- Diesel the donkey disappeared five years ago
A donkey named Diesel has been spotted living as an alpha male in a deer herd in California, after he escaped from his owners five years ago.
Terri Drewry was hiking when her favorite donkey ran away after being scared by a mountain lion.
Diesel was seen on a trail camera a few months later, but was nowhere to be found. Despite a months-long search for her beloved pet, Terri and her husband Dave gave up.
But this year, while hunting in Auburn, California, athlete Max Fennell saw something out of the ordinary: a donkey living among a herd of elk.
Astonished, Fennell captured video of Diesel standing in the middle of the herd, with the donkey and elk facing Fennell.
Max Fennell was on a hunting trip in Auburn, California, when he saw something strange: a donkey among a herd of elk.
Fennell said Diesel seemed like the alpha male of the pack, as the other animals seemed to move like him and follow him.
Fennell (pictured) was amazed by the donkey sighting.
Terri Drewry lost her favorite donkey, Diesel, five years ago after he ran away while on a hike when he was startled by a mountain lion.
You can then see the animals turn around and run away together.
‘Probably one of my wildest hunting trips to date. I came across a herd of elk who had adopted a donkey. “I can’t stop watching it and I’m amazed that the donkey looks happy and healthy!” Fennell said on Instagram, where he shared the clip.
speaking to Inside edition Of the donkey sighting, Fennell said, “It looked like the donkey might be the leader because when Diesel moved, the other moose moved.”
‘Apparently, a warden in that area had found a dead mountain lion that they suspected had been killed by a hoofed animal. “They suspected that maybe Diesel had killed that cougar,” he added.
When she found out that Diesel was alive and well, she was ecstatic.
“It was amazing, it was like he was there, now we know he’s alive and well living his best life,” Terrie told Inside Edition.
But Terri said she has made peace with the fact that she won’t be reunited with her donkey Diesel.
“In a perfect world, absolutely, we would love to have him home, but the fact is he’s running wild and free with that herd of elk and he’s earned his freedom right now.”