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What happens to wild horses on the Outer Banks ahead of Florence?

Posted at 12:42 PM, Sep 10, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-10 16:49:23-04

CURRITUCK Co, N.C. – With Hurricane Florence approaching coastal North Carolina, the Corolla Wild Horse Fund is preparing its 18 rescued horses at its farm in Grandy to ride out the storm.

Currituck County is not currently under mandatory evacuations, but Dare County is. Both counties are expecting high winds, lots of rain, storm surge and flooding.

According to the Corolla Wild Horse Fund, “The horses have lived on this barrier island for 500 years, and they are well equipped to deal with rough weather. They know where to go to stay high and dry and are probably in better shape right now than most of us humans who are scrambling with final preparations. They are much better off without any help from us; anything we might do in the hopes of “protecting” them would probably end up being more dangerous and stressful for them than the storm.”

In advance of the storm, the horses will have shelter, but also the option to stay outside. “Just like with the wild horses, their instincts will tell them where to go to be safe,” the Corolla Wild Horse Fund said in a Facebook post. “We have a generator, we have filled up all of our extra buckets and water troughs, everyone will have emergency ID braided into their manes and someone will be staying at the farm during the storm. We believe that it is safer to shelter in place, since the majority of the rescue horses are still very newly tamed, not used to being stalled, and not used to being trailered.”