Rare twin colts born unexpectedly at Colorado horse rescue

DENVER (KDVR) — A Mustang rescue nonprofit that saves horses from being rounded up and auctioned had two unexpected members join their group of rescues.

At Banditas Wild Horse Promise , founders Amanda DeNeice and Cindy Harrison discovered quite the surprise when they approached their pasture last week. The 32 horses they rescued had suddenly become 34.

“We started to have a little bit of suspicion that she was pregnant back in May. We had been watching her, and around August we pretty much knew she was really pregnant,” said Cindy Harrison of Banditas Wild Horse Promise. “The day I went out, none of the horses came in that was normally in her group and they are all much foodies, so when they didn’t come in, I was a little like, what’s happening here?”

When DeNeice and Harrison rescued one of their mustangs, Resurrection, or Res for short, at their property in Larimer County, they suspected that she was pregnant. What they never could have predicted was that Res would give birth to two beautiful baby boys.

“We were both just photographers that went out and photographed these horses and got to know them. They became a part of us, a part of our family. They did a roundup and we wanted to do more for them so we created our non-profit,” DeNeice said.

Horses very rarely conceive twins or carry them to full term. The odds for this occurrence are only 1 in 10,000, the organization said.

The mortality rate for twins is usually very high in horses. One or both twins will likely die during gestation or shortly after being birthed. Twin pregnancies result in a 61% chance of birthing a single foal, a 31% chance both foals will be aborted and a 9% chance both foals will carry to term, according to the organization.

“In general, horse pregnancies are very complex,” said Harrison. “This is incredible that this mare was able to keep these two alive, inside her belly and now keep them alive outside of her belly.”

The rescue says the first two weeks of a foul’s life are crucial, especially the first few hours.

“If they don’t get the colostrum that they need, they will surely die within that first three hours,” said Harrison. “She wasn’t realizing that she had two babies… My granddaughter and I walked around the field all day just reuniting one baby back to her consistently. Then, of course, it was night checks every 3 hours.”

The unofficial names are Red and Blue, for the color coat they each have, who will join the “Not Forgotten Herd,” which were horses that had zero bids at auction or needed help saving.

“It’s been super cool to have these babies around. We wake up every day with a different type of purpose here,” said Harrison. “We are so excited to be able to share this with the world.”

DeNeice and Harrison are excited about the birth of the twins and are celebrating them beating the odds. They plan to raise them with as much love and commitment as they have had for every horse they have rescued so far. The founders plan on giving their group of now 34 horses the best lives possible.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.