Missing pet donkey found alive after 5 years spotted living with herd of elk

Diesel, a pet donkey from California missing since April 2019, was found alive five years later in northern California, living among a wild elk herd.

Despite extensive search efforts by his owners, Diesel had vanished after becoming frightened during a hike with Terrie and Dave Drewry.

This year, however, a hunter spotted Diesel alongside more than a dozen elk in the wilderness.

The Drewry family adopted Diesel from the Bureau of Land Management, and he lived peacefully on their ranch with chickens, a llama, and a miniature donkey.

During a hike in April 2019, something frightened Diesel, causing him to run off suddenly and drag Dave Drewry through the bushes, as Terrie Drewry remembered in an interview.

They searched the Cache Creek Wilderness near Sacramento, a rugged area spanning about 30,000 acres, looking for their pet donkey for weeks.

Although they thought they saw him on a trail camera and found tracks that resembled his, they never managed to locate him.

Max Fennell, a professional triathlete who occasionally hunts in California, encountered a herd of elk during a hunting trip in March.

To his surprise, he found a donkey among them. Fennell recorded a video of the herd, which Terrie Drewry noted was filmed close to where Diesel went missing in 2019.

In the video, the herd moves together and pauses to watch Fennell as he observes them.

The animals wait until the donkey signals it’s safe, then it turns and walks away, with the elk following closely behind.

“Probably one of my wildest hunting trips to date,” Fennell captioned the Instagram video. “I can’t get over seeing it and I’m amazed that the donkey looks happy and healthy!”

Donkeys on farms not only perform tasks like clearing land and pulling wagons but also fiercely protect livestock.

They defend their herds by loudly braying, kicking aggressively, and charging at predators with their teeth bared.

“He’s killed coyotes protecting the herd and possibly a mountain lion,” Terrie said.

Drewry believes that if the donkey Fennell saw is Diesel, he’s simply fulfilling his role by protecting his deer companions.

“They learned to get along and be each other’s family,” she said.

Diesel’s owners saw a remarkable video on Instagram posted by the hunter and verified that it showed Diesel.

“Finally we saw him,” his owner, Terrie Drewry, told KOVR. “Finally, we know he’s good. He’s living his best life. He’s happy. He’s healthy, and it was just a relief.”

Despite missing Diesel greatly, his owners won’t try to bring him back home because they believe he’s living happily and healthily with the elk herd, enjoying his best life, WILX noted.

Last September, another Instagram video surfaced showing Diesel, Drewry’s pet donkey, with his elk family. The donkey looked joyful as he trotted through tall yellow grass in the dappled sunlight.

“To catch him would be next to impossible,” Terrie said. “He is truly a wild burro now. He’s out there doing what he’s raised to do.”

She noted that Diesel is approximately eight years old, and donkeys can live for up to 40 years.

Watch the Drewry’s pet donkey, Diesel, as he enjoys his new life with the elks in the wild: