Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Horse

Had the chance to visit the Calgary Zoo Ranch way back on 8 October 2011, just south of the city. The Zoo ranch is a 320-acre captive breeding facility at DeWinton, and is not open to the public. The ranch also serves as a Zoo quarantine and holding area for everything from elk to zebras. "The horses at the Calgary Zoo ranch ain’t never been rode – and they ain’t never going to be. They’re Przewalski horses, the world’s only truly wild breed, and the Zoo’s mandate is to keep them wild. Also known as Asian horses, Mongolian Wild horses or Takhi, they were native to Asia and became extinct in the wild. Their captive breeding is now monitored under a worldwide Species Survival Plan, an international program that controls the breeding of most zoo animals today. All the estimated 1,500 Przewalskis today are descended from 13 ancestors captured in Mongolia during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Today, at least 60 Przewalski horses live on their own at Hustain Huruu, a Mongolian steppe area. Przewalskis are virtually untameable, suspicious and very difficult to manage compared to modern domesticated breeds." From article by Tyler Trafford in Canadian Country Cowboy magazine. www.canadiancowboy.ca/features/the_zoo_ranch.html

It had just started snowling lightly when I was out of my car, taking this photo. On some of my photos, you can see the thin white streaks from the falling snow, but they are only very faint. Not sure what the plant is that was growing in a large patch in this field, but it gave such a beautiful colour. Taken on 3 October 2012, within the city limits, just west of the residential areas on the south west edge of the city.

Can you believe that it was actually snowling lightly when I was out of my car, taking this photo? On some of my photos, you can see the thin white streaks from the falling snow, but they didn't show up in this image. Not sure what the plant is that was growing in a large patch in this field, but it gave such a beautiful colour. Taken on 3 October 2012, within the city limits, just west of the residential areas on the south west edge of the city.

I kept coming across this photo that I had put aside a couple of years ago, but each time I looked at it, I thought that maybe it wasn't really sharp enough to post. So, finally I decided to post it, partly so that I didn't have to keep seeing it in my file, ha. Taken on a snowy winter's day, 22 January 2010, somewhere SW of Calgary, along one of the backroads.

This was one of a group of four horses I passed yesterday, when I drove NW of the city in the hopes of finding a Great Gray Owl. For some reason, when I go looking for these Owls, I come home with photos of horses. I suspect that I'm getting out there too late in the day and the owls have tucked themselves in amongst the trees for an afternoon nap. I don't know if these are old horses or not particularly healthy horses, but they just seemed "different". There is a greyish white one that never looks that well whenever I see it - just looks depressed. I know nothing about horses, so maybe these four animals are simply "being horses". I had hoped that some time away from my computer might help my extremely painful arms (from too much mouse-clicking), but I suspect that gripping the steering wheel for about three hours of driving in windy conditions wasn't the best thing. I need to go and look at window blinds as soon as possible. I've no idea how far round my complex the window people have got, but it can't be too much longer before they come to remove all my windows and patio door. To say that I am not looking forward to this being done is to put it mildly : ) I can't reach the blinds to remove them and I certainly can't reinstall them, so will have to buy new ones that can be installed by the store. At the moment, sometimes I can barely lift my little point-and-shoot up to my eyes, so all the moving of furniture, ornaments, wall pictures, etc. in preparation for the window replacement has come at a bad time, ha. Will be SO glad when all this has been done!

I have better luck photographing cats, dogs and horses when I go on Bird Counts, as the birds are almost always too far away! There were two of these gorgeous horses at one of the farms we called in at in the SW quadrant of the Bird Count circle around the small town of Nanton yesterday. Nanton is 70 km south of Calgary, so roughly a 45-minute drive. I've added the list of birds five of us (in two cars) saw yesterday, under the Five Bucks photo below. Continuing past these horses at this farm, there were six Ring-necked Pheasants and two Magpies on the ground. A lovely addition to our list of birds - meaning the Pheasants, of course! I was trying to do as little walking as possible, ha, so didn't try and get any closer to the Ring-neckeds - which of course flew as soon as they saw my two friends approaching.

Had the chance to visit the Calgary Zoo Ranch yesterday afternoon, just south of the city. The Zoo ranch is a 320-acre captive breeding facility at DeWinton, and is not open to the public. The ranch also serves as a Zoo quarantine and holding area for everything from elk to zebras. "The horses at the Calgary Zoo ranch ain’t never been rode – and they ain’t never going to be. They’re Przewalski horses, the world’s only truly wild breed, and the Zoo’s mandate is to keep them wild. Also known as Asian horses, Mongolian Wild horses or Takhi, they were native to Asia and became extinct in the wild. Their captive breeding is now monitored under a worldwide Species Survival Plan, an international program that controls the breeding of most zoo animals today. All the estimated 1,500 Przewalskis today are descended from 13 ancestors captured in Mongolia during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Today, at least 60 Przewalski horses live on their own at Hustain Huruu, a Mongolian steppe area. Przewalskis are virtually untameable, suspicious and very difficult to manage compared to modern domesticated breeds." From article by Tyler Trafford in Canadian Country Cowboy magazine. www.canadiancowboy.ca/features/the_zoo_ranch.html