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Woman Turns To Website To Find Stolen Horse

AMADOR COUNTY (CBS13) – An Ione woman is desperate to find her beloved horse that vanished from his pen.

The sinking feeling set in when Diane Nicolici saw their jumper pony still latched in the pen and only her horse's hoof prints resembling a struggle.

The 17-year-old Arabian horse, Marcuz, has been with the family since he was a yearling and she believes someone stole him.

"Nobody knew (he) was there. This was something that was definitely planned," Nicolici said.

She filed a report with Amador County Sheriff's department, but even then felt at a loss.

"Where do you go to get help? The local sheriff's department is limited in what they can do," said Nicolici.

With nowhere else to turn, Nicolici finally found help from NetPosse, a non-profit organization that helps track down stolen horses. NetPosse was able to network through the equine community and spread the word.

Stolen Horse International, Inc. aka NetPosse.com Press Release for Marcuz, Iona, California http://www.netposse.com/view_report.asp?reportid=5043 https://netposse.com/newsviewer.asp?id=3572

Posted by Stolen Horse International-NetPosse Missing and Stolen Equine on Wednesday, September 14, 2016

"I wouldn't want anyone to feel this at all," said Nicolici.

Unfortunately, this happens all the time. Nicolici's biggest fear is that her horse was sent to the slaughter.

"That he's taken somewhere to be slaughtered. That's the main thing," she said.

While she'shopeful to track down Marcuz, Nicolici wants others to know there's help out there.

"The worst case scenario is that we won't find him, but there are organizations like NetPosse and if there are other things like that established in our county, that they know there are places to go to," she said.

Marcuz is an Arabian horse and 14 hands. He has a distinct white mark between his eyes.

If you have any information, call the Amador County Sheriff's Department.

NetPosse is the only non-profit organization in the country that is dedicated to finding stolen horses. The founder lost her horse back in 1997 and knew there was a need to help others find their stolen horses. The non-profit is based out of North Carolina, but provides help from across the country to internationally.

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