New Friends

We watched Iceman for a bit today and discovered that he has made some friends, Poker and Seemore. He will go into his stall for food and water, then as soon as he has had his fill, he walks back and and goes to visit his new buddies. While on the range, Iceman was either a loner or huddled with a small bachelor group, so its great to see him interact with new horses. It was very cute to watch him go back and forth. The good thing is that when he isnt being worked it looks like he will still get his exercise! :)

Desert Storms

We have actually been getting some rain out here in the Mojave! Since Saturday the 18th, there has been rainfall, but of course some days more than most. On Monday night we had a really bad storm come through the Las Vegas area, and many of the roads in and around Sandy Valley / Shiloh were covered in water. Unfortunately the winds from the storm came through and blew down some of our stalls, and even one of our "Wanderers" shelters managed to be blown over our perimeter fence and land not far from a nearby airstrip. Needless to say, the horses were all a bit off after the crazy wind.

Most of the horses near Iceman have been moved temporarily into nearby pastures and larger areas, so we have left his gate open to the attached turnout over the last few days. Iceman has always been a bit hesitant to leave his breakfast/dinner on his own, but surprisingly he has been caught out and about for the better part of the day. He will go in and eat and drink for a bit, then make his way back out to stretch his legs and explore. Eric managed to work with him a bit on Wednesday and eventually he was doing great. After the wind and storms, it took a while before Iceman calmed down. He was more skittish and tense than normal. After a few minutes he relaxed and went through the normal routine without much difficulty. On Thursday afternoon, the wind was getting worse as the storms were rolling back in and it was nearly impossible to work with Iceman. The dust and sand was blowing right through his stall and causing some major distractions. All in all, Iceman is coming along great and getting more comfortable to leave the comfort of his stall and explore the uncharted territory on his own. Plus, the "Wanderers" are always close by and like to stop in and say hello. The following pictures were taken over the last few days. Hopefully the weather will cooperate more over the next week and we will have some great news to blog about. Until then....

From the Open Range...

Hello all -
Just wanted to include some great photos taken by Tara Kilpatrick and Eric Clayton. These were taken on the range where Iceman used to roam freely. Take a close look though, these photos are not of Iceman out in the wild, but one of his family members. We believe that this similiar looking stallion is actually Iceman's older brother. Its always so amazing so see these beautiful animals out in the wild being free. Enjoy!

Iceman Update / July 13th

Hello all -

Sorry for the lack of posting lately, but as usual things have been pretty busy for everyone out at Shiloh.

On Monday, July 13th, Eric wrote...

Iceman is doing great. He has been getting lots of exercise and enjoying his turn out time. He will basically follow you right through the gate to the turnout area without hesitation now....on a fairly long lead of course. Hopefully soon, we can cross the path over to the larger, sandy turnout and let Iceman roll in the soft sand and meet some of the other horses. Iceman seems to be making friends with everyone around him and has enjoyed the company of Gladys recently. Gladys is a beautiful mare who was moved from her pasture to the next door stall so that everyone could keep a closer eye on a wound she received. Iceman, who is known to have a way with the ladies, has had no complaints. :)

I have managed to get him rinsed off a few times as well, followed by some grooming. I have to say that Iceman really cleans up good and am looking forward to the summer months ahead and working on the bathing process.

Here are a few pics after his recent rinsing. After it was all said and done, he seemed to be happy and feeling much cooler in our desert heat. I will be out of town for the next few days, but after I get back I hope to post some better pics for everyone.

Thanks for stopping by, have a great week!

Eric

Iceman and the Storm 7/2/09

Eric was able to groom Iceman today. It looks like Iceman enjoyed it!

Feeling good...

Right there, Eric!

He is so clean and bright white!

Then, a huge thunderstorm approached the ranch. There was alot of thunder and lightning and heavy rain headed our way. As the storm got closer, Eric had to try to round up the boys and Gus and Iceman decided to have some fun!

Afterwards, all of Eric's grooming went right out the window!

Better luck next time Eric!