December 30th

In other much larger Herd Management Area’s (HMA’s) older wild horses are seen one day and then just kindof dissapear the next. Like the icons Picasso, Cloud and even Old Man. It’s the circle of life and the way of the wild.

But in our neck of the woods, we can’t exactly say, ok we are going to stop monitoring this old stallion, so that he can just slide into the night and quietly dissapear. Because sadly, that’s not what happens.

We hate to say it, but these once powerful but declining stallions do not quietly dissapear.

It is usually their teeth that fail them. They become so overgrown or infected, that it causes pain to eat. You can then try to feed them, like we did, but it only gets them by for a while. They cannot ingest enough to sustain healthy organs.

They slowly starve until one day they are too weak and lay down and it then takes another couple of days until they die from organ failure. It is still perfectly natural because they cannot live forever and young stallions have to get their chance to lead a band too, it refreshes DNA of the herd. But it sure is a slow suffering and undignified way to go out.

But we also know that once rescued they can’t go back. So we try for as long as possible to leave them wild and free. That we tried.

But now its time, time to bring this old icon in to give him a good retirement.

Shadowfax old buddy, everything will be ok. Stay tuned. SRWHMG.