Marysville, WA family searching for horse lost in Mount Adams Wilderness
Marysville family searches for missing horse
A family in Marysville is hoping the community can help bring their lost horse Cheyenne home after she disappeared in the Mount Adams Wilderness Area.
MARYSVILLE, Wash. - A family in Marysville is hoping the community can help to bring their lost horse Cheyenne home after she disappeared in the Mount Adams Wilderness area in October.
Marysville family seeks help finding lost horse
What they're saying:
Melissa Hoemann has spent the past few weeks trying to comfort her trail horse Maple, who now has an empty space next to her in the barn.
"She misses her sister," said Melissa.
Cheyenne, a gray Appaloosa cross with a sunny disposition, was always ready to greet visitors. She is pictured below welcoming people to the barn.
Now there is a cloud hanging over both people and animals on the little farm in Marysville, with the beloved member of the family still missing.
"This is definitely the longest they have been separated," said Melissa.
Cheyenne disappeared after Melissa took her on a trail ride on the north side of Mount Adams on Oct. 7. This is a picture of Melissa riding Cheyenne on the trail.
Melissa said she stopped to take photos about six miles away from Keenes Horse Camp, but Cheyenne had other plans.
"It was like total sass," said Melissa.
Cheyenne started quickly walking down the trail without Melissa.
"I’m following behind her like ‘Come on’, and she looked back and flicked her head and took off," she said.
Melissa couldn't catch her and she disappeared around a corner. Melissa searched on the long hike back on foot and was heartbroken when she returned to an empty camp.
"No sign, and very quickly we had a number of volunteers who were well-trained for back country riding," she said. "We searched for 3 weeks until the snow came in."
The picture below shows what Cheyenne was wearing when she disappeared.
She had on an English-style saddle, a purple halter and purple booties on her ankles and hooves.
Melissa created the map below to show where Cheyenne took off near Lava Ring Point on Oct. 7, where a broken rein was found and where hoof prints were spotted on Oct. 25.
A picture of the hoof print found is pictured below.
"We are very rapidly losing any kind of weather window to be able to search on horseback," said Melisa.
What you can do:
She's hoping elk hunters and winter sports enthusiasts will help bring new clues to light so that she can find Cheyenne. Melissa also started an online fundraiser to use for aerial searches.
Why you should care:
She is also offering a $1,000 reward for Cheyenne's return.
"We’ve gotten posts and comments from all over the world," said Melissa. "Hopefully we’ll have a happy ending."
To report a sighting, contact Melissa at 253-970-6155 or email petsathome@gmail.com.
The Source: Information in this story comes from original reporting by FOX 13 Seattle reporter Jennifer Dowling.
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