The Wild Ponies of Grayson Highlands
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| "Peregrine" 9 by 6 inches Watercolor by LindaLMartinArtist |
The Wild Ponies of Grayson Highlands is a herd of feral ponies, mostly of Shetland pony descent, employed to live upon the Forestry Service and State Park lands surrounding Mt Rogers in Virginia.
One of the people who are documenting these feral ponies is Amy Flood, a professional photographer, who has love and passion for the ponies as well as professionalism in documenting their habitat, their behavior and their lives. She also sees first hand how some interactions with humans can be detrimental to the wild ponies. Feeding them "treats" can sometimes spell desaster for the ponies.
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| Peregrine a few days old and the first time Amy saw him. Photo by Amy Flood. Used by permission. |
Today Amy talks about Peregrine. In her own words:
"Peregrine was the first colt born in 2011. His dam is Eowyn and his sire is Pippin. I first photographed him during a ferocious spring snowstorm. In 2009, Eowyn had a blue-eyed colt, but did not foal in 2010.
Thus far, Eowyn has been doing a fairly good job of keeping him away from hikers/visitors, for which I am grateful. Unfortunately a lot of people ignore the rules and feed the ponies - even horse people don't seem to realize how damaging it can be. As long as he remains shy around people he won't be consume anything that will make him sick! :) "
To read more about these ponies and their history you can read the the Mustang A Day Challenge News blog with additional links to the Grayson Highlands State Park http://mustangadaychallengenews.blogspot.com/
Thus far, Eowyn has been doing a fairly good job of keeping him away from hikers/visitors, for which I am grateful. Unfortunately a lot of people ignore the rules and feed the ponies - even horse people don't seem to realize how damaging it can be. As long as he remains shy around people he won't be consume anything that will make him sick! :) "
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| Peregrine is growing daily under the watchful eye of his mom Eowyn. Photo by Amy Flood. Used by permissioin |
To read more about these ponies and their history you can read the the Mustang A Day Challenge News blog with additional links to the Grayson Highlands State Park http://mustangadaychallengenews.blogspot.com/
and follow Amy's visits and photography on her blog http://graysonhighlandsponies.com/
For more information on the Grayson Highlands State Park Pony Auction The Wilburn Ridge Pony Association holds an auction at 2:00 PM on the Saturday following the 4th full week in September. The auction is part of the Grayson Highlands Fall Fest. All auctioned ponies have passed veterinary examination and testing, and the proceeds from their purchase goes toward sustaining the pony herd and local charities. For further information call: 276-579-7092 or go to
For more information on the Grayson Highlands State Park Pony Auction The Wilburn Ridge Pony Association holds an auction at 2:00 PM on the Saturday following the 4th full week in September. The auction is part of the Grayson Highlands Fall Fest. All auctioned ponies have passed veterinary examination and testing, and the proceeds from their purchase goes toward sustaining the pony herd and local charities. For further information call: 276-579-7092 or go to
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