Foal separated from mom during WY wild horse roundup tries to join pronghorn herd
.jpeg "A lost foal tried to join a pronghorn herd after he was separated from his family during a wild horse roundup in Wyoming.")
A foal was left all alone and vulnerable to danger after he was separated from his family during a wild horse roundup in Wyoming — so he tried to join another type of herd, photos show.
After all, the pronghorn in the herd sort of looked just like him.
“This young colt found himself lost and alone after falling a mile behind his band during the ongoing Wyoming roundup,” American Wild Horse Conservation said in a July 30 post on Instagram showing the colt galloping along a dirt road on his own. “As he searched for any sign of his family, the colt may have thought he spotted them — running in the same direction just ahead. He attempted to join them.”
Photos show the little colt heading toward a group of tan and white pronghorn in the Wyoming desert. One of the animals appears alarmed after it spots him.
“At some point, it likely became clear these were strangers — but he knew he needed their help,” the group said. “He would not survive in the wild without the safety — and comfort — of a group.”
Both horses and pronghorn are herd animals, meaning they naturally live in social groups for safety and companionship.
The Bureau of Land Management sent a wrangler to rope the colt and trailer him back to a temporary holding pen to reunite with his mother, the agency told McClatchy News in an email. Photos show the colt walking alongside the wrangler and an adult horse.
“This little colt is one of many foals who have become separated during the Adobe Town roundup, unable to keep up over vast distances and rough terrain,” the group said in the post. “So far, one foal has died of capture myopathy — a condition brought on by extreme stress.”
Seven horses have died since the roundup began on July 15, according to the BLM. Four of them were sudden deaths brought on by the roundup while three horses were euthanized due to pre-existing conditions, the agency said.
“We can’t imagine the mix of exhaustion, fear, confusion, and panic this little one must have felt when he watched his family disappear in a cloud of dust ahead of him and found himself — perhaps for the first time ever — alone,” the group said in the post’s caption. “Surely eager for this nightmare to end, the little foal gladly latched on to the first sign of life he could find. After all, the pronghorn were roughly the same size, shape, and color as he was!”
“What a harrowing day for this foal,” the group added. “Sadly, the consequences of such traumatic experiences can impact these delicate youngsters in dire ways.”
The group has documented several such dramatic scenes from the roundup.
“On Day 3, a stallion broke free from the trap and was relentlessly pursued by a helicopter — which at times appeared to fly within 50 feet of him, raising concerns about standards of animal welfare,” the group said in a July 24 post showing video of the helicopter chasing a stallion across the desert. “In a remarkable show of instinct, he pivoted away from the helicopter, making one last all-out push toward a blanket of trees — and was able to take cover among them until the helicopter left. Against all odds, he had escaped capture — yet instead of fleeing for safety, he returned to the trap’s edge, risking recapture as he called out for his family.”
Video shows the stallion pacing near the holding pens to look for and call out to his family, even though they might have already been taken away.
“Unfortunately, scenes like this are far too common during roundups,” the group said. “While we are in awe of the courage and determination that led this stallion to reclaim his freedom, his will be a lonely road ahead — at least until he can establish a new band.”
Adobe Town is a remote area in the Red Desert of southwest Wyoming, about a 250-mile drive west of Cheyenne.
This story was originally published August 1, 2025 at 4:36 AM with the headline "Foal separated from mom during WY wild horse roundup tries to join pronghorn herd."
