Salt River wild horses mourn death of mother, baby
Mar 17, 2017, 3:30 PM
(Facebook Photo)
(Facebook Photo)
PHOENIX — A young wild mare and her foal died on Thursday in the Tonto National Forest along the Salt River, after the foal got stuck and died during delivery.
The band of horses the mare, Clydette, belonged to came to mourn her and stayed near her body. The lead stallion of the band could be heard crying loudly.
According to the Salt River Wild Horse Management Group, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the wild horses there, Clydette went into septic shock because the foal was stuck for too long. The foal was named Tootie.
The field team and the veterinarian were not able to make it in time to save them.
About 30 minutes after Clydette passed, it seemed that other bands of horses who heard the lead stallion’s cry came out to pay their respects.
In an effort to protect the dead mare’s body, her lead got into a power spat with another lead from a different band.
In 2015, the U.S. Forest Service was planning to remove nearly 100 horses, but there was no say in what would have happened to them afterward.
Public commotion caused the plan to be delayed, but then the removal plan was dropped.
According to a Facebook post, U.S. Rep Matt Salmon (R-Arizona) and the rest of the Arizona House delegation sent a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture requesting another alternative.
