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| A rescued Venus sculpture, weathering on our north deck |
It is not my nature to wish away winter, but our Manitoulin winter began so early and lingered so long and was so relentlessly harsh, I admit, while shovelling in bitter winds, I would sometimes dream of summertime...
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| Red Osier Dogwood in bloom |
...and now, that summertime dream has come true. Want to see? Today I offer up a series of photos of some the bachelor Sorraias engaged in mad gallops and wide-jawed chases. Our youngest stallion, Ousado, has for two years now claimed the two geldings, Silvestre and Interessado, as his "mares". Occasionally, one of the other stallions (usually Legado, aka, "The Pistol") will attempt to "steal" the geldings away from Ousado. When that happens, Ousado repels the challenge handily and then sends his "mares" on runs, often with high aggressive ardour - as if to remind them who they belong to!
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| Ousado rounding up Interessado (foreground) after Legado (right) made an attempt to "steal" Interessado away |
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| Ousado driving Interessado and Silvestre |
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| Silvestre and Interessado (full brothers) often move in this side by side manner when being driven by Ousado |
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| At one point Interessado got separated from Silvestre and Ousado |
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| Ousado chasing Silvestre |
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| Ousado and Silvestre |
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| Ousado and Silvestre |
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| Ousado and Silvestre |
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| It was a long chase! |
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| Ousado chasing Silvestre - look how wide horses can open their jaws! |
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| Ousado's "mares" reunited |
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| Capaz, followed the chase at a slower pace |
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| Some of the other stallions got to running, too, just because the day called for it |
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| Fidalgo and Capaz had their own high spirited "talk" while the chase was going on |
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| A rescued Bacchus waterspout, weathering on the west deck, watching the wild horses' wild actions |
7 comments:
They are so beautiful!
A fun read, but, being somewhat timid in nature, I was worrying about the geldings' injuring their legs and spent a few moments in mourning for their former days of glory. A spirited game which burns off energy and makes the peaceful pasture more enjoyable when peace finally comes was called for in this summer celebration! Thanks, Lynn, for the "slideshow" -- we live in a world of "stills" unless we are viewing the action first hand, though Mother Nature's world is always in motion, and ever-changing!
PS I just spent a long time at your online gallery, enjoying the extraordinary offerings, learning about the styles and materials and inspired by the written words.
Flora Eerschay, many thanks for tapping out a comment for this journal entry. I agree, they are beautiful, especially in their natural state, living as wild and free as our small conservation effort can accomodate.
Opi! Here you are again! (I cannot continue to respond to someone who has taken on the name of “Opinionated”, so I will call you “Opi”.
I can appreciate your worries regarding the potential injuries horses living wild are exposed to. These Sorraias have been running full tilt over the rugged landscape since birth. The natural food they eat, the air they breath, the extreme conditions of our four seasons and the constant movement over the varied terrain have conditioned them to be exceptionally strong and resilient. The way horses were designed to live and “be”. These are not underdeveloped domesticated Thoroughbreds being forced to run for human amusement and greed on race tracks around the world (Santa Anita, being the most flagged for the number of injury related deaths of race horses) https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/06/29/santa-anita-is-not-the-only-racetrack-where-horses-are-dying-will-horse-racing-survive/
The chase I shared in this blog entry is just one of many that take place on a daily basis in one form or another. I still hold my breath when they get into their “heated discussions”, but I no longer worry. This is how they, themselves, choose to conduct their affairs and we have a lot to learn from such dynamic escapades. The flow of the days of the horses are like a pendulum swinging from high spirited activities, to slumped hipped napping and grazing. The way of them...endlessly fascinating.
Lovely to see that they can live free, as you've made it possible
Joan of Arc,
(cannot remember “who” has conscripted this monkier?...June...is this you?)
In a way, I’ve failed them.
The freedom of Ravenseyrie (on Manitoulin Island) is a a facsimile of what they could experience on Sable Island. In a way, we have failed the horses...
Opi wrote:
“PS I just spent a long time at your online gallery, enjoying the extraordinary offerings, learning about the styles and materials and inspired by the written words.”
Thank you for your long browse. It isn’t a proper viewing and the view is far from complete - and I am not sure I can do an online gallery justice. Having a realtime gallery - in the middle of high tourist season on the Manitoulin means I cannot give much time to putting online all the works I have been creating for the gallery. So you are short-changed! Cannot help this Opi...but thank you for having a look about what I have managed to upload for the Ravenseyrie Studio & Art Gallery blog/website. Splendid summer to you and all others!
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