Wild horses brawl in Outer Banks yard as man tries to mow his lawn, video shows
Seeing wild horses fight on beaches is part of life on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, but a video shared on Facebook shows it also happens in people’s yards.
David Thieman witnessed such a brawl in Carova Beach, and the intimidating display compelled him to turn off his mower and take refuge on the porch.
Thieman’s video posted to Facebook on Friday shows the two stallions stood on their hind legs at some points, kicking, biting and punching each other.
“So I’m mowing grass. The stallion on the left swam across the canal looking to take the (other) stallion’s herd on the right,” Thieman wrote on Facebook.
“He did not succeed. It was awesome to watch. This went on for 15 minutes.”
The 94-second video was shared by the nonprofit Corolla Wild Horse Fund, which cited the “incredible footage” as a reminder of why laws require people to stay 50 feet from the horses. There are about 100 wild horses in the Corolla herd, which are tended by the fund.
“These stallions have been fighting over this harem for about three weeks,” fund officials explained on Facebook.
“Serious business — this is not play or practice fighting. It’s also a great example of why it’s so important to be aware of your surroundings and always give the horses plenty of space.”
Herd manager Meg Puckett noted in a series of Facebook comments the brawl was the result of an ongoing dispute among males over a group of females, known as a harem.
As many as four stallions have been fighting over the females, she said. This began after the original stallion for the harem was defeated by a succession of challengers. The challengers then began fighting among themselves, she said.
“He tried really hard but having that many stallions constantly challenging him was too much,” Puckett wrote.
“He’s on his own now and doing fine. Got pretty beat up but all wounds were superficial and they healing really well. (I checked in with the vet because everyone was really upset about it).”
Thieman’s video inspired a social media debate over whether someone should have intervened in the fight, but Puckett noted this is natural behavior. There is a “prime-of-life for a breeding stallion,” she says, and when they age out of it, younger stallions move in and take over.
“It’s a lot of work being a stallion with mares and foals. Some of them just don’t have the drive, and stay bachelors forever,” Puckett wrote.
This story was originally published August 9, 2021 at 10:31 AM with the headline "Wild horses brawl in Outer Banks yard as man tries to mow his lawn, video shows."