Horse Missing From Club Is Back Home

A little scratched and 150 pounds lighter, Nemesis, a 14-year-old mare missing for weeks, was back in her stall Thursday at the Rancho del Rio stables.

She nibbled on sugar cubes, munched carrots, drank water and chewed on hay as Rebecca Nerney, 33, of Garden Grove patted and hugged her four-legged friend.

“I’m so happy,” Nerney said.

Nerney and friends welcomed the horse, which had been stolen Aug. 6, with her favorite treats: beet rinds and sparkling cider.

“Even the horses were whinnying,” said Michele Hardy, whose daughter is a member of the American Riding Club for the Handicapped, which has been boarding between four and six horses in the 200-horse stable for about 20 years. “It was so heartwarming. They knew immediately she was home.”

This mood was in stark contrast to the night Nemesis disappeared. Nerney rode Nemesis as part of her cerebral palsy therapy at the club. Upon hearing that her horse was gone, Nerney became sick.

“I thought she was dead,” Nerney said.

But Nemesis was OK. Kern County sheriff’s deputies found the horse alive and well, grazing in a pasture. Officials returned her Wednesday.

While it was a warm welcome for Nemesis, the horse enthusiasts are still concerned. The horse thieves have yet to be captured. Two horses stolen from the club in February are still missing. And someone stole a trailer a month ago.

Police declined to elaborate on their investigation into the thefts.

Horse thieves apparently sell the animals at auctions, slaughterhouses or to anyone looking to buy a horse. Prices range from $500 to $50,000 for a race-quality thoroughbred, Anaheim Police Det. Judi Harmon said.

As a precaution, club officials have removed the remaining six horses and sent them into protective custody.

“It would take a really cold heart” for someone to steal a horse from a disabled-riders club, Harmon said.