Wild Bunch Wednesday

We had just a skiff of snow yesterday morning...we need a LOT more. It's dry. The temps have been 0-10 degrees every morning for the past month or so, but no snow.

As I was feeding the horses behind the barn, I spotted the Wild Bunch up on the rim.

Psssst...look up here...

...yea...it's us!! (Catnip is using her ears as weather indicators)

I see you!

What's for breakfast?!?

We'll just wait right here 'til ya get it up to us Mom!
Me: NO, I'm not bringing your hay all the way up there! 

Awwww come on...how could you refuse our cute lil' faces?!?

As you can see, they aren't lacking any food! We've let them graze the hill, but we've been giving them two flakes of grass hay split between the three of them...they're on a diet!

This mornin' it's a balmy 40 degrees, raining and the wind is blowing; we'll take the moisture...but the dogs are going to be a muddy mess!

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We got an unexpected FaceBook message from the family that took Bella Jo. I guess she killed one of their chickens on Christmas Eve, which they said wasn't a big deal. But when she dug under the chicken coop and killed the rest of them, that was the end. So, they took her into town and dropped her off with My Man yesterday and she's back home.

Five dogs is beyond our limit, so we'll be looking for the "right" home for Bella Jo...obviously one without chickens!! In the meantime, Red and Bella Jo became BFF's within 5 minutes...they'll be wearing each other out playing!

Wordless Wednesday

Click to go see more Wordless Wednesday photos HERE!

The Wild Bunch After Breakfast Club

~I smile a lot because it helps me to be happy.~

~Sootie Blackburn 1902~

Participating in Farm Photo Friday and Farm Friend Friday...check 'um out!!!

Another lazy mornin' at the Rough String...the "Wild Bunch" enjoyed their breakfast and has assumed the position...sleepin'...not a care in the world at this point!



From L-R: Brego (Kiger Mustang), Rohan (Hog Creek HMA), Stetson and Catnip (Sheldon Wildlife Refuge).

Pasture Antics

~When I wear britches, I feel like a he-woman,

and no cowpoke better mess with me.~

~Anonymous~

Catnip is the only female equid on the place. Our one mare, Carina, left us a couple of years ago, and that left lil' Catnip to rule the herd...well, the Wild Bunch anyhow.

The Wild Bunch is down to just four: the two mustangs, Rohan & Brego, and the two burros, Stetson & Catnip.

Now, you'll have to look closely at this photo...do you see what's going on?

Catnip's head is a lil' bit blurry because she's snaking Brego and givin' him the evil eye...and Brego's stickin' his tongue out at her!

Ah...they love each other I'm sure!!

Winter's Here I Guess!

~I listen to myself deep inside sometimes,

and it makes me strong.~

~Carrie Lucas 1878~

I've got so much work to do, I shouldn't be sitting here...but I'm going to blog anyhow!!!

Last weekend...uhhhh...that would be a week ago today...My Man and I, along with Cindy Sue 'n Bella Jo, headed to Central Oregon for the Columbia Circuit Finals Rodeo. We stayed with our good friends and had a great three days away from the ranch...lots of food, laughter and good times.

Three Sisters, Central Oregon

Yours truly, Cindy Sue & Bella Jo...one of those rare moments I let My Man have the camera!! ;~)

Mt. Jefferson, Central Oregon

The rodeo was a great time. We had second row seats with another friend of mine who's daughter is a PeeWee Rodeo princess. They were selling raffle tickets for the NFR...hmmmm...I wonder if I won?!?

World Champion, Bobby Mote, and his son presented Ol' Glory at the Columbia Circuit Finals Rodeo. This was so cool...they played the song titled Heartland from Pure Country where George Strait's lil' boy does the first part...it was almost a tear jerker!

I've yet to figure out indoor lighting with my camera. This setting is on ISO3200 and as long as things didn't move too fast, it came out OK...but grainy as you can see.

This lil' Buckaroo said he wanted to ride the bulls...his mom said she hopes he'll be a roper...only time will tell.

There's been more wild horses captured from the Ochoco National Forest where Dreamsicle resides. Horse number 705 in the photo below is one of them. The wranglers at the Corrals brought a group of geldings in for a photo shoot, luckily I got to be there. This handsome 3 year old is one of 6 captured. I'll post on them all. We sure would like to find adopters ASAP for them.

If you are interested at all, or know of someone who might be, please email. I'll get photos and info out to you.

Recently gathered wild horses awaiting adoption at the Burns Wild Horse Corrals.

Yesterday I finished getting ready for winter...and it arrived in the late afternoon. The yard got the leaves mowed up, all the garden stuff got picked up and stored away, the last of the tank heaters got put in, stalls were readied...and the temps were steadily dropping. Four o'clock it started spittin' snow, but thankfully the winds died down!

I forgot to bring in the picnic table! Anybody want to have a picnic?!?

It's not a huge blizzard or anything, but snow is in the forecast for the next week with temps in the mid 30's for highs and the teens for lows.

My favorite place to sit in the summer...

I'll be sitting here at my computer getting the December Horsefly ready for the next few days...watching the snow fall...dreaming of next summer when I can sit on my bench under the lilac tree again~

It's Official~Coyote Kid and Give-Away Last Chance!

Well, it's official...

Coyote and Colt seem to be saying goodbye...did they
know something I didn't?
I alway call them the big and lil' of things 'round here.
Colt's not small, but Coyote made him look small!

Our big, handsome Coyote has found his new forever home...He charmed everyone he met during his trial period and was the perfect gentle giant. Congratulations to Rose and Patrick; we couldn't ask for a better home for Coyote!

We expect to see Coyote again...ridin' the trails somewhere...so we look forward to that time.

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Just a reminder...if you haven't gotten into my 300th Post Give-Away...go do it now! Time's a slippin' away...comments on that post must be in by 9 PM tonight, Friday June 4th.

Thank you to everyone who has entered to win Andi Harmon's new book on wild horses, Oregon's Living Legends!

We'll be pickin' the winner tomorrow!

Post #300 Give-Away!!!

300 posts?!? I think I've got a lot of hot air!!!

When I started this blog back in October of 2008, I'd have never dreamed how much fun it is to blog and how many friends you can make...and some to actually meet! Without the blog I wouldn't have ever met you all. And living where we do, the blog is actually a major form of social activity for me. Blogging has definitely enriched my life.

I value everyone that reads my dribble, and I'm glad to bring you some photos of our life here at the Rough String Ranch. Comments are always nice and really brighten my day, but I know how many blogs we are all trying to keep up with and there isn't always time to leave a comment.

But for this monumental occasion, you'll have to leave a comment on this post to be in the drawing for this:

This wonderful new book, Oregon's Living Legends, authored by my friend Andi Harmon has 253 pages of wonderful information and stories about Oregon's wild horses. Me and Rohan are even in the book!! There are tons of photos, maps, and artwork by our dear friend Michelle Severe. I'm very proud to offer up this copy (signed by both author and artist) for my 300th Post Give-Away!

I have a confession to make...I've lived in Oregon all of my life, born and raised here...and until 10 years ago, I didn't know that wild horses roamed our public lands. In the late 60's and early 70's when all of the struggle was happening over the protection of the wild horses, I wasn't even aware of it...and all I did was live and breath horses!

So here's the deal, to enter this contest, leave me a comment on this post telling me about how you first knew about the wild horses in America. Short and sweet is fine...or a nice long story is great too!

Contest deadline is Friday, June 4, at 9 PM. The winner will be picked randomly on Saturday, June 5.

Thank you all again for being such great followers, readers and friends!

In Memory of Slider

Life is so unfair at times.

If you hadn't read the post about Dreamsicle and his band (including Slider) from the Big Summit HMA being captured, you can read it here. And this post "Little Giant" was very special as we watch Dreamsicle spar with his new acquaintances at the holding Corrals and his lil' buddy Slider stands by for moral support.

As that story ended with Dreamsicle and his mares going back to their home in the Big Summit, Slider was not so lucky. He was to be available for adoption as soon as he was processed by the BLM staff.

My Man and I decided that since we had watched him grow up over the years, we would adopt him and give him a home...we felt like part of his family.

But, that wasn't meant to be...God has other plans for him.

Slider was euthanized this past weekend because of a fracture that he sustained in the shoulder.

So, this is for you dear Slider...I know that you are running free once again in beautiful green pastures with your other Ochoco friends that have gone before you~

Answers about Faces of the Homeless

There were some great questions in the comments of a couple of my recent posts: "Faces of the Homeless" and "Don't Take My Home." Both of these posts addressed issues with wild horses in America.

What I'm posting here is just my opinion and/or understanding of processes available. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is the decision maker for our wild horses as of this date. Many contest their ability to "manage" the wild horses (that's another whole book).

I'm not here to contest or argue what the BLM is or isn't doing. PERIOD. I'm just going to try to answer the questions that my readers have asked to the best of my ability. But, please comment with additional information, if you have any, that may be helpful to readers. Use this information as food for thought.

These faces are awfully cute aren't they...

even though I seem to be

chopping off quite a few ears!

Faithful asked if there would (or could) ever be proper and fair management. It's a loaded question. Oregon Equestrian used a very good analogy (see her comment in Don't Take My Home)...there are so many entities that want a piece of the "public land" pie...who's going to win...

If you've been able to follow along, you know that Dreamsicle and his mares along with another stallion and his mares were returned to their home in the Ochoco National Forest (just yesterday). I'll step out on a limb here, but IMHO the only reason they were returned is because the board of directors of the Central Oregon Wild Horse Coalition stepped up to bat for them. We had some powerful swingers in the background ready to take action if needed. But the Forest Service conceded that the key members of those two bands would be brought back to their home.

I hope to have photographic evidence and will post as soon as I do!

Nikker and hope4more mentioned that they didn't

have any knowledge about gentling a mustang,

and that was a stumbling block for them.

And Merri mentioned if "I were younger."

Here are some options!

In my case 8 or so years ago when I adopted my first mustang, I hadn't a clue as to what I was getting into. I did adopt a yearling (Coyote) which would be easier than an older mustang, but I came upon road blocks after a couple of weeks. I kept at it but I couldn't get past a certain point, and after about a month I called a friend who had mustangs, and she referred me to someone who could help me.

Mustangs are different than domestic, gentle horses in the beginning. But as soon as I got past that bubble with Coyote, it was just like training any other domestic horse!

The good news now is that there are opportunities for people who are not as "in tune" with gentling a "wild horse." You can actually adopt a horse that has been gentled before you take possession!

I'm going to list some websites for you to peruse. I think you might be surprised at your options!

The first option is the Trainer Incentive Program which is sponsored by the Mustang Heritage Foundation (you know...the Extreme Mustang Makeover folks!). There are trainers all across the country who have taken in wild horses to gentle and prepare them for domestic life.

This is a great opportunity for you to find a horse and a trainer at the same time to put you and that special "wild one" together!

http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/apps/trainers/

The second option are horses that have been gentled by the inmates at the Colorado Canyon City facility. These horses have been gentled and trained by supervised inmates. There have been a lot of great success stories through this program!

http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/prog/wh_b/warm_springs_correctional.html

http://www.mustangs4us.com/prisonhorses.htm

http://www.kbrhorse.net/wclo/blmco05.html

Sydney mentioned that if she were closer,

adoption could be an option...well...there

ARE internet adoptions!!!

Jocelyn...this could apply to you too; and if

you'd adopted at Colorfest they would

have delivered to your door for FREE!!!

Serious JP!!

Yep...log on (see the link below)...peruse horses from multiple HMA's (all over the western states), and you can find the perfect horse!!

See this link:

BLM Adopt A Horse

Go to the "Online Adoption Gallery" and you can see horses from all over the western states...available to you to adopt. All adopters must be approved prior to adoption. Make sure you read all of the information available and submit your application within the time frame stated. Many of those cute lil' faces from the Burns Corrals are there (and will be throughout the summer)!

Picking up your new wild horse?!? You can either pick up the horse at the facility or BLM will "DELIVER" your new wild horse to the closest Holding Facility or Satellite Adoption in your area. Honest...they are trying to work with you!

Canadians...there are MANY of you! The red tape

that government creates...in fact, I can't find

anything that says you can or can't adopt.

I'm getting into a time crunch here...

I'll be contacting our local BLM office

and get their "official word" on that subject.

I'll get back to you on that.

dibear asked why they were captured...they don't look hungry. dibear...this is another loaded question. And it goes back to the "piece of public pie" that I talked about above. The BLM states that they are taking horses off of the public lands so they won't starve or die of thirst "just in case." But many will argue that the BLM is taking too many horses off of public lands without "justification." The BLM is required to complete an Environmental Assessment prior to removing any horses from any HMA...this is a huge controversy with wild horse advocates. Actual numbers of wild horses on public lands provided by the BLM are speculatory...so I have a hard time with agreeing with their numbers and their EA's.

From personal experience with the Forest Service in the Ochoco National Forest, staff persons of the FS would prefer to "up" the number of horses in the HMA "just in case."

Heather asked how she could adopt some of

the cute lil' faces I had posted. Here's some links:

http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro.html

This is the main page for the Wild Horse and Burro adoption program. I viewed some of the sub links and don't agree with the "government rhetoric" of how holy we are and why we do what we do...another story...

But the "Adoption Information" link will give good info and links to the adoption application, BLM adoption schedules, and adopter qualifications.

If any of that is confusing to you, please contact me. It's really not as difficult as they may make it out to be.

manker asked where the "Faces of the Homeless" were located. Actually all of those horses are located at the Burns Horse Corrals in Oregon. All of the horses are from Oregon Herd Management Areas. You can visit the Burns Corrals website here.

Janice asked what happens to those that don't get adopted. Well, there is a place called "long term holding." More than 30,000 wild horses are currently in long term holding...yes, your tax dollars are paying for the care of these horses...this again is another "management issue" that has tempers flying. Thanks to the ex-Senator Conrad Burns (who sneaked in a rider in the appropriations bill in 2005 without public input) the BLM must relinquish ownership of all horses over the age of 10 and those who have been put up for adoption unsuccessfully three times to the highest bidder. Yes, horses have gone to slaughter. But the BLM says they are now making sure that horses are not going to slaughter. You be the judge...

thecrazysheeplady asked what else could be done...IMHO...just be aware of what's going on and give your input when you can. Watch updates from the Cloud Foundation and other wild horse advocate groups. They have a very good handle on what needs to be done (such as calling or emailing your state representatives).

I'm sure I've got you all confused by now...or miffed off...either way...I hope you stand up for the horses that can't speak for themselves...they need you to be their voices!

Sunday Stills ~ Numbers

The Sunday Stills photo challenge this week was Numbers.

There are numbers around us everywhere we look...here are my two for the week...

The morning sun filtering through the bare

limbs of the elm tree made interesting

yet pretty shadows on the house.

What I really like is feeding critters in the daylight...the

days are getting longer!!! And daylight saving time

begins next weekend!!

They were just numbers.

Like in a prison camp.

But not any longer.

These numbered tags were worn by wild horses

gathered by the BLM.

They were adopted and given a new lease on life.

Rohan, Duncan and a cute lil' mare that a friend

of ours adopted back in 2006.

Check out some of the other Sunday Stills participant's photos by going here in the comments.

Enjoy your Sunday~~

Faces of the Homeless

While at the Burns Horse Corrals Friday and Saturday, I took hundreds of photos. I decided that setting up a Flickr account would be the best way to share some of them with you.

Here is the link to Faces of the Homeless. I'm new to all this stuff, but I think there will be an option to view this set of photos in a slide show. I only uploaded 27 photos.

Why am I posting this?

I guess it just boils down to one thing; these horses need a place to go. Whether you think they should be rounded up or not, they already are, and they need homes.

They are beautiful, intelligent animals and deserve better.

"Don't Take My Home"

This video is just too good not to share. The photography of the wild horses is stunning and matched with the magical music of Mary Ann Kennedy...nothing could be more beautiful~

I love my Quarter Horses. I love my mustangs. They both have a place in this world. It's very hard for me to watch the BLM gather hundreds of wild horses at a time as they have done just in the past few weeks in the Calico Mountains of Nevada. The Cloud Foundation has covered the gather quite well on their web site.

There are pros and cons to these decisions to gather the wild horses...kind of depending on which side of the fence you sit. But in the end, it's the horses that take the brunt of it all. The question I pose is: "Will there be wild horses on the range for future Americans to see and enjoy?"

And even on the local level here in Oregon, just last week, our favorite stallion from the Big Summit Herd Management Area (HMA), Dreamsicle, was captured with his 2 mares and their fillies along with a 2 year old stud colt.

This photo of Dreamsicle is from last June at the

annual inventory of wild horses. He and his

band visited our campsite every evening.

This photo from last June shows all 6 horses that

were captured this past week. Currently they are at the

Burns Wild Horse Corrals waiting to be processed.

The Big Summit HMA lies in the Ochoco National Forest and the horses are not governed by the BLM but by the Forest Service, and the FS works with the BLM when horses are gathered. The BLM does the processing of the horses and offers them for adoption to the public.

I am on the board of directors of the Central Oregon Wild Horse Coalition, and currently we are fighting to get Dreamsicle and his family back. The COWHC had met with the FS regarding this gather, and the FS has gone back on their word. They were supposed to gather only bachelor stallions (not whole bands) and they were to gather horses that are outside of the HMA (they have gotten through a fence). Dreamsicle and his band was where they were supposed to be. The FS did just the opposite of what was agreed. Sounds like typical government policy doesn't it.

The HMA maximum number of horses is set at 60 horses (which was a number that was basically pulled from the sky back in the 1970's). Currently there are approximately 75 horses that belong in the Big Summit HMA (some are inside the boundary and some are outside). According to all studies on genetic viability, a minimum of 150 horses is needed to have a genetically healthy herd. The COWHC has been working hard to get the herd number increased and bring in new blood from other HMA's to rejuvenate the gene pool...but to no avail so far.

Please wish us good luck in getting our Dreamsicle and his family back home.

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On another "wild horse" note, there is a big weekend coming up here in Harney County. The Colorfest Wild Horse Adoption is taking place on Friday and Saturday at the Burns Wild Horse Corrals. More than 100 wild horses are up for adoption using the silent bid process. They are calling it Colorfest because of the multitude of different colored horses that are currently available...pinto, dun, black, appy, roan, palomino...you get the idea.

Photo courtesy of BLM.

More photos of horses available

for adoption can be seen here.

The COWHC will have a booth set up along with wild life artist Michelle Severe and also Andi Harmon who is just now completing her book "Oregon's Living Legends." If you're planning on attending, please stop by and say howdy.

Tomorrow, Thursday, I'll be going up into the South Steens HMA with Tracey (Desperate Horsewife) from Mustang Diaries and Mustang U searching for wild horses to photograph. Hopefully we'll get some good shots...of course we'll share them with you!

Talent~Some Just Have It!

I don't!!! But I know someone who does!

My friend and fellow cutting horse/cowhorse enthusiast sent me her latest piece of artwork, and I've got to share it with you all...it's just so cool...

"A Horse with No Name"

by Michelle Severe

I want to share what Michelle wrote in her email:

A Horse with No Name! I think fits this! Besides the fact I always liked the song by America! This is an American desert horse with no name, just a number freeze brand on his neck! This is Corinne Elser, works with alot of wild horses, and winner of the 2008 Mustang Challenge, and a horse she was gentling for a customer that adopted him 3 months ago. I was impressed how nice looking he was, he is out of the Kiger unit.

Here is the photo that she did the work from...

Michelle is doing a series of pieces titled "Working Ranch Women." I encourage you to visit her web site at: www.michellesevere.com and take a look at some of her other work; especially the Ranch Women series. She's not finished with the series yet...so there will be more! Go to the "Gallery" and click on the thumbnails. It will bring up a brief description and some background of the piece.

Enjoy some cowgirl art!

Searching for the Wild Ones~Part 2

The adventure continues from Searching for the Wild Ones~Part 1...


The way our "Judy Creek" territory lays, we set up our camp in the middle of the territory and ride up going south, and ride down going north. As I mentioned before, it's either up or down! But, we ride out one direction in the morning and come back to camp for lunch and a break, and then ride out the other direction in the afternoon. It works out really well, and we do that all three days (Thurs-Sat).

There's a lot of this happening after a sandwich for lunch.

But, we've got horses to find!!! So, let's hit the trail again. When we spotted the bachelor boys, they were north of camp. Heading out to the south, we follow the gravel forest service road for about a mile then take off cross country.

Debbie P. and My Man following me.

Debbie C. (new rider on day 2) and Kris are ahead. Ha...Kris
is always ahead! She rides a TN Walker.

We carry GPS units, but really we just mark way points when we locate horses. After riding in the same area for 6 years, we know the area by heart. We follow trails that horses make and search locations that we know they frequent...such as watering holes.

After crossing through this clear cut, we spread out abreast about 30 yards apart and head down hill toward the watering hole. It didn't take but 2-3 minutes and a band was spotted. We also carry 2-way radios and those are really helpful.

My Man and Coyote viewing the situation.

This is a band that we recognize...and, believe it or not, some of the horses even have names! The stallion is Dreamsicle, the bay mare is Rosebud, and the yearling colt is Rosebud's from last year and his name is Slider (as last year he was doing the prettiest sliding stops while he was playing).

Then, it seems Dreamsicle has picked up a new mare (the black bay) and each of the mares have fillies from this year.

Dreamsicle with his band.

Members of the Central Oregon Wild Horse Coalition frequent the Herd Management Area quite often and horses with unique markings tend to get names. The majority of the horses are pretty plain in color (browns and bays). But, it's nice to be able to identify horses year after year, know which horse you're talking about, and to see how the bands restructure themselves.

Another observation you may have made is that the horses don't seem very frightened...and you're right. They see humans on a VERY regular basis. They are accustomed to us, but that can make them all the more dangerous. We've had two year olds just want to walk right up to us because they are so curious at that age. At that point, we make sure they don't get too close...they need to stay wild to live in the wild.

I don't know if these are mushrooms or fungus...or what...
but, we found them close to the water hole and it looks
like one of the horses tried a taste test on them.
But, it doesn't appear that it was edible as they
spit out the pieces!

We really enjoy the trip up to the Ochoco's every year. It's an actual vacation for us! The whole family gets to come along...

Cowboy enjoying a nice spot.
BTW, yes, that is Certified Weed Free hay
as it is now required on all public lands (BLM and Forest Service).

Abby prefers tearing up the hay for her spot!

Cowboy and Abby stay at camp while we ride out. They are both just getting too old for that kind of trail riding anymore. Cindy Sue came with us most of the time.

Food is the other great part of the trip. We each take a meal and cook for everyone. It works out perfect and sure saves on bringing so much stuff. And, that means more "kick-back" time too!

As we are eating our dinner on Thursday evening...we got company!!

Evening grazing...so peaceful.

Two fillies and Slider the yearling.
We didn't name the fillies, but I would call them CUTE!

Dreamsicle isn't missing any meals either...doesn't he look great?!?

Remember me mentioning that we put up a hot wire fence around camp? Well, this is why. And, it really does work! The bachelor boys were visiting us on Friday morning when we got up.

The final day arrives all too soon. Saturday at 4:30, everyone heads down to base camp. A BBQ is provided andeveryone's documentation is turned in...photos, GPS way points etc. This year's total count...80 (give or take a couple). So, it looks like there will be a gather of these wonderful horses. Please let me know if you are interested in adopting, as I live only 50 miles from the Burns Wild Horse Corrals where they will be processed. I can get stats and photos of all the horses that are gathered.

We stay Saturday night and drive home on Sunday. It's a great time...always an adventure! Thanks for coming along for the ride!