Tuesday, August 18, 2026
By Submitted Story on June 5, 2025
Corolla Wild Horse Fund is very sad to report on the evening of June 4, that Donner (b. 2023) was found deceased. Here is the release.
He sustained injuries consistent with fighting with another stallion, including a broken neck. While it is devastating to lose a healthy, young horse from the herd, this is what it means to be wild and free. This kind of behavior may seem brutal to us, but it is a natural part of healthy herd dynamics.
This colt’s death should serve as a reminder of just how fragile life can be for these horses. They face so many natural challenges to their survival; there is no guarantee that every foal will make it to adulthood, even under the best circumstances. We can’t control nature (and we wouldn’t want to) but we can control our own actions. Please give the horses plenty of space, never feed them, and be a good steward of the environment.
Donner’s life was short, but it was wild from start to finish. That is something to be celebrated, even as we grieve.
Rest peaceful and free, young man. We will miss you.
To learn more about Corolla Wild Horse Fund or to donate visit corollawildhorses.com and follow them on Facebook.
Comments
Jill
Horses probably more anxious and irritable with the ever more invasive horse tours.
Harry Mangina
Which tourists fault is it? Come on, some crazed visitor must have goaded them into fighting right?!
Sandflea
Too bad the horse Tourons (and especially their kids) didn’t get to witness the brutal stomping of a colt by an alpha male stallion. A couple years of serious PTSD and subsequent lawsuits for emotional damage might get the Horse Tour’s attention. Not much better video than a close up of watching a critter getting its neck fractured and the aftermath.