Newborn Foal Dies in Freak Accident on Chincoteague

Chincoteague Island, VA - A newborn foal has died after a freak accident among the wild horses on Chincoteague. The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company shared the sad news on Saturday afternoon.

Crews were called out around 1 p.m. after reports that a foal had been trampled in the north herd. When fire company cowboys arrived, they found foal #71, a newborn, had already died.

Witnesses say the foal had wandered away from its mother, Mimi, a first-time mom, and ended up near another band of horses. Mimi's stallion, Hidalgo, went into that group and tried to move the foal away.

In the process, he caused serious head injuries that the foal could not survive.

Cowboys tried to bring Mimi to see her foal, but she would not approach. The fire company says this is common with new mothers, who often disconnect after losing a baby so young.

The fire company wants the public to know this was not a sign of a behavior problem with Hidalgo. "Hidalgo has many foals in his group and has never had a problem with any of them or any other ponies for that matter," the post said.

The foal was already in a vulnerable spot, separated from its mother at under a day old and slightly premature. The fire company explained that "these babies are fragile," and that even small things, like a missed step or a few hours away from mom, can turn deadly for a newborn foal.

The fire company asked the community not to view this as preventable. "This is just a freak accident," they wrote. "Wild horses can be dangerous, especially to each other, but also to people." They noted it is not the first foal lost this way, and it likely will not be the last.