Username;;Ghouly_
Show Name: Sunsets Off The Coast
Barn Name:Lolonyo.
The name Lolonyo means 'Love Is Beautiful' and is of African origin. Gender: Cow
Age:15 years
Height:35hh
Halter: Savannah Sunset (reds, orange, pinks etc - gradient-)
Discipline: private pet
Competition:oml berz 😂
Lolonyo doesn't remember much of her early life as a young giraffe living with her mother. Their population was among the isolated amount of masai giraffes that exists in the South Luangwa Valley, of northeastern Zambia.
She was very young when she was found and rescued by humans, all she remembered was her mother taking off at a run and then turning around and charging something behind Lolonyo. It was dark and late at night and she could barely see anything but she heard such terribly loud sounds that terryfied her down to the bone. She ran and ran and didn't look back for her mother. Eventually she could run no longer and collapsed to the ground beneath some brush, and when morning came she was all alone. She attempted to retrace her steps and find her mother again but she did not, and so she wandered all alone and vulnerable for she was still tiny and in much danger out all on her own but luckily for lolonyo, some kind hearted humans reported seeing a lone baby giraffe and so she was tracked down and rescued by rangers.
She was taken to the Maasai Mara National Reserve, which is an area of preserved savannah wilderness in southwestern Kenya, along the Tanzanian border. Its animals include lions, cheetahs, elephants, zebras and hippos and hosts many migrating species. She lived here in safety after being fostered and integrated into a local giraffe herd, and was able to live her life to the fullest. She was still young but had an adventurous heart, often straying away from the other herds and even her adoptive parent, and just loved to explore her new home.
What lolonya would consider her favourite things would be getting to run across wide open plains of grassy lands and rolling hills, of open country for her to admire. She loves the local wildlife as well, the grazing gazelle or zebra herds that she often accompanies on their journeys to watering holes and she has even met some elephants, although she usually stays away and watches them from afar due to their size and aggressive protectiveness. One of her favourite things is when Wildebeest traverse through during their annual migration. She loves to watch them and follow them and see them on their way as they cross the Talek rivers. Sure her life isn't all easy and care free she has to watch for lions, who could single her out and eat her, but she doesn't mind them. She just has to run and defend herself and not be caugh out alone at night. She likes to protect the other species, so when around gazelle or zebras who are grazing she will often keep an eye out for any cheetah or approaching lions and let them know when danger is near for she considers them her extended family. She has many friends within other species, a few young zebra foals kept following her when she visited the watering holes or a lone wildebeest tagging along behind her when it got lost, although she of course led it home to its herd.
One summers day she had kind of hurt her leg after running from two male lions for what felt like hours. She came down to the water and herds for safety and a chance to rest, and had manged to lay down to regain her stamina. Some of the animals were wary and avoided her, some of the ones she cared for seemed to return the favour and come and check on her or keep an eye out for danger while she lay there. Some commotion happened later that day with the herd of zebras that where near her and a little foal ended up being left motherless. It was alone and frightened and lost, sobbing and crying and looking aorund, and lolanyo felt her heart breaking. She remembered that night she lost her mother forever, where she had ran and never saw her again, and instinctual struggled to her feet and walked towqrds the foal.
It seemed a bit scared of her at first, but as the zebra herds had not yet come back in, it got comfier around her due to craving that closeness of another, and so lolanyo kept it safe for the night. She told it stories to keep it calm and watched it graze, and it even snuggled in close to sleep when night came. In the morning the zebras were back but the foal wanted to stay with lolanyo, and from there they were very close. The little lad did go back to the herds and formed some bonds and such, but he always came back to lolanyo even after her leg was fine and she started moving on to graze, he always followed behind her and kept her company, telling jokes and having fun conversations. His name was Hondo (meaning warrior) and he was quite a character. He was strong, witty, charming and always kept her company even as she left the herds behind to follow new adventures. He decided to go with lolanyo since she was his true friend and he was almost a ful adult, Al leats in his eyes. He was a magnificent zebra Stallion but hadn't been getting on too well with his herd,so he chose to accompany lolonyo. they had many days of racing across the plains, tearing across the terrain with nothing but joy and friendship in their hearts, running together from sunrise til sunset. Of how she loved those sunsets, seeing Hondos shilouette against the casting light.
The wildlife of her African home are her favourite thing besides the environment and getting to run free and do her own thing or spend time with Hondo. So of course when she found herself surrounded by humans one day and her vision going dark, and waking up in a new foreign land of different smells and animals, she was quite frightened and confused. But above all she felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness. Sure her new home had other animals to keep her company, and she could stay away from the fences or crowds of humans looking at her through glass or wooden walkways near the tree tops if she so liked, she still felt lonely. She missed her friends from maasai, the familiar smells, the landmarks she knew, seeing the migrating herds and helping them on their way.
She misses the sense of adventure and the thrill, of feeling truly alive. Here she is safe, but she is also bored. She missed her old home so much, but at least she has a chance to make new friends with the local animals and learn their stories, even if she still misses the ones she already had back home. Even above all that though, she misses Hondo the most. She sees other zebras but it isn't the same, and when she sees their foals she feels her heart breaking for the friend she once had the friend who would be all alone and not knowing why or where she went, wandering the plains without her.
Oh how she misses him.
(1151 words :3)
