Back in the day...

A big thank you goes out to Photographer and friend, Tara Kilpatrick, for sharing these wonderful photographs with us. Tara has long documented some of our Southern Nevada wild ones, and has followed our "Iceman" since birth. These particular photos were taken in April of 2004, and you can't mistake Iceman at all in these photos! So tiny :) The Buckskin is his mother and the Palomino is his father.

Friday 2/26/10

Sharil and Iceman spent some time together this morning, and as usual everything went great. Sharil has basically been reinforcing what Iceman has already learned up to this point and putting some focus on desensitizing. She used some fancy conditioner this morning when grooming, so Iceman was all "gussied up" for his big day. :) As you can see from the pictures, even Max (Sharil's dog) was busy at work today as he focused and learned some new techniques for handling Wild Mustangs. Iceman is becoming more and more confident with himself and his ranch surroundings as each day passes, and it is so wonderful to see his progress as we all learn and bond together.

Thursday 2/25/10

Thursday was a wonderful day! The weather was great...the wind was mild, the sun was shining, the temp was nearly 70 degrees, and barely a cloud in the sky. Iceman had an awesome day and we hope you enjoy the photos :)

Friday 2/19/10

Even though the weather wasn't sunny and 70 degrees, it still proved to be another busy day for Iceman on Friday. Eric started out the morning with the usual grooming routine (which is proving to be a difficult job on such a light horse with all the mud we have had lately) and after that they worked on tying. Iceman is quickly learning to stand still and release his own pressure when tied. After that, it was back to the Round Pen. The tack was brought out today and they worked under saddle for quite some time. Iceman is also picking up all his feet like a champ now, which is perfect since he is due for another trim.

Sharil also stepped back into the pen and worked with Iceman for the rest of the day. They worked on desensitizing activities and revisited what they had learned the day before for a few hours. After all the work was done, Sharil and Iceman took a long walk through the Mesquites to unwind. I am sure Iceman slept well after his busy day.

Thursday 2/18/10

Eric recently attended Joe Weitekamp's "Wild to Mild" Mustang clinic
over at the Diamond W Ranch on Feb 13th. This was a great clinic, as it was the first time Joe worked with his Mustang for the Norco EMM Trail Challenge that is coming up in May. Eric learned alot and found it amazing how the smallest little detail can make such a big difference, and was ready to try out some techniques on Iceman.

On Thursday, Eric started out the morning with Iceman basically from ground zero, pretending they had no previous connection and worked his way up from there. Iceman has still been difficult for others to catch, so Eric was most excited to try out a few things in the Round Pen to polish up that area while focusing on pressure and release. In just 20 minutes the results were perfect as Iceman was focused and completely approachable. After an hour or so, Sharil decided to step in the Pen with Iceman and try her luck. Eric explained the process to Sharil and after a few minutes she had the hang of it. Iceman never took his eyes off of Sharil, listened to every command, and for the first time she was able to walk from one end of the pen to the other and catch Iceman without any hassle. It was perfect. Again, it is amazing how you can gain a little bit of knowledge, tweak something in the smallest way, and get really huge results. This was a great day for all parties involved, especially Iceman.

Lots of Mud.

It seems that the soggy, rainy days have finally stopped, so now we just have to wait for everything to dry up. Right now at the ranch we have mud, more mud, and even more mud...you could easily call it "Shiloh Swamp". The weather seems to be up in the 60's lately, and it feels like Spring is near so it shouldn't be long before all the ponds, lakes, and bogs are gone and we can get back to business as usual.

As for Iceman, all is well. He is doing great and has been enjoying himself with his friends as you can tell from the pictures. Once everything is dry and safe, we will be back to working with him full swing, and I know Eric is itching to get back into that saddle. Dave and Sharil have been spending some quality time with Iceman as usual, taking him on walks and playing with some obstacles.

Iceman really has come such a long way in the short time that we have had him, especially since he can't be handled on a daily basis. I imagine his progress is going to move that much faster over the next few months too. It is strange to think that a year ago he was still roaming freely on the range.

"A Ladies Man"

Iceman is definitely living up to his name these days. After Eric and Iceman worked this morning on his hooves, the ropes were handed over and for the rest of the day, Iceman spent some time with three different ladies and loved every minute of it. Sharil spent alot of time with Iceman this afternoon, and then Shiloh Boarders and Volunteers, Jenny and Rachel did the same. As always, its nice to see Iceman being handled by multiple people since all the interaction just helps him get on the road to a permanent home that much faster.