Echo River Ranch

Hawkeye

This horse has the kindest eye and it will look right into your soul. It is hard to believe that he is a rescued horse.

Statistics - A Description of Hawk

Hawkeye Hawkeye goes by the barn name "Hawk". He is a gelding and he is 14-3 hands (or 59 inches) tall at the withers. There are no registration papers, so his true age is unknown. And although his color markings and confirmation indicate that he might be of Gypsy horse bloodlines, without registration papers he is technically classified as a Pinto.

Horse Statistics At A Glance Hawks main body color is white with black markings that are edged with brown; he is considered a tri-color Tobiano Pinto (vs. Overo Pinto). Most of his body and all four legs are white. He has one large black mark on his chest and another black mark that covers most of his head. He has a white blaze the full length of his face, widening as it covers the end of his nose. His mane hair is white accept where the black mark covers the top of his head. His tail is also white accept for a few black hairs in the center.

     

     

The Beginning - How We Obtained Hawk

Hawk just arrived at the ranch Hawk is a rescue horse. He was removed from a group of horses found starving. But he could of suffered other abuses. His rescuer took him to a boarding facility in Kirkland where he received plenty of food and shelter for several months.

Hawk came to the ranch on January 19th, 2010. He looked fit. A veterinarian had recently floated his teeth and dated him as an eight year old (or born in 2002). But his intelligence and wisdom suggest that he might actually be five or six years older than that.

As healthy as Hawk looked, he still needed lots of care. He was very insecure, the ranch was his third home in a very short time. He had an obvious fear of closed in spaces, such as the inside of a horse trailer, the darkness of the barn, and the closeness of stall walls.

     

     

Horse Tails - Funny Things & Stories About Hawk

Hawk watching from the field Hawk prefers to be the last horse in the trail string. Protecting the rear of the herd is his comfort zone.

Hawk will lead if he is asked too. In the front, he has a tendency to snort at the things that frighten him and that is almost everything. While riding down the trail, he will snort at stumps, at logs, at large ferns, at puddles, and even at sun spots.

Hawk is very attentive to campfires, they hold his attention everytime he walks past one. The first time we noticed this, he was so busy looking at the campfire that he forgot to watch where the rest of the horses had gone. When he finally looked away from the fire, he realized he was alone. Ever since, he keeps one eye on the fire and one eye on his riding buddies.

We aren’t sure why Hawk has an intense interest in campfires. It could have been from a bad experience with fire or it might have even been the first time he had seen a campfire. It might just be the campfire itself - the sounds, the flames, or the smoke. But he will always slow down and stare, if not snort, at the campfire.

Rescue horses are like orphans, they are the only one who really knows their past. Unfortunately, Hawk is not talking much.

     

     

The Present - What We Think About Hawk

Hawk in the snow
Hawk still gets to run with the boys and he is often turned out with Big. Big will pester him until eventually has been antagonized enough to start defending himself. This leads to play fighting. This play fighting includes lots of rearing with some mischievous biting and lighthearted kicking. It is amazing to watch.

Whatever neglect he has suffered in the past, Hawk is eager to please and desperately wants to be loved and needed.

Hawk has a very gentle nature and he is in love with the girls (Spot & Dolly). Spot is his favorite. He flirts with her constantly and even talks to her out on the trail while riding. In the pasture, they are almost always standing near one another.

Hawks attention to the girls has gotten him into trouble. He rarely allowed other horses between him and Spot. But when he decided to keep Spot away from people too, that caused some problems with the function of the ranch. He is now usually separated from her or in his own paddock.

Hawk play fighting with Big