Hello and Happy Monday to everyone!  If you are celebrating in the US, we hope you are enjoying the last bits of your Labor Day weekend!

We do want to take a moment to update you on one of the horses in the park. 

2023 Filly Luna who was born to Mare Little Gray and Stallion Wild Rye was humanely euthanized by the park.

Many visitors in the park reached out to us to ask about what was being described as an “issue” with one of the horses in the park.  I reached out to Superintendent Daniels to ask her what was happening.

From Superintendent Daniels:

“Blake and team have been working all weekend. What I know is it’s a 2-year-old female. Blake was out all day and into the night getting her back on her feet. He was successful when he left her last evening. After consulting with an NPS veterinarian it was thought to be hypermetria in her gate, which is some sort of neurological issue. By this morning it was reported she was down again and staff spent most the day with her trying to get her stable and on her feet. With advice from the vet, she was put down as these types of conditions can rarely be cured. We are sending samples to check for both West Nile and rabies.”

I worked with Superintendent Daniels to identify the horse so that we could update all of you.  Superintendent Daniels said she will keep us updated on the results of the samples. She also stated that her team did all they could to help Luna.  We are grateful for their dedication to this herd. 

It’s never easy to say goodbye to our beloved TRNP wild horses, no matter how long they were with us.  I am grateful that I personally was able to spend time with Luna several times over the last few months as Illinois band has been moving around the park.

We are grateful that Luna was able to spend her entire life living wild and free. 

R.I.P. Luna.  You will be missed.

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