A 100-mile ride, a horse at 7,200 feet, and a whole lot of teamwork.
By Susan Marshall, Animal Technical Rescue volunteer and incident responder
On Saturday, August 1, a call came in from the Tevis Cup: a rider had been separated from her horse, and the horse was now somewhere deep in the Granite Chief Wilderness at 7,200 feet — no road, no trail, no way in on foot or by vehicle.
What we did have was a GPS unit on the saddle, and a set of coordinates.
The Butte County Sheriff’s Office helicopter launched with NVADG technical animal rescue members Susan Marshall and Norm Rosene aboard, and flew to those coordinates. Overhead, we confirmed it: the horse was there, and still standing.
From there it became a coordinated operation. A member of the Nevada County HEART team coordinated the landing zone, and a plan came together with the UC Davis Equine Medical Strike Team — fly the team in, sedate the horse, rig a large animal lift, and short-haul him out.
On scene, the NVADG technical rescue members and the equine medical team went to work. The horse was assessed, sedation was administered, and together they rigged the large animal lift and prepared him for the short haul. The helicopter then carried him safely down to French Meadows Reservoir, where a receiving team from Nevada County HEART and UC Davis equine medical strike team was waiting. He was gently set down — and word is he self-loaded into the trailer and was more than happy to head home.
None of this happens by accident. Every year, the Butte County Sheriff’s Office trains alongside the NVADG technical rescue team, Butte County Search and Rescue, and UC Davis equine medical strike team specifically to prepare for scenarios like this one and to be ready for the Tevis Cup. This year, that training showed exactly how valuable it is.
Enormous thanks to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office and their helicopter unit, the North Valley Animal Disaster Group (NVADG), Butte County Search and Rescue, the UC Davis Equine Medical Strike Team and the Nevada County HEART animal rescue team.
Great outcome, multiple agencies, one team. It truly takes everybody.