Howdy Folks,
This story was
published in my Holistic Hall of Fame column in Natural Horse Magazine in the
Oct/Nov/Dec 2013 issue. Of course it looks better there, and includes a
side-bar written by Ginger Kathrens ... NHM is a wonderful magazine and I encourage you to subscribe ... Ginger's work, and the efforts of
The Cloud Foundation she founded to save our wild horses, make her story a perfect Feature Friday ...
Please enjoy "They Taught Her What It Means To Be a Wild Horse." When Ginger proofed it she said, "You told my pre-Cloud story beautifully."
They Taught Her
What It Means To Be a Wild Horse
Why is there a
Cloud Foundation? Many people believe the spirit of the horse can touch us,
guide us. Ginger Kathrens is one of those people. She also believes we owe it
to them to help them remain free to be horses and roam their ancestral lands.
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| Ginger Kathrens in the Pryer Mountains - credit-Mario Benazzi |
Her first
experience with horses was a pony. Ginger Kathrens was about 5 when her parents
brought her the little fellow. She admits she doesn't remember much about him.
Next they gave her an ex rodeo horse who she does remember as being very quick.
When Ginger was in 7th grade they gave her a palomino Quarter Horse, Sonny. He
was a beautiful horse but totally green and many of their adventures left
Ginger bouncing on the ground. She chuckles when she thinks about those days
and wonders what her parents, who were in the registered Hereford business,
were trying to tell her about horses. Looking back she realizes what she hadn't
learned, because she had each of those childhood equine friends separately, was
that horses have a remarkably tight family bond. A fact that would later
influence her life on a grand scale.
As a young adult
Ginger created her own small film business and was busy doing what a young
entrepreneur needs to do to survive. She was happily going along making films
and great friends. She even had the pleasure of filming for the United States
Olympic Committee. Always being an outdoor person, and lover of nature, she
began to miss the natural world, so when Marty Stauffer invited her to join his
team at Wild America, Ginger jumped at the opportunity. Marty hired her to do
research, writing and editing for the show. For the first time Ginger was able
to combine her work and her love of the outdoors and animals, which made a
tremendous difference in the quality of her work, and the intensity with which
she applied herself. But he never allowed her to film.
Marty's worry was
not the quality of her filming; rather it was his concern for her safety. She
might get lost, cold or injured he told her. For more than 6 years Ginger
stayed safe indoors writing and researching, but always her heart tugged her
outside. During this time Ginger did venture forth, on her own, and filmed her
award winning "Spirits of the Rainforest." Traveling to the Manu
preserve in upper Amazon, she was the first to film a wild Jaguar! When Marty
saw the film at Jackson International Wildlife Film Festival he called Ginger
from the festival to congratulate her. He told Ginger she would always be
remembered for this beautiful work.
Shortly after
that Marty asked Ginger to do the research, writing and the filming of a show
for Wild America about Mustangs. Thrilled with anticipation and excitement
Ginger agreed. But when she hung up she worried that it would be a huge task to
create a half hour show about a bunch of horses standing around. Armed with
apprehension and excitement she set out to discover what she'd need to know
about wild horses. She'd only known her three horses as a youth, and based on
that, there wasn't much that would fill a show.
She dug into
researching the behavior characteristics of wild horses, and was amazed she
could find virtually nothing. She found a bit about history, and a study done
about horses in the Great Basin, another on Sable Island, a bit about the
ponies of Chincoteague and Assateague, but really nothing about their behavior.
How would she begin to make a show about wild horses if there was nothing
interesting enough to have ever caused anyone to write anything about them? So
far she had nothing to build from.
Ginger headed out
West on a location scouting trip to discover the best places to film wild
horses, still troubled that she had no resources about behavior. Wild America
shows were all about showing behavior. Her plan at the time was to load the
show up with history, because obviously wild horses had no interesting behavior
for if they did, someone would have written about it.
She and her
sister, Marian, traveled together to remote places in Oregon to see the Kiger Mustangs,
and to Nevada, and McCullough Peaks in Wyoming. They did find wild horses, but
all they ever saw were horses running away in great clouds of dust when their
vehicle was spotted. They would not even stand to be photographed, nothing
interesting about that. Ginger became very discouraged and worried for her
show.
By chance she got
a tip from major wild horse advocate, Karen Sussman, about a great place to see
wild horses called Pryor Mountains. Karen told her a paved road ran there and
the horses had become used to seeing vehicles. Karen introduced Ginger to a
retired minister, Floyd Schweiger, who knew the area, and the horses.
Ginger and her
sister, Marian, met Rev. Schweiger who took them on the paved road where he
introduced them to their first good look at wild horses. Ginger was surprised
to see Duns, Grullas, such primitive and striped Spanish looking horses. This
was becoming more interesting she thought. On the way back to the motel Rev.
Schweiger told them he'd heard one of the stallions he called Raven, had just
had a foal born 3 days ago, and after church in the morning he could take them
to see it. Rev. Schweiger loved the wild horses in the Pryor Mountain; he knew
and loved their history. He told Ginger that genetic studies were coming back
proving they were perhaps the most Spanish of all the wild horses remaining in
the U.S.
The sisters
decided to head out on their own early, after all it's only 40 thousand acres
and folks at the motel gave them directions to Tillet Ridge, the place where
Raven ran with his band. Key to locating Tillet Ridge was, after hours of dirt
roads, turn right at the old tractor. Imagine Ginger and her sister's glee when
they actually spied the tractor. A good omen indeed. Confident and excited they
continued on along the red road, the sun now rising above the buttes.
A patch of snow
at the base of a butte drew her attention. In front of the snow stood a
majestic black stallion. Carefully Ginger set up her camera and began filming
the stallion eating snow. She noticed, out of the corner of her eye, her sister
who was wearing a white jacket had begun walking down the road. The stallion
saw the shimmering white jacket too, and began prancing towards her. His
forelock reached the end of his nose, as he pranced it floated in the breeze.
He stopped just 50 yards from Marian, shook his head, snorted and pivoted. At
that snort the sage surrounding the butte became alive with fleeing horses, and
Ginger spied the tiny foal leaping the sage as it dashed alongside its mother.
They had found the newborn foal and Raven. Ginger had also experienced her
first taste of wild horse family behavior.
She didn't realize it then, but
she'd also felt the first tug on her heart to do all she could to keep these
noble horses free.
Back at the
office she included filming at the Pryor Mountain Mustangs range in her outline
for the upcoming Wild America show. She returned to Pryor Mountain for more
filming several times, and each time Raven would appear, and with him his band.
She began to recognize the mares and foals, and named them. But still she did
not understand the basics of the wild horse behavior and she relied on what she
learned filming in the Manu preserve, if she was going to get great shots,
she'd need to hide.
Seeking the best
possible footage, one day atop the Pryor Mountain she set up in the rocks at a
snow fed water hole, meticulously camouflaged. Eventually a beautiful dun
stallion, not Raven, and his three mares picked their way to the water hole.
The mares began to drink, but the stallion looked right at her. He let go a
tremendous snort, the mares exploded from the water sending water flying high.
Within seconds even the horses she'd spied earlier were gone. She pondered the
moment and realized hiding didn't work. She decided she would try the opposite.
Sitting in plain sight to film.
So she began to
sit in the open and even wave to be sure they saw her. Accepted her. That
summer of 1994 she learned to understand more and more, and Raven and his band
served as her teachers. But she watched many other bands too. She watched and
learned as the mares guided the foals with gentle discipline. She began to
understand their behavior. She began to recognize their snorts, nickers,
whinnies and postures. She learned the band was a family. She learned there was
a pecking order within a band and even between the bands. They leaned on, and
needed each other for survival ... They were teaching Ginger what it means to be a
wild horse
As she filmed the
beautiful flowers, birds and other wildlife, Ginger also learned how important
the wild horses are to the tapestry of life on their range. It was a glorious
summer for Ginger, and the beautiful, full of life wild horses.
That beautiful
world was shattered when she returned just a few months later in the fall. She
witnessed her first BLM round-up. It was a horrible sight. Two of the new foals
in Raven's band were killed. She had never witnessed such horror. She kept her
camera rolling, in the hopes that perhaps her presence might shield the horses.
The men doing the round-up on horseback showed no mercy, not even for Ginger,
and they threatened her and lied to her. They also told her they would call
Marty Stauffer, and she advised them to do just that. They drove her away, she
called Marty, crying as she drove and told him they're killing the horses. He
told her to go back and film it, including the dead bodies.
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| The "cover up" colt - One of Raven's mares was rounded up without her foal - BLM told her the colt had run away - later Ginger found out they had driven him over a cliff, and shot him ... Credit Ginger Katherns |
She did go back,
and found a foal in the trash. She also found Raven in a corral desperately
trying to protect his mares and foals. They had told Ginger they would not
round-up Raven. First of many lies. They had also brought in mares without
their foals and other foals without their mothers ... Over the next months,
throughout the fall Ginger watched as young horses tried in vain to find their
mothers.
She spent many hours crying through her camera lens.
On a beautiful
spring day, Raven brought his band out in full sight as Ginger filmed and she
spied two new foals. She immediately named them Smokey and Mahogany. Those two
fillies made her feel whole again.
Ginger returned
with a friend to the Pryor Mountain on Labor Day weekend. To film, to show this
beautiful land, and these marvelous horses to her friend. They were absorbed by
the splendor and serenity of the moment when Raven and his band appeared, and
with them a Palomino mare and her brand new pale palomino colt. Ginger named
him ... Cloud.
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| Cloud - born May 29, 1995- credit Ginger Kathrens |
In those 14
months from March of 1994 to May 29, 1995 Ginger had learned so much from the
wild horses. She learned that they have strong family bonds, they are proud and
are important to the lands they roam. And the wild horses should be allowed to
roam free. On that day began the lifelong documentation of one very noble wild
horse.
Later, Ginger
founded the Cloud Foundation, a non-profit which is dedicated to preventing the
extinction of Cloud's herd through education and media events. The Cloud
Foundation is also committed to protecting other wild herds on public lands.
Raven, his and other bands taught Ginger what it means to be a wild horse ... She
is committed to keeping them that way.
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| Cloud today - credit Ginger Katherens |
To learn all
about how the Cloud Foundation is working to help keep wild horses free to run
wild please visit their website www.thecloudfoundation.org
Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry
