When a herd of eight young horses escaped in rural Peotone and galloped down I-57 over Easter weekend — and then continued to elude those attempting to rescue them for an entire week, it captured nearly everyone’s attention. At the time of publication, the whereabouts of seven of the eight horses have been accounted for, with one still missing.
The community turned out in droves, on foot, by car, ATV, and horseback — many heeding Toby Keith’s call of “Should’ve been a Cowboy” in an attempt to wrangle the horses.
While the community outpouring initially seemed helpful, it quickly descended into a frustrating and chaotic mess. Sightings and bits of information about rescue attempts became fodder for gossip, fueling ugly rumors of mistreatment and misinformation that hindered rescue efforts.
Eventually, an organized rescue effort emerged with the cooperation and coordination of two licensed, non-profit horse rescues, Illinois Horse Rescue of Will County and HHH Ranch.
Who Lost the Horses and How?
With the rumor mill swirling online, people thought the horses might have been wild mustangs from out west. That bit of gossip turned out to be nothing short of Western folklore.
“I was born here in Chicago, moved to Minnesota, and have been living here for the past four months. People are saying I’m from Montana, why, I don’t know,” the owner of the young horses, Jimmy Gary, explained.
Gary, of Minnesota, had brought his horses to be trained by Sergio Rosales in rural Peotone. The horses are all unhandled, untrained yearlings, with the oldest no older than two years old. A call to Rosales was not immediately returned.
The horse trainer’s property backs up to I-57. Upon arrival on April 19, one of the horses bucked its head through the corral pen, opening the path for the rest of the herd to escape. The group of horses quickly charged toward the interstate, which they galloped down before crossing it entirely, ending up in fields on the interstate’s west side.
Contrary to rumors, they were not intentionally set free or abandoned, nor were they horses going to slaughter.
“They were going to be trained and sold once they were 100% trained,” Gary explained of the young horses he had.
Horse brokers who buy, train, and sell horses are common in the horse world.
“People ship horses all over all the time. Bloodlines, really, there are tons of factors why people ship horses,” Jessica Pecho of Illinois Horse Rescue explained.
Additionally, people thought Gary and his horse trainer weren’t looking for their horses, which proved untrue. He immediately searched for and tried to capture the horses until he became injured. Gary fell down a ravine, severely hurting his ankle, which ended his ability to try to capture the horses himself, as he could not bear weight on it.
Photos courtesy HHH Ranch and Illinois Horse Rescue.
Rescuers Work to Capture Horses
With time of the essence and the horses quickly covering ground, Gary and his trainer promptly enlisted the help of Adam Cordes, who was able to help on Easter morning.
Cordes, who operates a farm in Peotone with horses and cattle, is no stranger to horses and livestock, having competed in rodeos from high school through college.
“Pretty much roping livestock has been part of me growing up from day one,” Cordes said.
It didn’t take long after heading out before he roped one of the escaped horses with his lasso – a black filly.
When asked if it was a common occurrence for him, he explained it’s usually only a horse or two that get loose, not an entire herd, and not this young and untrained. These horses are terrified of people, unbroken, and don’t know what grain or oats are.
“And usually they’re somewhat handled – they’re not unhandled like this. I’ve caught and hunted wild cattle. Cattle get loose; I get called to catch them. Not completely foreign to me,” Cordes said.
After he caught the filly, he contacted Illinois Horse Rescue, a nonprofit horse rescue of which his wife is on the board of directors.
Illinois Horse Rescue took the filly into its care, while working with Cordes and his wife to rescue the remaining loose horses.
While Cordes and the original owner were working to rescue the horses, the Will County Sheriff’s office received several reports and sightings of them.
“HHH was contacted by the Will County Sheriff’s Saturday afternoon by the sergeant on scene,” Kevin Hedemark, Will County Sheriff’s Public Information Officer, shared, adding that they would later put a notice online.
Neither the Will County Sheriff nor Will County Animal Control is equipped to rescue horses or livestock. They enlist the help of licensed partners, like HHH Ranch.
Collaboration Key to Success
While some online seemed to pit the two organizations against one another, the collaboration between the two on the ground has been nothing short of incredible — according to both organizations.
“There was no tiff. She didn’t know we were out there. We’ve talked, and we’re very happy working together. We have the same mission,” Pecho explained.
“You normally don’t get this amazing partnership that we were able to do yesterday. I’m very thankful Christine reached out to us,” Pecho added, noting they would rather have HHH Ranch be the contact for the Sheriff and Will County Animal Control.
Pecho’s sentiment was echoed by Christine Doran of HHH Ranch.
“These are two small organizations who haven’t had a chance to know one another and, although it was hectic, it was a blessing because we now have an ally when we’re dealing with escapees or we or they have an overflow,” Doran said.
“We felt like we were on our own little islands, but it was a nice feeling to have someone who knows how many hours we put into this. We truly have another organization walking in our shoes and, instead of competition, there’s support, which is beautiful,” Doran added.
“We’ve been here for 14 years, and social media is not necessarily your friend,” Pecho explained. “Our updates are very matter-of-fact, to the point, and vague. Yes, we need to be transparent, but I don’t want to go into detail, and then have people get bullied,” Pecho said of the situation.
Health of the Horses
With the young yearlings running on adrenaline, they likely burned a lot of calories, but were smart and resourceful, rescue organizers say.
“They appear to be healthy, health-wise. Weight-wise, they are a little thin, but that could be where they were shipped from – there are a lot of circumstances when a young, untamed horse would drop weight. They’re not on the verge of emaciation,” Pecho said, adding that the horses in their possession have already gained weight in the days since they’ve had them.
The horses at HHH have fared similarly, needing to put on a little weight but are healthy overall. Doran explained the horses on the run are incredibly resourceful and intelligent, drinking from ponds and creeks and eating grass.
“They’re going to make incredible horses,” Doran added.
What’s Next? Rescue Efforts Ongoing
Nearly a week after the horses escaped, almost all of them have been caught — and it’s all thanks to the rescuers who have volunteered their time to do so.
Of the original eight loose horses, Illinois Horse Rescue has three horses at its facility in Beecher. HHH Ranch has three horses at its ranch in Manhattan.
Rescuers explained Gary captured one horse, a paint filly, shortly after the horses escaped. Gary offered that horse to an experienced young equestrian and her family, who have a barn and other horses and were present during the first night of rescuing.
The horses will be held for seven days at each rescue, while Gary develops a plan for them. Theoretically, if no plan were to emerge, the horses could be adoptable, but Doran remains hopeful for a plan.
One horse still remains at large. The last horse rescued had traveled all the way to Wilmington and back to Manhattan where it was rescued on April 26.
Rescuers are emphatic people do not attempt to approach or secure the last missing horse.
“They’re terrified of people. They don’t know what grain is. They see a person 300 feet away and run,” Doran explained.
“If you see a horse loose out of its pen, you should be calling us,” Doran said.
If anyone has sightings, they are asked to text HHH Ranch at 708-689-9889 or immediately call Will County Non-Emergency at 815-727- 0111.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.