I recently had a wonderful opportunity to photograph Alberta mustangs!
How did wild Alberta mustangs come to live on a small town farm near Ottawa Ontario? This is the story.
Wild horses once roamed freely on a 200 acre parcel of prairie land within Canadian Forces Base Suffield in southeastern Alberta. Genetically isolated, the horses were athletic, intelligent, physically and mentally hardy~ all traits that stallions and mares passed on to their offspring to ensure survival. In 1994, it was decided that the horses were a threat to the grasslands within the base. The government ordered a roundup of over 1200 mustangs- and every herd of stallions, mares and foals was chased by snowmobile into a catch pen. In order to save these living testaments to Canadian heritage, a small group of people started the 'Suffield Mustangs Association of Canada'. Dedicated to the preservation of this endangered breed, Smiths Falls Ontario veterinarian Gaelin O'Grady and her husband Larry turned their 400 acre mixed pasture and forest over to a herd of wild Suffield Mustangs. Recently, I was honoured to photograph the herd. Muscular, curious, gentle, hardy, known for endurance and loyalty and bred to ensure that these traits remain for generations to come. If you want to know more about Marlborough Mustangs (as Gaelin calls her herd) contact Gaelin O'Grady through her website: http://marlboroughmustangs.ca/
