission of author or SHI. P. O. Box 1341, Shelby, NC 28151, 704-484-2165

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