MOUNT CHARLESTON (KTNV — A Logandale family is counting their blessings after a recent trip to Lee Canyon after their daughter Olivia was kicked in the face by a wild horse at the lower Lee Meadows.
The family shared this story with me in the hopes that others will be more cautious around wild horses.
Austin and Haley Wilkey brought their four kids to Lee Meadows on Saturday, Aug. 3, for a photo shoot.
They noticed two wild horses coming out of the woods. They told me they were calm and appeared to be grazing near people in the meadow.
"I heard my son running up behind me so I turned to go tell him to slow down, and then I heard hooves and I turned around and the horse was bucking. Olivia was on the ground and that is when I was screaming and running," Haley said.
A video posted to TikTok, which has since been deleted, showed the two daughters near the horse but walking away from it. All of a sudden, the horse begins trotting fast towards them and spinning around.
That's when Olivia was kicked.
"I saw her head was cracked open, I thought she was dead," Haley said.
Her family said she was flown to University Medical Center where it was found she had a fractured skull that had to be plated. CT scans showed minor bleeding but luckily no swelling.
The family lives in rural Logandale, a place where they often see horses.
Some might watch this and think why are they so close to a wild horse?
"I think in the moment I thought we were okay. I think that is because of lack of knowledge," Haley said.
Some might be wondering if there were signs in the area about wild horses. There are a few, but if you don't park near them you won't see them.
In April, the U.S. Department of Agriculture told me they need to help manage the wild horses because they can contribute to unsafe interactions.
That same time I also talked to local residents who created a petition after concerns of them being moved.
"What we are asking for is the horses remain here and that the Forest Service engage in a meaningful educational campaign," resident Cheryl Abbate said back in April.
Olivia's family told me she got the okay to go home on Wednesday.
"She is going to have a scar but she is back to herself," Haley said.
