Story by Cindy Beamon of the DailyAdvance.com
“Without him, the foal most certainly would have drowned…”
A mother and her foal are seen stranded in water near Corolla shortly before the two were rescued by an off-duty Currituck deputy, Tuesday. ~ Photo courtesy Corolla Wild Horse Fund Inc.
COROLLA — An off-duty Currituck sheriff’s deputy rescued a month-old wild horse from drowning Tuesday, but another foal in the same predicament last week wasn’t so lucky.
A foal shivering from exhaustion was pulled from a bulkheaded canal near Spreader Lane around noon Tuesday, said Karen McCalpin, executive director for the Wild Horse Fund.
Deputy Nathan Large, seeing that the foal was in danger of drowning, reportedly jumped into the canal and lifted the animal over a bulkhead to safety, said McCalpin.
Large could not be reached Wednesday to comment about the rescue.
According to McCalpin, the foal and its mother had been in the water for hours, unable to find a way out. The water was too low and the bulkhead too high for the horses to jump to
safety, she said. When Large spotted the horses, the foal’s head had begun to drop, a sign it would soon drown.
Large, unable to direct the horses to safety from the bulkhead, leaped into the water and lifted the 80- to 85-pound foal to safety.
“Without him, the foal most certainly would have drowned,” McCalpin said.
A resident then stayed with the foal while Large led the sometimes-reluctant mare a distance equal to about two football fields to a break in the bulkhead so that it could come ashore.
The rescue was not easy, said McCalpin. Snakes lurk in the murky water, and the canal bottom sinks in spots.
Both horses were in good condition Wednesday.
The outcome was more deadly, however, for another foal caught in a canal last week.
The foal was found dead on July 11.
McCalpin said the month-old male horse was alone. Its legs had scratches as if it had tried to get out of the water, she said.
It’s uncertain how the horses ended up in the water.
The lone foal may have fallen in and couldn’t get out, said McCalpin.
A mother and her foal are seen safe and grazing after being rescued from nearly drowning near Corolla, Tuesday. ~ Photo courtesy Corolla Wild Horse Fund Inc.
In Tuesday’s incident, the mare may have been foraging for aquatic plants in the water, said McCalpin. Domestic horse wouldn’t normally eat the underwater plants, but the wild horses have adapted their eating habits to the habitat, she noted.
Finding their way back ashore would have been difficult for the horses in a neighborhood threaded with canals that were dug in 1967, said McCalpin. The bulkheads have too few breaks for an easy escape, she said.
McCalpin was unsure why the older horse could not find its way out. The mare may have been waiting for the stallion that leads the harem to direct her to safety, McCalpin said.
The mishaps are not the first time horses have either fallen or been trapped in the canals, said McCalpin. Last summer residents reported two incidents, both with happy endings.
More breaks in the bulkheads could help prevent future incidents, she said.
The wild horses are a popular attraction on the Outer Banks and have been spotlighted this year in a statewide advertising campaign.
The foal’s rescue has been a big attention-getter on the Wild Horse Fund’s Facebook page, said McCalpin. As of Wednesday afternoon, the page had more than 12,000 hits.
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Categories: Horse News, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Sad, that the lone foal, was not rescued. Perhaps, people who live in this area, should be on the lookout for these situations.
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Is there a way to demand that more escape routes be made for these types of accidents?? What if a human fell in there. Could they get out?? Just asking!
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Bravo to Sheriffs Deputy Nathan Large , the Corrolla Mustangs of the Outer Banks are very Lucky the people and the Representatives Guard their Mustangs , respect them and Love them…… They are a shinning example of Mustangs and Humans living together in complete Harmony each helping each other, I am Sure Sheriffs Deputy Nathan Large will say he did what came Naturally, for the Foal and his Mother………. I am sad the other foal didnt make it !!!! I am completely assured there will be the proper changes made to the Bulkheads to accommodate the safety of all the other Mustangs !!!! KUDOS OUTER BANKS……………………..The People of the Outer Banks are Blessed anyone wonder why ??????????
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Notice that it happened in the outer banks. If this happened in Nevada the foals would have been held under water. So happy that the Deputy rescued them.
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Kudos to the Sheriff!!! Some people nearby should make it a regular thing to go check out the waterways where the horses cross. I kno I would!…A happy ending!
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Thank you Deputy Large for your effort and kindness. It is wonderful to hear real life stories like this.
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Since they value their horses and these horses add financial value to their community they should make more breaks in the bulkheads. If not for this sheriff things could have gone very differently and that would have been 3 horses lost.
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What a comparison in how these wild horses are viewed & treated – as opposed to our mustangs out west! I believe our wild horses & burros should be treated the same way. Cant imagine that these horses down south are able to produce litters of foals any more than our mustangs are.
But sure does sound that way listening to BLM-speak.
So wrong – I agree with Debra Whitmore – if this occurred in Nevada, it would somehow be managed to be detrimental to the wild horses.
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The People of Nevada, must realize the greatness of the Mustangs that inhabit the Land there…..The must understand the Beauty that was given to them, I believe most there do, but there are those who are Greedy , selfish, and can only look upon them with dollars signs, if they could view the with the respect that the Mustangs deserve, they would be all fighting for the lives of the Mustangs,They have to soon forgotten the wonderful things the Mustangs have done and given from their hearts, without the help of the Mustang where would the West be???? It would be awesome if all there could stop and take a real good look at the attributes the Mustangs posses some I am still in awe of …Nevada needs to cultivate these attributes and learn how to live in harmony with the Mustangs , just as the people of the Outer Banks have, they live and help each other to through the toughest of times, the people there would never sell out the lives of their Mustangs they are family there .they have learned to compliment each other …. There most definitely are beautiful reasons to accomplish this, take the initiative to make it work !!!! Because it can work !!!!!
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The People of Nevada are making the a horrible mistake in judgement , they disseminate the only thing that can save their land and their livelihood ………………
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Thank you Sheriff Large for your act of kindness and compassion for these helpless horses. The area of Corolla are known for these beautiful wild horses and they do bring in a lot of tourism, something others in the West should think about…instead of destroying them! Our wild equines and burros are far worth more to this country, than not. I hope and pray the powers to be realize this before it’s too late.
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Thank Goodness all Three of them came out alright. That was a treacherous situation. It would be wise to listen to the advice given and do whatever it takes to prevent any further mishaps.
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It takes a village…
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Thank God for this Gentleman. May he be rewarded for his alertness and kindness to this wild horse and her foal. It’s unfortunate the other foal was not so lucky. We need to save our wild horses and all the domestic ones that are hurt by so many humans because they are dumped and/or not take care of by their previous owners. THis is animal cruelty at its highest form. Deputy Nathan Large I love you for what you did.
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Deputy Nathan Large you should be get a commendation for your bravery and kind act.
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