Posted by Bob Dole for President, a resident of the Adobe-Meadows neighborhood, on Jan 2, 2013 at 4:19 pm

I sure hope the surviving horse is in stable condition.

Posted by Mountain View resident, a resident of Mountain View, on Jan 3, 2013 at 10:56 am

Horses have been getting loose from Webb Ranch for decades. My sister's horse got loose from there in the late 60's.

Posted by Judith Schwartz, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 3, 2013 at 11:29 am

Webb Ranch is a great place and one of the last family-friendly barns in the area. I've boarded horses there for 25 years and leased horses at Garrods and Fremont Hills before that.

Horses at ANY stable can get loose because a rider falls off, a gate is accidentally left open, or a mischievous horse figures out a way through or around a fence. Most of the time the horse runs home, is caught, or finds the nearest patch of grass as Tom described. This was a freak accident that the horses traveled over a mile and wandered onto the highway in the middle of the night. Fortunately, at 5 AM on a Saturday of a holiday weekend there weren't many cars on the road.

All of us at the ranch are very sad about the horses. They were greatly loved and well-cared for. I'm also one of Jean Gillon's swimming team mates at Menlo Masters and we're all glad she survived such a terrifying accident. We are sending her our good thoughts and prayers. I hope Mr. Stein has made it safely back home.

Posted by moi, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 3, 2013 at 12:19 pm

@Bob Dole for President --

I never knew you were so funny. Might even have changed my vote.

Posted by Nora Charles, a resident of Stanford, on Jan 3, 2013 at 4:01 pm

So sad and horrific.

There's nothing funny about this. In my view those who joke about tragedies are sick, or certainly lacking in feeling.

Posted by moi, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 3, 2013 at 4:47 pm

Dear @ Nora Charles,

I am terribly sorry that I was one of the people who posted a comment which could have been, and was, interpreted to be insensitive. It must have been framed ambiguously and tastelessly.

Actually, I was trying to join in the celebration of the survival, against great odds, of the mustang who accompanied the three unfortunate horses who undoubtedly suffered greatly.

When first I read about this incident, I was sickened and appalled. I have ridden horses for 47 years, and I have considered boarding a horse at Webb Ranch myself. There but for the grace of god go we.

I am a strict vegetarian, and have been for decades. I support numerous animal rights organizations, and I consider myself something of an activist.

Your posts regarding animal issues are always cogent and well thought out, and I have always agreed with you. Sincerely, I think we are on the same page.

My apologies. My heart is in the right place, even though my foot may not be.

Posted by Hmmm, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Jan 3, 2013 at 7:03 pm

I laughed at Bob's pun, too, despite this tragic loss. I was relieved to be able to laugh, after these awful happenings. Not to be insensitive to Nora AT ALL, sometimes I have to laugh regarding animals, because so much is tragic - that's my years of rescue work speaking. My darker humor doesn't prevent me from being concerned about the horses will at Webb. I hope that all sorts of precautions are now taken to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Posted by Neighbor, a resident of Los Altos Hills, on Jan 4, 2013 at 9:06 pm

Somebody left the gate open - Daaah!!!