NORTH 40 NEWS articles about mustangs, art and rescue...

On the leadline through the Roosevelt Natl Forest...

Photos: Lourie Zipf

This was yesterday after the roundpen work, and it took the wind out of all of us. Today the wind continued and Coppersmith#900 took a day off.

EcoFlight goes to Craig, The Vermillion Basin, Adobe Town WY

WINDS howling...Lourie went with me for a 4 hour walk....

These hills have it in 'em. So a 4 hour walk, whether riding or on foot takes it out of you. Whether human or animal. But it also frees the spirit and gives the body a wholesome feeling. Like many of us have noticed the mustangs don't seem to mind the wind. And the ones from Nevada love snow patches...#900 is getting into his body and is gaining...here we are still in the roundpen with the saddle and the grain saddle bags...

Back to doing what we do best - walking around the mountains...

I had me somewhat of an electrical charge on my side when we started walking today. Lourie and Aragon came with and we started cross country to one of the empty pastures down in the meadows. A little give and take - stops for grazing and then a couple of narrow paths and uphill and down hill and leaving room yielding and being able to stop and enjoy the view. He took it in well and with the little run-intermezzo we ended on a wonderful and relaxed note back at home...tomorrow the same...(deanna will remember this: walking and then some more)

Coppersmith HMA California - Google search.

Instead of looking for information on the BLM website, I googled the Coppersmith HMA and found both acreage and number of horses. The last roundup was January 2011 and they reduced the horses to 50 on 50 000 acres????

In the Coppersmith HMA, straddling the California-Nevada border northwest of Ravendale, Calif., BLM estimates 86 horses must be removed to bring the herd population to its AML of 50 to 75 wild horses.

nant wildlife in the area includes pronghorn, mule deer, sage grouse, chukar and quail.

 

HERD SIZE:    50 - 75 head

 

HORSE COLORS:      Bay, Black and Brown

 

SIZE OF HORSES:     14-16 hands and 900-1100 pounds

 

HISTORY:       This area contains horses thought to originate from Spanish stock diluted with ranch stock and US Cavalry remounts prior to and during World War I. Many of the horses in this area have characteristics common to Morgans and Quarter Horses.

 

COPPERSMITH HERD MANAGEMENT AREA (#900 home)

Picture shows the California/Nevada  border and I finally find the Coppersmith HMA listed under California. Even though the range extends across the border. The lower image is done under a new profile and reading the land assigned users and authorities is very confusing...Just look at the legend and then try to understand how to monitor and count the horses with all those intersecting and overlapping jurisdictions. (they all have different guidelines...)

Please visit the www.blm.gov website and/or FB page and study the maps and reports in regard to the land available for the horses due 1971 protection act, and the remaining horses on thoses lands. Try to take just one area, maybe the one that YOUR horse is from and compare roundup numbers with geographical size and herd size...it is very confusing...here are a couple of pictures from COPPERSMITH HMA, where TG900 comes from. I was hoping to find out how big the HMA is and how many horses are left on it.

THIS IS THE MUSTANG DRILL TEAM PRACTICING AND HAVING FUN...

The paricipants are all local (Ft. Collins and surrounding mustangs) Shannon White, Cindy Loader, Mark Loader, Patricia Burge, Taryn Hillman, Megan (?) Gary Gayler (drill master)and myself....several of the horses were competitors in the 2010 makeover and are either with their trainers or with their new owners. We are very proud to be able to showcase these horses as they have become integrated and good citizens of a wide variety of horse communities.

#900 in Redfeather Lakes...at the strawbale house

Figured, that if he wanted to have some time to heal he might as well come home with me. So I brought Aragon over after our MustangMakeover Drill (video next post) and loaded 900 in with him. Snow was falling a little. But then the sun came out also and we made it up to 8000 feet in Redfeather Lakes where I live with my other mustangs. That was yesterday. Aragon and him spent the night out listening to wind and coyotes and today he came up sound....Love that...even though I cannot  keep up with these jungian trainers we are continuing our journey...

THREE EASY PIECES....TAG#900, TWELVE AND ISAAC ASIMOV...

In reflection on the name of this mustang...
1. His Freezemark is 07220900, foaled 07, rounded up 09/09...HMA CA-261(Coppersmith CA)
    How many horses are in Canon City...900 guesses are between 2500 and 7000? If a horse dies does its
    number get reassigned.    
2. Individuality in Numbers  : Isaac Asimov wrote in the TRILOGY: There is only INDIVIDUALITY in
    numbers. Names repeat themselves and are repeated: Numbers are unique...

Hello my name is TWELVE,  hi, I am 900  (photo:lourie zipf)

3. Michael Blake (Dances with Wolves) tells of the encounter with his mustang:   TWELVE:
    ...when he first met the horse he was moved by his presence and demeanor. He named him TWELVE,
    surely, it was suggested that the number was part of the horses Tag or freezemark? He said no: The
    horses name is TWELVE because on a scale from 1-10 he is a TWELVE!!!!!!

FIRES BURNING AND HORSES being rescued...south of Denver....

Well, I am back to slow motion with the boys since we are watching the left hind a bit...So I backed the trailer in to the corral and worked on Aragon's lateral yielding. He seemed to be listening to the distant south where the fires were burning and again helicopters in the air. I do understand they wonder why they don't get to go out at night right now.

Life is what happens when you are making other plans...

#900 was still a bit off in the morning. I administered some bute and had a good look at his LEFT hind foot, as we can see here in detail. He kept it there for quite a while. After having a bite in the trailer I groomed and worked on the ground. He is a great backer....Look at these phantastic mustang feet....Then I had my hands full with Aragon, who kept meditating on the distance where the other horses are out on the pasture. These two will have to stay in, at least for a couple of days.

SUNNY and MILD....900 comes up slightly lame behind....

It was a beautiful day and on a good note ALL the horses came in for breakfast in the morning...I gave him a thorough brushing and cleaning of feet, more touching on the private and soft parts...gum, ears etc...and then it was time for some longlining....where he showed some lameness on the left hind. I picked up he foot and examined it for foreign bodies, but felt that the source was up higher in his pelvis or hip. There is no swelling, or bite or kickmarks, no indication of a pulled muscle...but he is off...
So I massaged him some and worked on the diagonal side and then let the two boys be. Aragon and 900 will stay in the corral tonight and tomorrow I will administer some bute, if he has not improved.

Beautiful Recap by Michael Golembeski....

PERSPECTIVE AND SEPARATION...

Don't dare to open the Truck door....

Aragon in the corral-900 outside on the right side pacing

The horses are hanging with him but drift away slowly -he keeps returning to the corral.

TAG#900 has bonded with Aragon. He concentrates and has no problem walking away like yesterday.. In the mornings the horses come in for grain. Aragon and 900 have chosen to stay out until I personally get them. Which is alright - yet it feels as if separation would allow me more access to the horse. So today I brought the trailer and intended to take Aragon (I have done it before) whom I need for some training with me to the Mountains. The wind was very strong so I elected to just keep him in the corrals while letting the other horses out. 900 stayed around hollering at him and then tried to join the others with little success. He came back to the gate and stayed with Aragon.  I walked up to him and put his halter on and then released Aragon with him on the pasture. Not the right day to work on this. The wind is too strong.

WHORL-WINDS...PRIMITIVE MARKINGS...THINGS OF THE PAST...

Last year when I followed daily the blog of www.cindybranham.com training my favorite TUCKER for the Ft. Worth Makeover, I was upset each evening that the blog came up with pictures only and no video. Then on top of all there were days, where only text appeared...Here is one of those: I took Tag#900 for a long walk today. Away from the other horses, saddled but without concern we crossed ditches and talked things over. He figured that life was intact and everything would work out fine...then his head went up and in the far distance - HELICOPTER- now Lauren and others have noticed the same thing. They will never forget...How different it would be if our horses had no trauma. You say, it can't be done. Well it can. There are numerous accounts of low stress roundups and baitings in areas where folks have taken steps to observe and know these horses...and I remember a friend of mine saying, that the mares will come in to get their babies weaned if they know that there will be no tragedy...We do not need those antiquated, primitive and aggressive capture methods. If it takes money - that's where the budget should go, not to the holding pens, if it takes people utilize the millions of volunteers and organizations (no child left inside), if it takes monitoring and auditing (like Temple Grandin insists) that too is in the budget. If it takes riders, weeks and diligence, if it takes sensible birth control and maybe predator reintroduction. In addition sanctuaries, reserves and nature preservation projects form adequate venues for alternate solutions. I have 6 mustangs, who did NOT go through a roundup, whose heads stay down clear of memories -  HELICOPTER ---------

MUSTANG ECO TOURS- ISM WILD HORSE VACATION or ism moot....>>>>

"Take your daughter/wife on a vacation, they will never forget...."
 *Tucked into the Rockies lies a sleepy northern exposure village called Redfeather Lakes, around the enchanted Strawbale House of Glacier View Meadows you can find mustangs grazing on alpine slopes...Spend the night in cool quiet of an energy efficient sustainable house built of straw and adobe. *Rise with the sun and head down to the corrals to experience one of the last legends of the true blue foregone West, the WILD AMERICAN MUSTANG.
*In 90 days from Zero to competition in the EXTREME MUSTANG MAKEOVER. Witness the exciting drive to the Canon City Correctional Facility where thousands of horses are stockpiled to await their turn.
*Then familiarize yourself with the requirements to house and care for these untamed and elusive animals.
*Experience the thrill of developing a relationship and training curriculum, daily steps towards the 90 day goal of a 2 day competition that will showcase these icons of american history in a dramatic and emotional display of their development.
*The curriculum will be enriched by a road trip to one of Colorado's Wild Horse areas. Photo- and Paint- workshops are an opportunity to capture some of the characteristics and uniquely artistic features of the animals in their natural environments.
*For Riders and outdoor enthusiasts a horse-camping ride towards the Continental Divide on already seasoned and trained mustangs...
Your hosts are experienced, well informed and educated in issues surrounding the state of affairs and challenges of renewable living and modern sustainable and energy efficient alternatives to traditional exploration, including solar and wind power, geothermal heating and modern construction with earth and straw...the focus again being on the renewable resources horse...provided by nature at no extra cost....
 As the day of the competition draws closer, the concerted effort of man and horse becomes more and more apparent - the day of seperation also approaches. With it the bitter taste of what the fate of these animals has been ...a memory of romance, wildness and passion bottled up to fix a broken world...

THERE IS NO OTHER PLACE WHERE WORLDS LIKE THIS COLLIDE... be part of a vanishing phenomenon and take home with you both sensual and theoretical models and molds of social structures that will never be the same....WHERE HAVE ALL THE WILD THINGS (horses) GONE....???

(Sign up now, Space is limited... there are only few areas and wild horse herds left... This is not a catered event or dude string. This is an expedition and members are expected to uphold their responsibilities and fullfill their assignments. Liability waivers and certain restrictions apply.)

PRAISE THE TALL BUT SADDLE THE SMALL>>........

video of Ginger Kathrens... - an advocate looking for solutions...

I have been a witness to a roundup and I have studied in depth and with seriousness the procedures and options of Managing our wild Horses. And I emphatically believe that the horses need to be managed by individuals and an institution, that is enthused and delighted about their existence and furthers the succession of these marvellous animals. An agency whose back is kept clear of conflicting interests with hunters and ranchers and mining and drilling. There are part private part public solutions and numerous alternatives and options (look at sanctuaries and also other countries). The antiquated and aggressive capture and processing procedures render these animals traumatized to a point unadoptable U-brands, untrainable 3STRIKERS, . It is expensive, unneccessary, deadly, lacking all finesse and compassion. Every night when I leave the horse #900 I am in debt. 

Please consider other venues and propose them to your representatives. 

It takes a village....finally thanks to Lourie we also have a pic of MELODY touching TAG

Now we all know that when the artist's eye falls onto their object of desire, she will not rest until some sprawling canvas is covered with the scent and most intimate details of his thriving physique and she will relentlessly massage oil and brush into a delighful frenzy until it successfully couples the essentials of this here being..with his pursuit of  happiness...

Curriculum forte...feet, ears, nose, eyes....----,butt...

This is an eye if there ever was one....

LIFE is just that...whipping and then some ...

He does like grain equine senior -does not like carrots and apples...he likes ARAGON>>>>>

Melody says, he looks worried when I leave the roundpen and he looks worried when I come back...and he is really worried when I take my jacket off...

All videos and Photos by Melody Perez- gives me thunder...

He swings nicely through the cavaletti and is not in a hurry. But he also accepts requests....

He's got a favorite stick and not so favorite stick and he's got favorite places to touch and not so favorite places to touch...

He's got rhythm and cadence, good arch over jump and easy transitions, he's got a couple of gears and we are not moving in slow motion anymore. He's easy to unlock and stays limber and soft through the hip and the shoulder.

Talking about the life B4 the MUSTANG MAKEOVER, talking about ROUNDUP...

To gain perspective without loosing intimacy we sometimes have to put distance between US and the ISSUE. That is an old wisdom that I as an aviator learned from a man called Charles Lindbergh, who as a first crossed the Atlantic Ocean in an airplane...It was hard for him and it is hard for us. But one of the legacies of these horses are grueling roundups. 

this young one could be your horse....take that into consideration when you start training and actually, NEVER FORGET IT...they don't

VEEDAWOO, then now and in between...

Today Sunday I continue to introduce my mustangs: Here is VEEDAWOO as a weanling and then later as a proud juvenile under saddle with the LG bitless bridle by Monika Lehmenkuehler from www.lg-zaum.de. Veedawoo is turning 6 this year, he has heart and the video says it all...

Veedawoo was part of an interesting experiment. I picked him up after weaning together with Silhouette and took him to the Rockies for about a year. My friend Deanna and I taught them the ways of the water and the snow and the leadrope and the trailer, longlining line and ditches and such. At 1 1/2 he returned to "the range" and was integrated slowly with similar aged bachelors and youngsters. I would visit every couple of months and see whether he still remembered me and he did. One time he came up to the Toyota when we were on the range preparing for the night and brought all his bachelor friends. The other bands also were curious and before too long we had too many horses around the truck to even consider spending the night. I had an idea and took a saddle blanket out assuming it would scatter the interest and have them wander away. To my surprise Veedawoo not only remembered but proudly accepted the pad on his back and wanted to show it off to his mates. At that the entire bunches snorted and disneylike cartoon images evolved as he tried to approach, they veered off pounding and then when he happily trotted down to the water hole the entire order or leadership had been rearranged, him being the king of the valley...as the sun was setting - all I could think about was that I could not believe that this pad was staying on like that....he must have been intricately balancing it....

.. I venture a guess, this is a young horse soul, he is not as much a hedonist, as I initially thought, somewhat detached and impartial. He prefers the company of anti-authority, like most horses he senses authenticity...

.... He is somewhat impartial to affection but appreciates positive contact and purposeful touching and stroking. His phyisque is balanced and lofty, he is very soft and flexes well through the shoulder and the hip. He is not busy with his feet and has smooth transitions...Someone saw him running with a tail straight up which makes us wonder....??? He loves water (coming from Nevada!!) and he steps gingerly through ditches and bog. Given the opportunity he will go into the water and submerge... He eats thorough, drinks with deliberation. Within the herd his position varies. I cannot detect a preferred side at this time. There are no areas of particular apprehension...medium mouth, large nostrils, very expressive eyes and good ears. One Whorl above eyes, no white but the lighter color around eyes muzzle and inside  legs.

Here is Cheryl Allin, who has a first hand opportunity to practice her hand-eye coordination. She has not  spent a lot of time with and around horses....

Thank you again to Melody Perez for Photos and video.

All COLORS of the Spectrum all facets of the Kaleidoscope....

At the end of the day it is again a bunch of wild horses running out to pasture. Here you see Aragon leading the herd, followed by TAG#900. On the far right another Mustang (I remember him by Dunner) and in the Back the light Dun, DUN, - they belong to our Friend and the owner of this beautiful facility, Tim Singewald from Bridger Wilderness Outfitters in Pinedale, WY. (Now these images are from Wellington, Colorado.

...no Child left inside....

This young lady is Robyn Hall, she, like all young girls will be a Vet when she grows up and she has encouraged me to hope that there is a future for these wild Horses. The same applies to some of the young trainers that compete in the Mustang Makeover. To name just a few: Taryn Hillman, Lauren Kolker, who very unassuming open the book and train with enthusiasm and diligence, completely transparent...making it very clear that it takes love and compassion can entice what harshness and brutality forces....If we can connect the young generation (and obviously that also includes boys to men) with this part of nature, no child will be left inside...Thank You Tag,, you were very generous today... 

A brief history of TIME...

This is Aragon's Sire at age 27 in South Dakota at the Wild Horse Sanctuary founded by Dayton Hyde. His name was "Texas Pony Syndicate", and ran a bunch in the Starflower Spanish Mustang Ranch in Oshoto. For circumstances explained otherplace he came to the Sanctuary at a respectable age and the story goes that he proceeded to jump the fence to gather some mares from the outside and then return to the Sanctuary...His lopsided ear was only one of his trademarks, I will also publish a beautiful painting of him.

Those Bonds we make, these bonds we break...

...I am not young and I have six mustangs to ride and to care for. TAG#900 comes towards the end of a long long passion and relationship to the Wild Horses of the Americas. As I look back at the years and the wonderful horse-beings I met along with alright people, I can admit that time is not a big factor anylonger. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce the mustangs of my life along the storyboard of the training ledger of TAG#900:

If  you look at the opening photo of this BLOG you will find my family: Aragon V, (lineback dun, 16), a Spanish Mustang from Oshoto, the birthplace of the Spanish Mustang Registry. He was a 4year old bachelor running with the bands when I first met him. A young girl fell in love with him and claimed and trained him, just to find herself in love with a man, who did not want for a mustang. So he came to me...it was not easy. Two years later I fell in love with a little black filly (newborn) at the same place, the Cayuse ranch, she was black like a looking glass, her father a feral mustang from Nevada, her mother a Spanish Mustang..."I named her Silhouette, she had not much to say, but when I tried to hold my breath, she took my breath away"...During the same visit we looked at one of my favorite bands, those of a black stallion by the name of Sangrea Real,whose lineage goes back to a Black Stud called Kaw-maw-i. .....anyway I will continue this story later...

Back to Tag#900: the Tag will stay on until someone claims him, and I have a hard time naming him for the same reason....

Mustang Galore-what do they say: ROUGH IN THE MIDDLE AND DANGEROUS ON BOTH ENDS....

Today Formation practice riding at the CSU ARENA for our little local mustang riding presentation during the Extreme Mustang Makeover....Horses going off in all directions, at one point I thought one was crawling up mine from behind...this is NOT easy...we have a pretty simple pattern but to have them going steady and close and pay attention sure takes it out of you. Aragon and Veedawoo (2 of my spanish mustangs) tried their darnest...3 hours later I unloaded Aragon at the Barn and #900 whinnied and had a lot of complaining to do. Then the snow came and I had to take the trailer up the hill to ReDFEATHER>>>> Several of the mustangs we are riding with are from last year's MakeOVer...There is our favorite MARVIN (purchased by Madeleine Pickens, trained by Randall Davis) now ridden by Patricia Burge and there was Taryn Hillman with her little beautiful bay (name forgot) and there was Calypso (owned and trained by Cindy Loader) and then 3 other 2010 MakeOver mustangs...feels good to have some closure and see what happens a couple of years later...

A MOMENT TO REMEMBER

Let's recollect. #900 was born in the Coppersmith HMA in Lassen and Washoe County, Nevada near the California Bordertown of Cedarville. For his first year he ran with his family band and was probably expelled by his sire (stallion) somewhere around the age of 1. The seperation from his band was hard, yet the other colts experienced similar fates and so a small group of young bachelors eventually joined a larger bachelor herd and every now and then he would see and from distance reconnect with his mother and his younger siblings....Life was good.

The the helicopter came and the running seemed forever confusing....ending in a pipe corral and cold metal shute. Flags and People, noise, scents unfamiliar and scents of blood sweat and tears...Then the hull of a trailer...2 year old are still small and a lot of pushing and shoving is going on. After that, most likely Fallon processing facility...fall, winter approaching. Hay and water was there, some space no sense...the day after the roundup a chute paralyzed and branded and vaccinated, blood drawn for coggins. - 2 months after capture, processing and castration....

And then some months later a 2 day trailer haul to CANON CITY CORRECTIONAL FACILITY...

Thousands of horses, another world...and today...out with ARAGON on what looks like Washoe County he was hollering for his memories and feeling his muscles stretch and his sineous body emerge from some cage.....

no worry in the world - no pressure - no expectations....

FREEDOM IS JUST ANOTHER WORD FOR NOTHING LEFT TO LOOSE....

Here I am gallopping after my mustangs and the C-130 is looking too. The irrigation ditches are running and the sun is shining.Luckily I find them playing in the water and they follow me to the corral...

A language that we yearn to learn...

THIS IS THE ROCK UPON WHICH I LEAN....ARAGON V

Much can be said about an endeavor like training a wild feral being. But nothing moves me like the sense of one mustang to another....nearly I feel like an intruder and would like to leave the doing to them...Thank You ARAGON...