Posted by Dan Arndt
One of the most productive searches for Wild Horses was with the help of one of the attendees of our Winter Birding Course last year, Paul Turbitt. Most of these photos were taken south-west of Sundre, Alberta on February 20, 2012, and the last in the series was taken in November 2012 west of Bragg Creek.
While these horses are not truly “wild” horses, they are feral, and have a very unique look compared to modern domestic horses, and have been living and breeding in the wild for well over two hundred years, and behave just like any wild animal would.
First horse of the day
First herd
Solo Roan mare
Solo Roan mare
Roan and Chocolate
Solo Roan mare
Young stallion on the edge of the herd on sentry duty
Second young stallion of the last herd of the day
Alabaster mare of the third herd
Dappled grey mare of the third herd
Third herd of wild horses, all in the same frame
My size 11 boot print beside the hoof-print of the largest stallion in the third herd.
This pair was the tailing edge of a herd of about a dozen horses seen west of Bragg Creek.
for more photos of the Alberta Wild Horses ,,check out my photos on facebook ..ken mcleod
Given all the slaughter houses nearby, it is a miracle that there are any wild horses left there!
So why was someone shooting them? Are they a problem or was it just for sick sport?
As far as I know they are not a problem and it is not legal to kill them, but about 13 were shot in the Sundre area between 2007 and 2010. So far the RCMP haven’t been able to find out who did it or why. – Bob Lefebvre
Thanks for giving us a good look at the wild horses.