Rust and Bones

It was a howling, windy night.  In the morning, we bravely ventured out in spite of the wind for a two mile walk along the nearby dirt roads.  We did not see another person nor did a car pass us.  The area is quite remote, with houses few and far between and the landscape very barren as you would expect in the high desert.  

We came across this in the front yard of a house that we passed.  Not sure what to think.