Deuce is a family horse who became locally famous this week after he got lost last Monday. Thanks to social media postings and re-sharings, numerous people were actively looking for him. On the Facebook page of Channel 10 meteorologist and animal rescuer Steve Caporizzo — the page is called Steve Caporizzo’s Pet Connection — posts about Deuce were viewed more than 100,000 times.

Deuce is a 12-year-old tan gelding owned by John and Debbie Hickey of Kytewind Farm at 1153 Schoharie Turnpike in Duanesburg.

Turns out that Deuce, according to the owners’ daughter Sandy Hickey Messineo, is terrified of mini ponies, as are all the 18 other horses on Kytewind Farms. There is a miniature horse among the horses living next door.

The temperatures on Monday warmed up considerably after being below zero for three days straight, and the horses on both farms were excitable after being cooped up in their stalls.

The miniature horse broke through its own fences that morning and began running through the Hickeys’ pasture, Messineo said.

It’s common for horses to be spooked by these not-quite-horse creatures, she explained. “They know it’s not a dog, but they don’t know what it is,” Messineo said. “They think it’s a monster coming after them.”

The Hickeys’ horses ran wild, taking down all of the farm’s fences, including some that were electrified. They probably didn’t feel the electricity, Messineo said, because of their fear and the winter blankets they were wearing.

Two of the horses went through the fences, Messineo said. One came back, and Deuce did not.

Horses get out all the time, Messineo said — they get out of their fenced pastures or they’re being ridden and a rider falls off — but they don’t usually run far, she said. They usually run about 200 feet and then stop.

But she had a bad feeling about Deuce, who is accustomed to traveling long distances. The family often takes him on vacation to places including the Adirondacks and goes for rides of about 20 miles. He is a “traveling horse,” she said, but completely unfamiliar with the area around their farm.

Her father, John Hickey, said that Deuce is a Kentucky Natural Gaited horse, a type that is very popular as a trail horse because “it can cover a lot of ground and not get tired.” Hickey said that Deuce has gone on “a lot of rides with me for 10 or 12 miles.”

Many people went out to search for Deuce throughout the Duanesburg, Altamont, and Guilderland areas, said Messineo and Hickey. They went on foot, on horseback, and in cars, Messineo said. Most of them learned about Deuce from Steve Caporizzo’s Facebook page, which serves as a community information clearinghouse, with posts about lost and found animals being shared and reshared numerous times.

One of those who saw the posts was Scott Carroll, 28, of Altamont. He grew up on Dunnsville Road in Guilderland and now works for that town’s highway department; he’s also a four-wheeler enthusiast and motocross racer.

He saw the postings on the Steve Caporizzo’s Pet Connection Facebook page and just “had a hunch” that the horse “would be up there in the orchard somewhere.”            

Carroll told The Enterprise he wasn’t out there more than an hour when he saw Deuce, his blanket straps tangled in some fencing. “Once he saw me from a distance I think he was pretty happy to see somebody. Once I grabbed him by the halter, I think he was excited. He was ready to walk wherever I wanted to take him.”

Steve Caporizzo told The Enterprise that Deuce is extremely lucky someone found him in that large orchard, in an area not visible from the road.

Altamont Orchards owner Jim Abbruzzese said that that old, unused orchard is 140 acres in size. 

Carroll said that, after locating Deuce, he looked at Caporizzo’s page, got the owners’ telephone number and called them before walking Deuce the mile or so out to Lainhart Road.If Deuce did go to Settles Hill Road first and then on to Lainhart Road, it would mean that he traveled at least about four-and-a-half miles.

Messineo said she was very grateful to everyone who searched, including Dave Harrington — the owner of Specialized K9 Detection Service in Glenmont — and his dog, Willy, for donating their time and “searching for hours.”

The horse had an injury to his leg, a deep gash he got somewhere along the way.

The Hickeys immediately called their vet, Axel F. Sondhof of Saratoga, who was there in “probably an hour and 10 minutes,” said John Hickey. “He dropped everything.”

Deuce was treated by Sondhof and then went on to spend a week at Upstate Equine Medical Center in Schuylerville, where, said Messineo, they pumped intravenous antibiotics into the source of Deuce’s cut. Messineo also noted that it was “incredible” that Deuce had not had any tendon damage.

John Hickey told The Enterprise that, if Deuce had not been found, he’s not sure how long he would have lasted, particularly since he was injured and caught in a fence.

Deuce was released from the hospital and was back at Kytewind Farm on Wednesday.

Messineo said simply, “Scott saved his life.”