Fiero

Seattle. Merlin and Fiero. An Update from Lori

June 11, 2013June 11, 2013wildinthepryors

I always love good news about the horses, and yesterday Lori gave me some. She had spotted Seattle! He had not been seen for a while. He looks really good. Heavier than I have seen him in a while.

I head to the top of the mountain soon for the first camping trip of the year! I am so looking forward to it. My daughter Amber will be joining me. Lori and Brianna will be joining us to for a couple days too! Linda Dombeck is planning on joining us on the last day there. It will be a great time with the horses and good friends.

Thank you for the report Lori!

Sandy

I decided to take a trip out to the range as I have not been out there for a couple of weeks.

I was so happy that I did because I found Seattle, who I have not seen since last fall. I was beginning to wonder if something had happened to him, or if he had survived through the winter. He was out on Mustang Flats and alone.

Seattle is one stallion who appears and disappears. He is very elusive, shy and is very protective of his harem and offspring. I felt happy and relieved that I was lucky enough to find him, yet sad that he was alone. He has always been thin, and also has the scars to prove just how tough he is. I am hoping that he will win back Sacajawea this summer.

Another pleasant surprise was just around the bend. I saw Merlin and his son Fiero. They had just come from Layout Creek where there is plenty of water for the horses. This creek is at the very north end of the range. They both looked to be in good shape. I spent some time with them and then they walked off heading out of view. I felt blessed to have seen these two and especially together. I don’t think I have ever seen them together.

IMG_2937 (1024x683) — Fiero (in back) and Merlin. Son and Father.

I did see the Greeters, minus Jesse James. I am thinking that maybe Hickok told him it was time to grow up and find his own band. Last year he and Hickok would come and go from Seneca and Hightail. If this is a permanent thing then I sure hope that Jesse James can find his own place in the herd and win a mare. I would love to see Admiral and Sam’s bloodline passed on through Jesse James.

I kept on looking for him as I drove through the range but never did see him. Maybe he is over on Sykes where there are more mares to win. So far this year I have not seen one mare at all in the DH. I have seen only bachelors.

I hope for the day when there are more horses, (mares, foals and stallions) on the Dry Head. The balance of males and females is definitely off. It would be a wonderful experience for the people who come many miles to view this herd, if they were able see more horses and have the chance to observe the family life of these special horses.

Lori

A Day On The Lower Mountain, A Report From Lori.

October 20, 2012October 20, 2012wildinthepryors

Brianna and I had a great trip yesterday and spent almost all day out on the range.

Brianna and I met at about 9:30 at the Center. There was a young man & woman who were talking to Kaibab and Liesl and waiting for the Center to open.

We let them in and they bought one Sandy’sWild Caballo DVD’s! They loved it.

They wanted to go with us (follow us) out to the range…so that is what we did.
They both were very nice and appreciative. They are from Michigan and were on their honeymoon.

So off we went. We first saw the greeters. They were very spread out and we could not get close…but Jesse James, Seneca, Hightail and Hickok were all there.

Next we drove in to the Devil’s Canyon Overlook and saw Fiero, Cascade and Bakken.

We did not see Strawberry and we hiked around to try to see if we could find her, but no Strawberry. I was really worried about not seeing her with Fiero. They were all just resting, but kept looking towards the Canyon area. We hiked out a ways thinking maybe Strawberry was there, but nothing.

We continued on our way and for some reason we looked around by the turnoff by Bad Pass Trail. We hiked out a ways because Brianna saw a dun horse…well it was Kemmerer, way down in the canyon, but on a cliff.

Then Brianna hiked out further and she saw Sacajawea on the cliff with Kemmerer.

Brianna then (and we were following her) saw Seattle and another horse down there…it was Strawberry!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So we took lots of pictures and watched as Seattle “bred” with her.

I could not believe that. I don’t know how this happened from just Sunday when I was out there…but Seattle has Strawberry!!!! I wonder how long this is going to last and how Sacajawea is feeling about Strawberry in the harem.

I also wonder if there was a fight between Seattle and Fiero, but did not see any “war wounds” on Fiero. Possibly, as Sandy pointed out, Strawberry did not like Cascade in Fiero’s harem! We will just have to wait and see how this plays out.

Kemmerer and Sacajawea, October 19, 2012

Strawberry and Seattle, October 19, 2012

So there is a lot of drama in the Dry Head again!!!

We never found Merlin…we looked and looked but no Merlin.

On our way out we decided to go to Bad Pass Spring in the lower Sykes area..and we hiked for awhile. We saw Medicine Bow all alone. He was on the side of a cliff.

I almost did not see him, but just happened to look up and saw him. We never saw anyone else in that area, but lots of hoof prints.
Then after leaving that area we decided to go to another part of the lower Sykes area, but just as far as my car would go. On our way we spotted a black horse, so we got out and hiked to see who it was. Surprise of all surprises…it was Cecelia…and we did not see anyone else.

I was so worried because we did not see the foal or Siting Bull. Then we drove a bit further and turned around. On our way back we saw Cecelia again and then we saw Sitting Bull. Now I am really worried…we did not see a foal with them.

Sitting Bull and Cecelia, October 19, 2012

Well then Joe and Devin (who were with us) hiked a bit further up over the ridge and pointed down as if to say he saw another horse. He saw the foal. Thank God…he found Cecelia’s foal (who has no name yet). Note: we just found out today that Matt has named him Mato.

Anyway….the little guy was laying under a tree and Cecelia and Sitting Bull were a ways from him. I wondered why. I suppose he was just resting, but when he got up he was limping on his right rear leg. His leg seemed to be hurt, but I did not see anything that looked too bad. I did not see any swelling, or anything that looked like a break…no blood or anything…so hopefully he just has a sprain or pulled muscle in his leg.

I am not an expert on these things, but he was putting some weight on it and moving it, so hopefully he will heal. These injuries just worry me.

He is so beautiful, a grullo color with a snip. He then ran a little bit..limping..but able to run, to his momma. At first she seemed to nip at him but then let him nurse, and then he continued to graze with her.

Sitting Bull was nearby too, but they were very spread out. I was worried for the little guy.

Then Cecelia just kept on walking while grazing and he was left behind a bit. Sitting Bull came close to him and they touched noses..it was so so cute. I felt better while the grazed together. The more he moved around the better he was walking,. I think it was stiff from resting. Maybe that is how they just go along…grazing a distance from each other. but I will still worry about his limp and Cecelia taking care of him.

Cecelia and Sitting Bull’s cot, October 19, 2012

IMG_0907 (1) — Sitting Bull with his son, October 19, 2012

It was a real good day as far as seeing the horses, but I still felt sad that we did not find Merlin.

Lori

Thank you Lori for the great update! I love your photos. It is so nice to see photos of Sitting Bull and Cecelia’s colt. I hope he heals fast and grows old in the Dryhead.

I remember when I saw Fiero alone in March of this year. You can read that post by clicking FIERO. I felt really bad for him being alone, but then just a few days later someone reported that he was with Strawberry again. I think she does that quite often. Leave him and go off doing her own thing for a while. It will be interesting to see if she is back with him.

I am heading to the Pryors tomorrow. Lori and I are going go to the top of the mountain via Burnt Timber Road. I hope to be able to check on everyone along the way, and visit Lakota once more before the snow blankets him. Then go up the Dryhead and lower Skyes to check on everyone there.

Sandy

WildinthePryors_logoColor_small_revised — Logo designed by Amber Bushnell

Dryhead Report from Lori, October 13 and 14, 2012

October 15, 2012October 15, 2012wildinthepryors

Here are a few pictures from my trip Saturday and Sunday this past weekend.I am sad to report that I did not find Merlin as hard as I tried, he did not show his beautiful face. I can only hope that he is hiding out and healing from his battle wounds.Saturday, I did see Fiero with Bakken, Strawberry and I was surprised to see Cascade with them.They all look good, but Cascade does look thin as was reported by several others.

I just love Fiero and think he is a strong and majestic Stallion. He is special to me because he is the son of Sacajawea (one of my favorites on the Dry Head) and the fact that he has held his harem together for quite
some time now.

He has 3 of the 14 mares on the Dry Head and none of them will reproduce as they are on PZP.

This is sad to me because I believe Fiero should have more representation on the range.

I think Cascade seems a bit lost to me since they took Lewis away from her.

I believe that Blizzard is back to being a bachelor again although I did not see him either day while I was out there.

I could not get Fiero to look at me and did not want to disturb them any more than I did.
I also took a picture of Mustang Flats on this very cloudy day so everyone could see the vastness of it.

I believe there was still some smoke in the air as well and so the photos are not the best.

On my way out of the range I saw Jesse James, Hickok and
Seneca…I believe that Hightail was nearby but just not in view.
They were a very long ways off and I did not hike out to them.

Most every time I have been out to the range this past summer I see the devoted Jesse James with Seneca and Hightail. Sometimes Hickok is with them and sometimes he is not, so I am going to say that
Jesse James is the Harem Stallion and much more reliable. Hickok sometimes goes out with the bachelor boys and I have never seen Jesse James out with the bachelors.

They seemed to be just out grazing and taking it easy.
I wish that we had received more moisture this past spring & summer so that the horses would have more to eat, but it just did not happen.
Maybe this winter will bring some much needed moisture, but until then
I will worry about these horses finding enough food to sustain them through the winter months.

The next set of pictures are from my trip, again, to the Dry Head on Sunday morning. I thought maybe I would see more of the horses since it was earlier, but not to be. I still did not find Merlin.

I managed to get a few good shots of the Big Horn Sheep that were hanging around Devils Canyon Over Look.
I always enjoy seeing them.

Out on Mustang Flats I saw Seattle, Sacajawea and Kemmerer. They were way out there, but I was up for the hike.

I tried not to disturb them but they saw me coming from the distance.
Seattle looks thin, but he always looks that way. His injury from years past must be healed as he was not limping at all.

He is a beautiful and gallant Stallion and very protective.
Both Sacajawea and Kemmerer look real good and I am so happy that Kemmerer is still on the range, as he is one of my favorites. I have been watching him grow up and he has turned out to be a very robust bachelor. I hope someday he has his own harem and some offspring in the future.

Seattle thought I was getting too close so he started to move Sacajawea and Kemmerer.
I then left so that they could feel safe and I did not want to disturb them any more than I already had. I did thank them for allowing me to take their photos!

Maybe next trip to the range I will get to find Merlin and more of the horses, but I think they are going out to the Lower Sykes area, possibly because there is more for them to eat.

Brianna and I are planning a trip out there on Friday afternoon. Maybe Brianna will bring luck with her!

Seattle, Sacajawea and Kemmer, October 14, 2012

Thanks for the report Lori!

Sandy

March 12, 2012March 15, 2012wildinthepryors

It always amazing me how certain horses always seem to find me. The first time I visited the Dryhead I saw 30 horses. Since then I have not seen that many. I guess I don’t spend enough time there, but I do drive the area very slowly scanning the landscape. Maybe I don’t know where to find them. But I do try.

Dryhead 2 — The Dryhead. The top of that mountain is what I call "The Mountain Top" That is where I camp in the summer. July, 2011

Devils Canyon — The canyon that runs through the Dryhead.

The Dryhead has a paved road going through the horse range. For many people, that is the way they see the Pryor Horses. You do not need a four-wheel-drive vehicle to see horses here. There are approximately 40 horses that call the Dryhead home year around.

My Pryor Horse Valerosa is from the Dryhead. She still has her father, mother and two full brothers living free in the area(Sacajawea, Merlin, Fiero and Hidasta). So I always try to see them.

V, March 2012 — Valerosa. It is really hard to get a great photo of her anymore. She wants to come right up to me and inspect the camera! March, 2012

One of those horses that always seems to find me is her full brother Fiero. On my last trip there (earlier this month), Fiero found me. He was the only horse I would see in the Dryhead this time. We drove through one other time, not seeing a single horse.

Last September when I last saw Fiero he had a band of 4 including himself. Fiero will be 7 this year. His band last summer consisted of Strawberry, Kokopelli and Jemez.

Fiero Band on Road — Fiero and his band, September, 2012. This is why everyone MUST drive slowly through here!!!

Fiero Band 2 — Fiero and his band, September, 2011.

Fiero 6 — Fiero and his band, September, 2011

Fiero summer 2 — Fiero, September, 2011. Look at those stripes!

This time when I saw him he was alone. I had heard he had lost his band. I have not heard where they are or who they are with. Fiero is a young enough stallion that I am sure he will have another band soon. It will be interesting to see who that will be.

One of the things that I noticed about him was that he did not have as thick of a winter coat as some of the horses I had seen on Burnt Timber. (See my post Mountain Update, Burnt Timber, Day One.) Even though it is not that far away, the climate in the area can be very different. It stays warmer in the Dryhead, more desert like, and so the horses do not need as thick a coat.

I enjoyed spending some time with him. He was grazing quietly and enjoy the protection away from the wind, that the small hill provided him.

He seemed unconcerned that I was standing up the hill watching him. I wonder why you always find me, I thought. I was glad he did though, it is always nice seeing him.

See you next time Fiero. Until then work on getting another band. I would like to suggest that he looks for the beautiful grulla mare Jenny. She is the daughter of Brumby and Jackson. She will be three this year. She lives on the mountain top in the summer, but in the winter she is down much lower. Alex thinks that he should consider July, three-year old daughter of Madonna and Duke. July also lives on top of the mountain in the summer.

So Fiero, you still have a few months to look for these mares before they move up high. It will be interesting to see who he has with him when I return.