Updates From the Park

•As many of you may already know, Trooper stole the remaining girls from Maverick just shy of two weeks ago. Since then, the two stallions have been fighting every day. Trooper moved the band to several different areas of the Park but Maverick kept with them and tried his best to get his band back. Finally, on Wednesday of this week, Maverick gave up the fight and walked away. This is what is best for now as Trooper is a very big stallion and this could have ended with a more tragic conclusion. In time, Maverick may be able to get his band or a few mares back but for now, he needs to take care of himself. I was able to hike out to him today to have a look at him and as I suspected, he is covered in bites on both sides of his body. However, despite those battle scars he appears to be alright. His lip is looking so much better too.

•Next, Stallion Remington has added to his band once again. You may remember he picked up Ardena from Red Face’s band back in January. He is still holding her and now has added Mare Ember’s Girl and her 2020 filly as well. They were previously with Red Face but have been with Remington for a few weeks now. They seem content with their new stallion and this might end up being a nice band for Ember’s Girl.

•Lastly, a strange thing happened this week. On Tuesday afternoon, I was at Buck Hill glassing for horses when I heard a small whinny from down below. I looked out to see Banty, the colt out of Frosty and Red Face, running around looking for his family. I knew the band was right over the ridge from him but he had no idea where they were. I watched for a bit and then decided to make the hike down just to ensure he wasn’t injured. Stallion Ollie Jr was also down there and had taken notice of Banty as I made my way down. For some reason, Ollie saw the young colt as a threat and tried to chase him off. Once he stopped pushing him I made my way over to Banty and could see he was doing alright. On my way back to my car, I looked back to check on Banty just in time to see Ollie chase him off once again. This time Banty continued to run and out of my line of sight. I went looking for him the next day and in the distance, I could see he wasn’t alone. Some time since I had left him he had found bachelor stallion Flash. The two of them were grazing side by side and appeared to be getting along. I couldn’t find them yesterday but today I figured it out and was able to locate the newfound friends. Flash appears to be looking after the little guy as in the last two days they have moved around the Park. I wasn’t there when this initially happened but I do not think that Banty was kicked out of the band. Most likely, he was asleep and the band walked off. Red Face has a tendency to do that. I watched them walk off and almost leave a 2-month-old Ardena behind once so it does happen but as I said, I wasn’t there to witness what exactly occurred. It will be interesting to see what happens once Banty gets near the band again. I honestly have never seen a colt this young away from his band so I cannot say if he will go back to Frosty or stay with Flash. For now, he is healthy and has a buddy who is willing to look out for him.

I will do my best to keep you updated on these situations when I can. Below are a few photos from this week of the changes that have occurred. Thanks, everyone, and have a great weekend!