Challenge Painting #377 Working Mustang All Purpose Pony

"Clara"
All Purpose Mustang Pony
Rides, Drives, Trails, Does Ranch Work.
8.5 by ll inches Graphite on #110 Paper
by Artist LindaLMartin
$130.00
Signed Prints available for $35.00
info@llmartin.com for more information

Challenge Painting #376 Working Mustang Ranch Pony

"Ranch Pony"
Gus and Colter Klett
8.5 by 11 inches Drawing on #110 paper
by LindaLMartinArtist
$140.00
Signed Prints available for $35.00
info@llmartin.com for more information

Challenge Painting #375 Working Mustang Riddle Mountain HMA

"Savanna"
Riddle Mountain HMA
5.5 by 8.5 inches graphite on #110 drawing paper
by Linda L Martin Artist
$90.00

KIGER SAVANNAH, adopted by Kim Kellogg as a weanling in 1993. KMA# 0158-W. Also reg. SMKR, AMBA, ABRA. Champion Pleasure driving mare. Savannah was shown at the Western States Horse Expo in Sacramento CA; being driven by Vonni Halvorson. Savannah is dam of many award winning offspring, and grand-offspring. KIGER SAVANNAH 1993 red dun Kiger mare ( Riddle HMA )  Kiger's are one of the few wild horses that are used in private breeding programs. They are highly sought after; and even in a bad economy they generally have a 99.9% adoption rate. Kigers are known as performance horses and have excelled in dressage, jumping, combined training, western pleasure, endurance and competitive trail riding and ranch work.

Challenge Painting #374 Working Mustang Wendy Daze Competitive Trail Horse

Wendy Daze born 2004 from The South Steens HMA
Competitive Trail Horse
5.5 by 8.5 inches Graphite on #110 Paper
by Linda L Martin Artist
$50.00 original
$35.00 Prints signed prints
info@llmartin.com to purchase prints.

Challenge Painting #373 Working Mustang Scout, Palomino Butte HMA

Scout
Pack Horse In Oympia National Park
Mustang Owned and trained by Beck Sibel
Scout is 4 years old and from Palomino Butte HMA
5.5 by 9 inches Graphite on #110 Paper
by Linda  L Martin
$50.00
Prints available for $35.00 each plus S&H

Challenge Painting #372 Stallion Owyhee HMA, Nevada

Owyhee Stallion
8 by 10 Graphite on #110 Paper
by Linda L Martin Artist
$110.00 Original
$ 35.00 each Signed Prints

Challenge Painting #371 Cheddar Orphan Foal Owyhee HMA, Nevada

"Cheddar"
Orphan Foal from Owyhee Round up
8 by 10 oil on canvas
by LindaLMartin Artist
$300.00

Cheddar is a wild horse foal that was part of a round up being held during December 2012 and January 2013 to remove a number of horses off of the drought ridden range of the Owyhee Complex. The Owyhee Complex is a group of  Nevada Herd Management Areas(HMAs) that are managed under the Wild Horse and Burro Act by the Bureau of Land Management.

The purpose for the wild  horse round up is to  reduce the number of wild horses on the range and thus remove  the potential for irreversible damage to the already stressed range. According to the BLM The lowering of the number of wild horses, along with temporary suspension of the grazing allotments for private citizens will give the range a chance to recover as long as the drought lessens.

According to the gather records so far the majority of the horses brought in have had body indexes of between 3 and 5. Stallions being mostly in the 5 range and Mares and foals in the  3 to 4 range. The body index measures the health and well being of horses according to condition. It ranges from 1 severe starvation to 10 severe obesity.  Average scale for a domestic horse on good care or a wild horse on good pasture should between 5 and 7. 

Cheddar has blue eyes.

Horses who are found domestically  and habitually  to be in the 2 to 3 range are usually considered neglected and if  the owner has  not been providing food and water as well as medical care. An investigation including a measure or  prosecution might ensue to look after the needs of the animals humanely.  Horses who are at level 2 over a prolonged period of time tend to have irreversible organ damage. And if the horses slip down int the the rage of 1 on the scale they are not likely to recover.

I have been told by some Nevada wild horse advocates it is normal for horses in Nevada to drop weight in during the dry hot summers,  often down to body indexes of  2 or 3.  Older horses of course would find it difficult to gain and drop weight and might go through  the winter months under weight. However, according to them, the horses pick up weight again in the autumn rainy season. This year the drought was so bad on  parts of the range that those who dropped weight in summer did not have enough annual  wild grasses to feed.them. 

I am told that even though the BLM did bring out water there was not enough rain to bring the on sight streams and springs back to life. The size of the HMA makes it too large to do whole scale hay drops. A management technique that the BLM and a lot of advocates think would be a bad idea for the over all health of the horses. Wild Horses sometimes eat the rich hay to fast and too much. This sometimes creates fatal digestive issues and painful slow death by colic. So horses on hay for the first time need to be monitored. The logistics of  hay drops would be unimaginable.

Cheddar with his mother.
This photo was taken  soon
after they were rounded up.
Cheddar's mother was showing severe
signs of starvation. This mare is also
in winter coat, which under  normal
circumstances, make her appear
large and fat. All of  the mares
from her group seemed to be in
this condition. She  seemed to be
giving all her nutrition to her foal.

When Cheddar and his dam were brought into the gather site everything was fine. They settled in quickly. And according to the BLM  little Cheddar quickly endeared himself to the entire round up staff. They named him Cheddar because of his unusual color. 

Sometime in the middle of the  round up  one of the activists observing the proceedings decided to go after a restraining order to stop the round up until better "handling and humane procedures" could be put in place. Unfortunately, that restraining order meant that Cheddar and his mother, and all the horses at the temporary holding sight had to stay put. According to the restraining order no horses were allowed to move. They could not be shipped to short term holding and those who were to be released back on the range could not be released. 

My understanding is the BLM continued to feed and care for the horses until all the conditions could be  reviewed and met by the Judge's standards. Then the movement of horses and the round up was able to continue. The restraining order was in affect from January 5th until the it was ended 5 days later and the round up activities began again on January 11th.

These activities are all a matter of public record and are on the BLM website for anyone to look at. http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/wfo/blm_programs/wild_horses_and_burros/Owyhee_Complex_Wild_Horse_Gather_2012/gatreports.html 



During that time period, the horses in the temporary holding area were also subject to sleet and snow storms over the 5 day period. It is during that time that the loading ramp and alleyways become covered if not used.  This is what led to the accident where Cheddar's dam slipped and fell. She was put down because of the injury.  Fortunately Cheddar  and no other foals were subject to danger. The BLM policy is to ship the foals separately from the mares to prevent the larger horses from crushing the foals or stepping on them. When they arrive at temporary holding the mares and foals are reunited.( Mares and foals are often marked at the sight before shipping with blue animal friendly non toxic paint with matching letters, So that each mare and foal pair can be reunited)

Cheddar's mother's circumstances, according to one eye witness source were a combination of the snow packing down in the alley forming ice after previous horses had been loaded, the mare being weak from malnutrition and her worry over the temporary separation from her foal. All pretty normal reactions even in domestic horses. The really terrible thing here is that  some people are going to fight over it and say if she had not been taken from the range she would not have left her foal and orphan. But the real truth is the mare's body index was at 2 already and with 2 more months on the range with no food or water it most probably would have meant slow starvation for both the mare and the foal.

I am not going to judge who was right or wrong here. But I do feel that everyone needs to know the whole story. The BLM did not create the drought situation. They are, however, charged by law, under the Wild Horse and Burro Act of 1971, to make sure that the animals are treated humanely and managed properly as valued historic icons of the the American people. In time of drought and fire, I do not think it is an extreme response in humane management, to remove a portion of the population of wild horses from the range. In fact it is the kindest thing to do.

As for Cheddar, he has a lot of people who know about him and who are fond of him. His story is sad yes but the ending will hopefully be a happy one for him. As of this week he is now in Orphan Care at the BLM Facilty at  Carson City Prison. He will be raised as an orphan and put through their program until he is ready for adoption.  What you all can do is help us to get the remainder of his herd mates that have not been released back to their HMA adopted when the time comes. As of today 140 mares and stallions who were in the best condition have been released back on to the range in to areas where there is enough food and water to sustain them until the spring rains and snow melt.

The over 1,000 horses rounded up and that will not be  returned  to the range, will eventually be available for adoption. We as private citizens need to step up to the plate as wild horse  activists, advocates and just people who love horses and make sure they all have safe happy homes when the time comes.

Photo Images of  Cheddar and his family were provided by the BLM and are available to the public to use with the proviso that  they come with limited use and the express agreement that use of the images will not be used to criticize or undermine the activities of the Government agency.

This post was upated on January, 22, 2013: I spoke with the facility director this morning to see how little Cheddar was doing. Because of the interest and the many phone calls to the BLM he was keeping especailly close tabs on Cheddar's progress. Unfortunately little Cheddar passed away in the night." I was surprised to hear it," He said, " the foal was doing so well."  He and I agreed that the conditon of the mare was possibly a big factor in his failure to thrive.  " He was drinking his milk and seemed to be moving forward in everyway."

As happens sometimes when these foals who are so weak from malnutrition, they sometimes seem to improve and even play in the first week to 10 days. However, some of the internal damage is not detected. A normal round up where both the mare and foal are healthy and well fed they have a very high success rate of  survival for the foals if they are orphaned.

I join with all who were concerned with the foal's well being in expressing my sadness. 

Challenge Painting #370 Mare and Foal Owyhee HMA, Nevada

"Flurries"
Owhyee Mare and Foal
8.5 by 11 inches Graphite on #110 paper
by LindaLMartinArtist
$150.00 Original
$35 Prints
To order prints e-mail info@llmartin.com

Challenge Painting #369 Happy Mustang Adoption Maverick from Owyhee HMA, Nevada

"Maverick"11 year old Mustang from Owyhee HMA
4 by 6 inches  watercolor
by LindaLMartin Artist
$35.00

Maverick is an 11 year old mustang from Owyhee HMA in Nevada. He was adopted by
Tammy Bannister-Halsey when he was 4 years old.

This fellow, like many of the Owyhee horses, is at least 16 hands high. Originally in this part of  Nevada these horses were mostly in solid colors were used as remount horses and to pull light carriages, artillery horses and have the ability to jump when schooled. When I first started to paint them at the beginning of the Year I couldn't help but notice that they all seemed to be built like a cross between a Cleveland bay and a Clydesdale.  According to Tammy once gentled and trained these large mustangs are very good with children as well as adult riders.

Below is a photo of Tammy's Maverick at a show. This will give you a good idea of how these beautiful horses look when cleaned up. Also remember that  they come in a number of solid colors as well as pinto. The round up is ongoing due to the drought and deteriorating range conditions. Since these horses tend to be a bit larger than some mustangs they do require more food in the wild and feel the drought conditions a bit differently than some herds. A portion of the  herd is planned for removal and will eventually be ready for adoption. Please spread the word.

Photo Courtesy of  Tammy Bannister-Halsey
Maverick, Owyhee Mustang. Photo taken in
January 2012

Have you adopted a mustang  from Owyhee Complex? Email me at info@llmartin.com so I can include your horse in the Mustang A Day challenge.

Challenge Painting #368 "Owyhee Stallion"

Owyhee Stallion
6 by 9 inches graphite on watercolor paper
by LindaLMartinArtist
$80.00

References images for the  Owyhee Horses provided by the BLM

Challenge Painting #367 "Peaceful Co-existence?"

"Peaceful Co-existence?"
Mustang Foal and Heifer
4 by 6 inches Graphite on Watercolor paper
by Artist Linda L. Martin
$55.00

Challenge Painting #368 Owyhee Complex Wild Horses

"Running Through Sage"
Owyhee Complex  Wild Horses
5 by 7 Graphite on #110 Paper
by LindaLMartin Artist
$75.00

Challenge Painting #367 Bachelors Owyhee Complex

" On the Move"
Bachelor Stallions Owyhee Complex
5 by 7 inches Graphite on Paper
by LindaLMartin
Sold
Prints available for $35 each
e-mail info@llmartin.com

Challenge Painting #366 Mid-Night Run Owyhee Complex

"Mid-Night Run"
Owyhee Mare with her yearling and weanling foals
Graphite on Paper  5.5 by 8.5 Inches
by Linda L Martin Artist
$200.00
Photo reference BLM

Challenge Painting #365 Mustang Yearlings from the Owyhee Complex

Owyhee Yearlings
6 by 9 inches Watercolors
by LindaLMartin Artist
$200.00

Challenge Painting #364 Mustang Mares and Foals from the Owyhee Complex

"Search For Food"
Mares and Foals
Owyhee Complex HMA Nevada
8 by 10 inches Watercolor
by LindaLMartin Artist
$400.00

Challenge Painting #363 Happy Adopted Mustang Jordan

"The Stand Out"
Janet Schultz's Mustang Jordan
Calico Complex HMA 2010
8 by 10 inches Watercolor
by LindaLMartinArtist
SOLD