Weaning Time

Typically, I'd like to wait until a foal is 6-8 months before weaning.  I mean...in the wild, they'd never wean earlier than a year, and even then babies are with their dam for 1-2 years.  But in case of Impulse and Grace, an early weaning at the age of 4 months simply had to take place.  For you see, the past month has seen Impulse dropping weight off her already slight frame, to the point of me becoming quite concerned.  Her teeth most definitely need to be looked at, but of course while nursing there is no point, as we cannot drug her to do any work.

Luckily, Grace has a decidedly independent streak, and at roughly 4 months of age she began loitering with Auntie Tika, Maxine, or simply hanging out alone in the barn rather than sticking close to her mother's side.  And with that, Impulse was loaded up and hauled down to the Cowboy's where she can eat her own feed without a little monster there to steal it away.

Onlookers would never know that Grace did not belong to Tika.  Being the good, maternal mare that she is, Tika allows little Grace to stand alongside, eat out of the same pile of hay, and happily swishes flies from the wee one's face just like her mother did.  

Darling had fun antagonizing the little stinker this afternoon.  

While Spud and Tika stood out in the sunshine grazing, little Grace found a nice, cool spot in the shade where she hid from spying eyes and camera lenses.  You can't see her, can you?  She didn't think so...

Grace obviously went unscathed by her mother's disappearance, and Impulse?  Well, she's not seeming to mind, either.  She's now able to eat as much as I put in front of her without the little monster gobbling it all up.  Hopefully we can get her teeth done soon, and some real weight put back on her body.  She's been a good momma, giving it all to little Grace!

Snotty Nose, Drooling Mouth

A spot of disappointment when we learned that the brown gelding we'd wanted for Ty had been shipped east to the adoption facilities there. I sent him a few new faces to look at, however, including the bay buddy of the brown horse here, and Ty agreed that the bay was very nice. In fact, he looked like he may be a little taller than the brown, which for someone who is roughly 6'4", would come in handy. And look at that bay face...does he not look like a sweet Sandy boy? I'm terribly fond of him already, even if he wasn't the brave one of the two.

Meanwhile, out in the round pen, Impulse is dripping...

I'm not really sure what's going on here, but when I first walked out she had saliva dangling at least two feet out of her mouth. Never have I seen anything like this! I went back in for the camera, and of course it was all gone, and this was the best I could get. Have you ever had this sort of drooling going on?

I'd wondered if perhaps it was a tooth issue, and it well could be. But the part that is concerning is that she's got such a snotty nose along with it. The other day, it was green and runny. She refuses to try any grain so far (and for those of you who are wondering, alfalfa pellets are also out), so can't get any powdered antibiotics down her. I've sprinkled it onto her hay, but she avoids it. So plan B (or is it C?) is to contact the vet Monday morning and get something that can be put into her water, and only give her small buckets so that she simply must drink.

Being that she's rather sick, and pregnant, I'm trying not to push her along in the gentling department. But with the sun out the other day, I grabbed a long stick and rested it on her back. I don't think she felt well enough to really complain. Or maybe she's just easy? She trotted a lap or two, turned around, then came to a stop. I rubbed and rubbed the old hair out, and eventually got close enough to run my fingers along her hip before she walked off. Was good stuff, it was!

Impulsive Moment...

Call it an impulse buy...call it a reflex...call it an accidental bid. All are true! In fact, they are so true that the Kiger community have begun calling her Impulse.

City Boy seems to be somewhat smitten with her. She's no Lefty, of course (no one ever will be), but there is something to her, something that gives a hint to a sweet lady who'll take you down the trail without complaint. It will be fun to see how she progresses.

We had one more day in Burns; a day without Kigers or wild horse corrals. We were heading up to the mountain again in search of more wild ponies. This time, rather than heading down past the water hole, I pointed toward Burnt Car Rd (so named for the burnt car at the end of it), and City Boy turned the Dodge to the right and headed up the hill.

Burnt Car is where Darling and I first met the love of her equine life...Dibs. My, how long ago that seems! It's where we met and named Honor, Sox, and Darling Calls Dibs. Who else was there then? Cascade was there; so was Golden Boy. Bird, Gunner and Raven, all later gathered and adopted out. Last Cry was there...we hadn't known it would be the only time we'd see him. A friend photographed him last year and he was a walking skeleton...so sad. But mostly our memories of that hill are good ones.

But as we drove, I think the others had their doubts about this new direction. Up on the horizon, though...what was that shape I saw? I studied, quietly from the back seat, not saying anything until I knew for sure. Horse on the horizon!

She? He? I haven't a clue. It stood like a sentry overlooking the valleys on both sides. We climbed slowly over the knoll, and up ahead we spotted our friends Cortez, Noelle and Holly walking up from the shaded region below. Yet off to the left is where my attention was diverted. Horses I'd not met before, though at least one who's been spotted by a couple other photographers now and again. The elusive silver bay...

He is not one known to tolerate company. He has charged a photographer. He runs his herd off. And he is definitely not one to be spotted with the rest of our well known cast of characters. But on this day, he didn't charge, and while they didn't stick around long, it was long enough to get some lovely shots of him and his band.

Another sentry, posted at the opposite end. A black horse reminding me so much of Sox on my first visit...young, not quite enough seniority to join the band. He paced the ridge, looking down below, sensing and seeing danger approaching...

But the danger he saw was not us. It was Cortez, the lovable rascal who's always in scrapes and fights with every stallion he comes across. The elusive Silver Bay and the rest of his band moved silently out beyond the tall grasses and disappeared from sight. Cortez and his ladies, however, did not seem the least bit fazed by the goings on of the horses on the ridge. They simply marched on up the hill, pausing to look at us, then continuing on their journey.

I told you they paused to look! Holly stopped at stared at my father for the longest time before following her mother and stallion up the hill. It's so hard to believe that Holly is just 18 months old. Look how tall that girl is! I swear she's at least 15 hands already. And pregnant...she looks very pregnant.

Down below to our right we could see more horses, so we trekked the half mile or so across the desert and got some good shots of some dear friends, including a mare who's stolen my wild side heart...Delight! And look at that new baby of hers! Delight lost her foal last year. We don't know what happened to it, but after a couple of months, it disappeared. We sure hope that doesn't happen again. Delight is in Golden Boy's band still, and there are a few pinto babies...but Delight's by far is the cutest!

We walked back to the road (well...gravel excuse for one) and started back the way we came, very happy with finding such a nice couple of bands. That's when I spotted more ears. Majesty, One Eared Jack, and their band were quickly spotted, and we made one more stop to snap a few more photos. We'd seen these horses two days before, but one can never have too many wild horse close encounters, can one? Another vehicle had stopped to talk to us when we pulled over, saying that Cortez had been by and fought a bit with Jack. When I started looking at photos once we were home, I thought Jack's eye looked a bit odd. I blew it up to get a better look.

Well, this is definitely not right. There'd been no trouble with it two days ago, so this was likely from his close encounter with Cortez. The other stallions do not like Cortez, but Jack is the most willing to engage in battle with him, it appears. And this time he seems to have come up short. The injured eye is normally blue. Not sure when I'll be back down to see if that eye heals up or not. If it doesn't, he'll not only be one eared Jack, but One Eyed Jack, as well.

Poor Jack...

The Unintended

I'd looked at the horses available so many times online prior to getting to Burns that I didn't give most of them a second glance. The three year old grulla mare made me smile...she was almost homely, poor thing, and small. A great kids horse, I'd imagined. Too bad I haven't got a kids camp. Ah, but then the crazy color people would bid her price up just because of that mouse gray hair of hers.

I wasn't so sure that City Boy's theory of Kigers have greater resale would hold true. A good, solid broke horse holds value, but I'm not sure a Kiger would get you anymore. Still, somehow, I ended up with a bidder number on Saturday morning. And once I had it in hand, I left the Kigers and went to see what else there was to see. I didn't really want a Kiger anyway. The last one, after all, had turned out to be a real firecracker.

Lots of pretty ponies out there. It seemed the only Kigers I was drawn to were the stallions. Before long it was noon, time to set ourselves down on the bleachers, catalog in hand, and listen to the auctioneer call out numbers and prices. My friend Emily, a college student who'd for years had wanted a mustang, was there with us, along with her mother. They were looking at a bay colt as a dressage prospect. I'd told them not a problem, bay Kigers aren't popular with the money crowd. Unfortunately, someone else was interested in that same bay Kiger, and a bidding war ensued! Finally, Emily's mom gave up, and the other interested party had themselves a nice two year old colt for $3500.

For the most part, the prices were affordable...though we had no intention of spending more than a few hundred, and of course the grullo colts that City Boy had been interested in went for a bit more than that. One dark dun colt with loads of stripes went for nearly $9000!

I was surprised that the four year old colts weren't being adopted. Some were really cute and for the base adoption fee of $125, you'd have yourself a very nice gelding. But they were a bit too small for City Boy, who would prefer a 15 hand horse.

As the numbers moved on, and horses were being bid on, my mom would show me the catalog and I'd mark down the prices on a separate sheet. We were about 70% through with the first go round when I twisted around to see a pretty faced mare in the catalog listed at 15 hands. My number shot up before I could think to remember just which horse this was, and before I could pull it down, they'd hollered out $125!, and then asked for more bids. So, I got the bidding started, and fully intended to not bid again, as I was having second thoughts. But...but...but...

Why wasn't anyone else bidding?

"Adopted!" they shouted. What? Why hadn't anyone else bid?

City Boy rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's go see what you got." We walked out through the pens to the 2-3 year old mares. Immediate disappointment. What had I done? Oh, sure, she had a pretty enough face, and her eyes seemed kind. But look at those hips! What a weak hind end this mare had, and long back, and did I mention hips? Holstein Hips! Just like Sandy.

Just like Sandy...that thought ran through my mind, and I recalled the first time I'd seen that ratty looking bay mustang. Ugliest one of the lot, I'd told my friend Lea. Hmm....maybe this mare wouldn't be so bad. After all, you could do a lot worse than Sandy!

Meanwhile, Back at the Corrals

"Should we drive the little truck? Or the big truck?"

This was the question presented to me by City Boy a few weeks ago. The answer was so obviously clear, I was surprised he had to ask. "The big truck, as it has more room, and of course if we drive that we'll want the horse trailer, too."

City Boy gave me the look...the one that says, "I know you're up to something", but of course I was not.

"You're not getting another horse...you're just hauling for others."

Right.

Adorable pinto filly, 2 years old

It was, of course, the Kiger adoption, and people would be coming from all across the US to see this event and, hopefully, find the perfect Kiger for their needs. There were even people from Sweden and Germany in attendance!

Kiger Stallions

And since I'm not a big Kiger nut, I didn't have any trouble at all telling City Boy I didn't plan on adopting one. Of course...not a word was mentioned about the possibility of finding a perfect little Coyote Lakes mustang. Nope. Not a word.

Very thin grulla 2 year old and her filly

There was loads of color to be found. From the striking duns and grullas of Barren Valley (a combination of 4 different HMAs, including Coyote Lakes) to the spotted pintos and appaloosas, there is definitely a horse for everyone waiting to be adopted.

The super cute grulla pinto filly found a home!

While we were wandering around, peering out into the corrals, I spotted a face that looked all too familiar. Could it be a relative?

Red dun mare, 11, Sheepshead HMA

A little research showed that this pretty red head was not related to my pretty red head at home. But she sure did remind me of Tika!

2 year old gelding

I kept my eyes peeled for prospective TIP horses, but seemed to only have an eye for 2 year olds. Even those I thought may be older, turned out to be just 2! And since they can't enter the program until they're 3, I was left pretty high and dry.

2 nice geldings

These two characters really wanted to know what I was up to with my camera. We were able to pet both of them. I'd really hoped they were three, but alas...both were also two year olds. I do have an adopter for one, though, so come 2012, I'll be making another trip to pick at least one of them up!

Not a Kiger...but certainly a diva!

The Kiger adoption was to happen on Saturday morning, and City Boy had begun to eye a 2 year old gelding in the pens. A grullo, he'd go for more than we'd ever spend on a mustang, but City Boy was beginning to think that in the long run, the return value may be better on one of these horses than your regular, run of the mill mustang. Not that we were adopting, mind you...

Kiger Video!

Later That Day...

After leaving the South Steens, we decided to head down toward Diamond and visit Pete French's Round Barn. Deb had been there years ago as a child, and Pam had never been there. So off we went...and made a wrong turn, which they are blaming me for. Why me? I was in the back seat, not at the wheel! Just because I was there just a couple months ago...sheesh!

We found ourselves heading up a gravel road that, at the base, a sign saying Welcome To Diamond had been waiting to greet visitors. Deb drove right past, not noticing it. I saw it, even from the back seat, and wondered if we'd passed that on the last trip. I didn't think so, but...what did I know? I may have been asleep on the first trip, who knows?

About the time I was letting them know that I thought maybe we'd taken the long way around the loop, we spotted another sign: Kiger Herd Management Area. Sometimes wrong turns can turn out to be a good deal.

Kigers are a man made mustang. They were noticed by Jim Harding amongst the Beaty's Butte horses many years ago. They looked different, and were completely isolated from the others on that HMA. Jim got permission to pull them out and set them aside. He made it his mission to find others with a similar Spanish look to them, and before long the Kiger Mustang was born.

Kigers can be found on two different HMAs; Kiger and Riddle. They're close to each other, but not to any other HMAs. The primary color is dun...from grulla to red dun to what we once referred to as a line back buckskin. Other colors can be found there as well...black, bay and brown are all acceptable colors.

Kigers are somewhat elusive. Most people feel privileged to find a band of 3-6. Know how may we spotted down there on that road? 21! And then Deb looked up on a ridge and spotted the backs of 3 more.

Needless to say, we were quite happy to have taken a wrong turn!

Beauty

They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. My eyes behold this mare as a thing of beauty. How about you?

This has been a tough year for mustangs and their fans. While I can rationally agree with the BLM's announcement that euthanasia of several thousand horses in holding facilities is the only real option at the moment considering the massive amounts of horses and lack of adopters, there is one horse that I struggle with.

Beauty.

I first saw her a year ago while at the Kiger adoption in Burns, Oregon. Beauty was in the aged mare pen with several others 10 and over. Their chances of adoption were non-existent, unless someone that weekend spoke up and said they wanted one, the mares and geldings in that age range were sent to long term holding facilities where they were to live out their lives, watched over by contractors who would provide them with fresh water and plenty off good hay. It was a sweet life, really, when you think about it. No more hunger or wondering if you'd make it to the next water hole. Just hundreds of acres on which to roam with your long term friends and herd mates just as you had when you were free. No one knew that when Beauty and the others were loaded up, that they were marching down a trail that may just lead to their death.

Beauty and her friend fear the worst...and may get it.

30,000 horses is a lot. If you own a horse, stop and multiply the cost of that one and see just how much it's costing to care for all these horses in holding. It's not a pretty thought. In Oregon a gather was recently done in the Alvord Tule and Coyote Lakes Herd Management Areas. They hadn't wanted to. It's been less than 3 years since the last one. However, feed is in short supply and the horses are thin, their ribs poking out and backbones showing. It's nearly impossible to expect these horses to survive the harsh winter of no feed and deep freezes in this condition.

Mare and foal from recent gather tell the tale of a hard summer.
Photo courtesy of Andi Harmon.

I honestly haven't got a solution. They'll die of starvation left to themselves. In holding, at least, it will be swift. Little comfort. My grandmother will soon respond to this post. She'll tell me (again) that I can't save them all. But what I wouldn't give to be able to save Beauty...

Go Get One NOW

Go on. Go get one. NOW!

I love these little widgets! Widget? What a funny word.

But this thing that Steve created which sits on the side of my blog and tells me the ten most recent posts from horse blogs far and wide IS. THE. BOMB!

(Watch...homeland security will be all over me for that.)

Trot along now, go get one...

Sponsor me in the Mustang Makeover!
http://Desperate-Horsewife.blogspot.com

Join the Hay Burner's Club and donate $15 towards Sandy's upkeep and I'll send you a 5x7 photo (once the horse is here, of course.) Or buy advertising space in the form of a button.

Internet Adoption

Weanlings at Burns; the duns are included in the Internet Adoption

The BLM Internet Adoption will begin on January 16. Right now, the horses available are listed online for your viewing pleasure and consideration.

Among the horses available is a sweet little Kiger filly who you'd swear is Firecracker's daughter. Same color, same facial expression, just not quite the right age. At least, I think not. Firecracker would have been about 8 months pregnant when she aborted, so this filly wouldn't be quite old enough to be hers. I think I'd be in trouble if she were, as I may be tempted to adopt her!

Another very striking individual who happens to have stolen my heart is this beautiful Kiger stallion. He's six years old and hasn't a speck of white. Darling captured this head shot while we were down there in November.

There are some pretty cute horses available, so go check them out! Once you ride a 'Stang, you'll never go back to domestic!

The Daily Grind

And so the daily grind begins.

I'm upset with myself for trying that short little rake. Not long enough to be effective. In the video it looks like I'm chasing her with it, but it was positioned there at her hip for the most part and even sat on her a couple of times. I can see how the bamboo pole would work, but for me the lariat will suffice. It takes a bit longer, but has the same effect.

Yesterday I was able to rub the coiled end of my rope on Firecracker's nose. She's reached out to touch me and yesterday she ate out of my hands while I held the hay. After just a few days she's already working out the fear issues that have plagued Sunny all along. If we could just get some dry days, I'd be able to spend a bit more time with her and she'd likely come along quite fast.

Speaking of Sunny, someone came to see her this weekend. She put on her frightened little horse show for them and they weren't scared away. They're big into Parelli, and while I'm not a fan I know that they'll have the skills needed to work with her at this stage of her training. After spending a few minutes with her, Sunny began to relax and do what the woman asked as far as giving to pressure, leading and even trotting for her (we've done that a few times but I didn't expect she'd trot for a stranger.)

That was Saturday; the woman left saying she was in love but that it was something they needed to discuss as a family. I didn't hear back on Sunday and was disappointed. But yesterday she called and said they just needed to work out a few details, but that they wanted her.

I feel very good about this match. The woman was soft and sensitive to Sunny's fears, but also didn't back away from her when Sunny refused to do something. She seemed to know just when to stop asking and recognized when the eyes went soft and willing. They've already got 2 mustangs, but haven't ever had one this green before. Sunny's the perfect step for them as she's always wanted one that's wild; with Sunny she'll have the opportunity to work on developing trust and a bond without having to mess with the 'how to touch a wild horse' or the added fencing requirements. She also uses Cheryle as a farrier, and Cheryle gave her a good reference. That gives me a peace, because I've been so concerned about finding the right home for this girl. She'll always hold a special place in my heart.

She's Home

Darling's new filly came home last night. The weather was wet and wild, and we didn't get her home til nearly dark. Still managed to snap a few new photos of her.

She didn't have any trouble figuring out how to eat from a manger, but the water gave her difficulties. Not that it's anything extraordinarily different; it's just a tub with water in it parked out in the paddock. But for whatever reason she felt disinclined to drink from it. Hence, when I went out this morning to feed, she was all tucked up and looking a great deal thinner than she had when she climbed out of the trailer last night.

At some point during the day she determined that she was thirsty and that the tub wasn't so terribly bad after all. Of course it was after I'd been out cleaning and she'd ran over it and dumped the water all over the ground. That left her with an empty water tub rather than one to gain refreshment from. She grabbed at it and lifted it into the air to protest it's emptiness, then dropped it and placed a hoof inside and tried to dig for something wet. When that didn't work, she left and returned to her hay and I came with the hose to fill it. She didn't bother to say thank you.

What is it About Kigers?

Aside from the small bit of white on her forehead, this mare has near perfect markings.

To be honest, I don't know. Walking around the corrals this weekend I found myself drawn to very few Kigers, but several other mustangs from Beatty's Butte or Jackie's Butte. And yet, Kiger's have managed to capture the hearts of many.

I suppose it's like any breed of horse and their following. Quarter Horses, Arabians, Halflinger...they all have their 'peeps' who swear there's no other. I'm just as bad with mustangs, although I'm not limited to one particular type of mustang. I just love the blank slate they come with.

Gray is not a desirable color as it creates a silver dun in the offspring; highly undesirable in a Kiger breeding program. This stallion is 17 and was captured at Riddle Mountain.

Kiger Mustangs are different than the other free roaming horses in the west due to their Spanish heritage. While other herds are a blend of ranch horses, cavalry mounts and the like, Kigers are the direct descendants of the horses brought over by the Spanish; they're thought to be the purest strain of Spanish horse left in the wild today.

This pretty boy had many people talking. Exhibits the classic Kiger look, but because he was captured at Beatty's Butte, he can't be registered.

The original Kigers were found on Beatty's Butte by BLM employee, Ron Harding, in 1971. He noted that these horses were different than the other mustangs that the BLM had been dealing with. A group of these horses were gathered, genetic testing was done, and high levels of Spanish markers were found, linking the Kiger Mustang to the horses the Spaniards brought over in the 1600s. Two new Herd Management Areas (HMAs) were set aside so that these horses would continue to remain pure. They can be found in the Kiger or Riddle Mt HMAs.

Group of Kiger colts waiting to be adopted.

There are currently three different Kiger registries in the U.S., all of them battling it out in terms of what's acceptable and what isn't for a Kiger. The original registry is the Kiger Mesteno Association, founded in 1988.

When it comes to spending big money on a Kiger, the public is looking for color. Classic coloring for a Kiger is dun with a black mane, tail, dorsal stripe and stockings. Black muzzles, webbing on the face, tips of ears, tiger striping and shoulder barring are highly sought after. White is acceptable, but not desirable. Long, blond streaks extending from the crest of the neck down into the mane are prized. Many people also are drawn to the grulla coloring, a lovely smokey blue with dorsal stripe such as the colt below.