Volcano's Band

Like I said before, I had heard Twister's band had broke up and I find a few of then with the sorrel, Volcano. Also with Volcano is his 2 year old son, Buck and Ash and Bonnie's yearling filly, Bonnie.

Buck and Sioux have formed a tight bond. It is so cute to see. She follows him everywhere! Buck is a 2 year old. These two could not have more different conformations.

I like Buck! He really has some size to him! Sioux is dainty and feminine. The diversity of this herd is amazing!

The grey mare, Shady, and her 2012 colt, Willow, are also with Volcano. Missing is her yearling filly, Promise. Her 2 year old filly, Whisp, is near by with Ash. Shady was one of Twister's lead mares. I wonder what happened to Twister and the rest of his band? Before this split he had the largest band on the HMA (Herd Management Area).

That's Scout...he is the 2012 colt to CopperGirl. CG is from Copper's band. She joined Twister last year as a 2 year old. She is a stunning liver chestnut.Scout is a strong, independent guy. Not as shy as his little half brother, Willow.

Here is his mom, CopperGirl. Such a beautiful Liver Chestnut color... The stallions just love this mare. She seems to spend more time flirting then being a mom, but here she hangs out with her mischievous son, who is taking a rest.

The solid sorrel on the left is Callie. She is a 2009 filly out of Jib and Crazy Horse. She also joined Twister as a 2 year old. All of these horses seemed healthy and very curious about us. There is no need to chase them with helicopters!

Callie....bait trapping would be a better, more humane, modern method.

Volcano is gorgeous! It is nice to see him with a family again. He has been a bachelor since he lost his mares to Mateo earlier this spring.

Volcano's Band.

Twister's Band

It sure was nice to see everyone in Twister's band was doing good. There were 10 horses which means things haven't changed since last fall. 

When I first met Twister he had two beautiful grey mares that look like they could be sisters. This is the darker one, Shady.

The elegant white is Windy. Both of these mares are excellent wild horse mothers and have been quite prolific. Windy has had 3 foals since the 2008 round up and Shady has had 2.

This is Shady's 2 yr old filly, Whisp. She is a real stand out. She has striping on her legs and a dorsal stripe.

I am confused on the sorrels here. There should be 4....Twister, Breeze (Windy's 2010 colt), Callie and Coppergitl. Callie and Coppergirl are fillies (3 yr olds) from Jib's and Copper's band, respectively. I think this is Coppergirl, but can not confirm. Any help would be appreciated!

 This is Windy's 2011 filly, Sunni. She was born about a month before her half sister, Promise. This encounter was short and the horses were pushing off. I was lucky to get the few photos I did.

In 2010 Twister had just one son, Gus, the grey here. Twister has kept him as his satellite stallion. I am pretty sure the sorrel here is Callie from Jib's band. She is pregnant.

This is the other 2011 filly from Shady. We named her Promise.

Now I am confused. I just can't seem to sort out this sorrels. Is this Coppergitl? It is hard when they are in the deep sage and I can not see any leg markings. Also they are still shedding out so their color is different.

I am pretty sure this is the 2 year old stud colt, Breeze, from Windy. He really looks like his likely sire, Twister.

As I was observing Twister's band I could see Jib and his family in the distance. Jib is another sorrel that lives near Twister, Callie came from this band. It was nice to see nothing had changed here either. Jib has his 2 loyal mares, Jill and Crazy Horse and their 2011 fillies, Dash and Riddler. I will have to get up here and again and get some better photos for our public documnetation.

Twister's Band

On this day I get up real early to beat the heat and I am rewarded by seeing Twister and his beautiful band of mustangs at sunrise. A sight to behold.

I am back from taking a small break from visiting the range. I am discouraged because I have found out the HSUS (The Humane Society of the United States) looks at my blog and uses my data without paying me nor giving me credit. They are doing a million dollar PZP study out there and pay someone to document the horses. It is against the law to use my photos and info without my permission. I wanted to be friends and work together, but they "do not have time" to work with me. They have been warned. The force of SWB will take care of the rest..I am sure of that. Anyway my documentation continues in hopes it will help these beautiful Colorado wild horses that are not scientific. That is one thing I know for sure.

Enough of that....here is the band stallion, Twister. He stands alone between me and his harem.

Finally he decides I am ok and gets on with his business. Look at his mane! That is why he is called Twister.

The little stand out grulla filly, Whisp. She is shy and wiley.

The white mare, Windy, with her 2011 filly we named Sunni. Windy is a proven brood mare.

The Shady Lady

Twister's 2011 fillies. Both are going grey like their moms. We group named them Sunni and Promise. Too nice to chase with helicopters. Why can't we think of a more humane way to manage these beauties. They are living legends. Something from the past.

Here is Breeze, Windy's 2010 colt. He is curious and comes to get a sniff.

Sunni wants to see what I am too. I stand still and let her come to me, but not too close!

The only horse I didn't mention in this band was CopperGirl. She was there. She seems to enjoy having Callie as a friend. Long may they run! It's always nice to encounter Twister's band.

Jib's Band

I spot Jib's band in the distance....I veer off onto a two track to get a closer look of this elusive band. I am on a mission. I want to show the world how awesome these last remaining Colorado free roaming mustangs are.

There's the lead mare, aptly given the name Crazy Horse...look at that coloring!. She is show with her 2011 colt with the question mark strip....Riddler. Crazy is not well, "crazy", about humans , but her curiosity about me gets the best of her and she turns to face me. That is what makes wild horses unique from other wildlife.  They are willing to trust humans. I don't think you could get an elk to join up out here!

This is a typical Jib ecounter. You are racing against time to snap a few photos, these mustangs usually don't stick around long. Jib put himself between me and his band and struts his stuff.

Jib

There are the two 2011 foals. I have not determined the gender of the one on the left. He or she is ID'd as Dash.

The family portrait from Lto R  Jewel (Jill's yearling filly), Jib, Dash, Jill,Callie (Crazy's 2 yr old daughter), Riddler and lead mare, Crazy Horse.

Jewel is the type of horse I worry getting lost in the shuffle if they do "gather" them. The greys are hard...there are quite a few of them and they constanly change color. Let's keep our eye on this girl

Jill, Jib's white mare with Dash.

.....and their off!