I am happy to announce that the WHOAS 2011 fund raising calendar is available now. This calendar is our sole fund raising event. The cost is $25.00 which includes postage and handling.

As in the past the calendar features thirteen beautiful photographs of our Alberta Wild Horses. The monthly photo’s include a brief narrative of the individual wild horses featured. These calendars are a perfect birthday or x-mas gift.

To order your copy, please send a cheque or money order to:

WHOAS
Box 70022
Olds, AB.
T4H 0A3

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In a couple of previous posts I have mentioned about looking for some horses that I thought may have been hurt and that I could not find.  The first was the Denmark herd, which inhabited a valley which a tornado had destroyed earlier in the summer.  Several trips out there, looking for them revealed nothing.  I feared that they may have been trapped and killed in the storm.  However in a recent trip out there, I found them again, safe and all members of the herd were accounted for.  It made my heart feel so good, as I had worried about them for such a long period of time.  The herd can be quite picturesque, with their different coat coloring and distinctive facial blazes.

Denmark Herd safe and sound

The other blog I had submitted was in regards to a young foal that was reported in distress to me in September, by Bunny and Al, from Grand Prairie.  I had made several trips out to the area looking for it, again with no success.  Then on October 17, 2010, I had taken another photographer out to show her the wild horses and we came across a small herd of five . In the bunch was this scruffy looking sorrel foal, which I managed to photograph.

After I got home later that evening, I received another call from Bunny.  She was concerned about the foal and my luck in trying to find it.  I told her that I had not found it as of yet.  She then offered to e-mail me a picture that her and Al had taken of the foal when they first saw it.  Bunny had to go to a neighbors in order to get the photograph e-mailed.  About an hour later, there on my computer screen was the same foal that I had photographed earlier in the day.  I was so elated.

Scruffy Little Girl

The foal was with four horses now, two mature studs and two yearling studs. I recognized these two younger boys as being from Sock’s herd.  In an earlier blog I had documented that he had just recently lost his herd to another stallion and was pretty beaten up as a result of the fight for domination.

What occurs in the hierarcy of the wild horse herds is that the new stallion will chase off some of the offspring of the stallion he had just beaten.  This is to assure that his genes will now be the dominant ones in his new charges.  I would presume that this younger foal was also orphaned as a result of this struggle as well as the two yearlings being kicked out.

I promised Bunny that I would have another check on the foal. On Thursday, October 21, I loaded up my trusty Warzone and headed back into the area.  I had my lariat with me just in case I did have to rescue the foal. Now knowing who I was looking for, I easily found the foal.  As I watched her I could see that in the company of the four other horses, she was doing fine. The two older studs would protect her from any predators and show her the skills she needed to survive in the harshness of the oncoming winter.  At that point I decided to let her be for now.  I will continue to observe her and will only intervene if there is no other choice.  I feel much better about her chances now.  Always when I am able to witness things like this I always feel so good deep down inside my soul.  I so love the wild horses and the spirit of freedom they represent to me.

Thanks to all that supported me through my efforts to locate her to assure her safety.

Bob.

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On October 13, 2010 I was privileged to be able to attend at the Ta-Otha School of the Big Horn Reserve west of Nordegg, Alberta. Here I gave the Wild Horses of Alberta presentation to the students of the school. All students are people of the First Nations and it was my honor to be able to talk to them. I say this because it was the First Nations who were instrumental on re-introducing the horse back into what is now Alberta. Their culture is steeped tradition and in their relationship with the horse.

The day did not go totally well though. Flat tire on the way up delayed me by about an hour and then with a brand new laptop, I could not get the sound to work and so I had to do a verbal dialoque of the photoshow. Despite this I was warmly thanked at the end. I was also able to provide the young student, Cerral Smallboy, who had raised the $53.00 mostly in pennies, which he  donated to WHOAS, with one of our T-shirts. In returned I received a coffee cup with the school name on it. It meant a lot to me and I will treasure it as a momento of my visit.

The student body of Ta-Otha School

Thanks to all the students, teachers and parents who were there.

Bob.

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Sunday night, October 3, I was sitting at home when late in the evening the phone rang.  On the line was a friend of mine Bunny, who with her husand Al, hail from Grand Prairie.  They had been down, riding the west country looking for wild horses and they had come across a 2-3 month old foal who appeared to be in distress.  It had company but, the company was two young studs, there was no mom around.  They attempted to see what they could do, but were unable to catch the young thing and they did have to head all the way back home.  Hence the phone call.

I had to work Monday but promised Bunny that as soon as I could get off work, I would head out to the location where they had spotted the foal and see what I could find or do.  Monday afternoon I slipped out of work a little early, grabbed a lariat, blankets and some soft rope and off I went. Travelling in my vehicle I toured up and down the trail where they had last seen the foal.  I did see wild horses and will expand on that later.   However, I had no luck finding the two young studs or foal.

I then decide to go out on foot and explore further back into the clearcuts.   I travelled into several of the clearings looking for some sort of sign.   The sun got lower and the light began to fade as I continued to look.  Just as I was way in the back of one cut block, in a muddy patch, there was some fresh huge grizzly tracks.  The hair on my neck went up as I tried to hurriedly picked my way through the stumps and ground clutter, back to the vehicle. In the dark I stumbled through it, unable to see very much, but on high alert for bear.

When I got back to the vehicle I sat there quietly thinking about the foal and hoping for the best for it.  One thing does keep my hopes up that I still may find it alive is that there were no flocks of ravens around.  They tell all when you are in the forest and that meant that there was nothing fresh dead in the area.  I prayed for the foal and started back home.

The reason I titled this The Life Of A Wild Horse is how I was thinking at the time.  This year has been a good year for the wild horse foals. We have rescued some and a good percentage of the 2010 crop are doing fine.  However foal mortality this year is still around 20%.   The life of a mare can be a hard one also, as the stallion’s herd grows, the dynamics of the herd mares changes also.  When foaling there are no vets to come to their aid if something is wrong.  They, with the help of the stallion, will try to protect their foal from anything, even if it may cause them harm.  Occasionally also they or a foal will be injured when another stallion challenges the herd boss.  Life is not easy and nature at times can be harsh, especially in winter.   

Then while looking for the foal, I came across one of the stallions that if knew so well, I fully realized the hardships these magnificent creatures face.  For what I came across was a stud we called Socks.

My ex-wife and I had come across him in the middle of a snowstorm several years back.  He made an immediate impression on us both at the time with, his high white markings on his left rear leg.  He was just starting his herd and had two mares and yearling with him. Over the next few years, everytime we came across him he would always put a show on for us.  He was so photogenic and has appeared in our WHOAS calendar two or three times.  I also have photos of him on the walls of my home.

This time things were tragically different and my heart broke.  He was with another lone stud.  Socks was beaten up pretty bad with gouges and bite marks covering his body.  He had gone past his prime and had just lost his herd to an up coming dominant stallion.  He was looking so forlorn and I cried for him.  I could not even take any pictures of Socks as I care to remember him in all his glory. 

The fight of the stallions can be ferocious at times and sometimes even fatal.  Most of the time though, the victor chases off the vanquished with no real harm done.  Though, sometimes there are broken bones and or open wounds from the biting and kicking that takes place when they fight.  When fighting the squealing can be heard echoing through the hills.

Socks will wander off on his own and his life will end quietly.  It has been such a pleasure of mine to have known this stallion.  He has filled my heart with joy several times.  One time I came across him as he pranced out in front of his herd toward me, trying to protect them.  One of that years colts came running after his dad and put on a bluff just like he did to warn me off.  What a thrill.

It is not only him, it is all the wild horses I have come across over the years that bring  such joy to my soul.  The pleasure I take in photographing them so that others can enjoy and see their beauty, is immense.

Wednesday is my day off and I bet you can guess where I am going and what I will be trying to do.  Maybe I can find someone to help me.  Thanks to you all for your support of your wild horses.

2011 WHOAS Calendars will be available by November 1, 2010.

 Bob.

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