Mustangs

A few days ago I pressed a wrong number on the TV remote and chanced upon a program showing horses prancing thru dressage movements and working cattle. It was a demonstration-competition of wild mustangs that would be auctioned at the end of the performances. Every year the mustang heritage foundation offers horsemen and women, who have the knowledge and experience and facilities, the chance to gentle and train a wild mustang for public auction. After reading more about the event and checking out the Bureau of Land Management web pages, I learned the following:

Approximately 100 days before the competition is held, wild mustangs are randomly paired with a trainer who has applied and been approved by the Bureau of Land Management, (BLM). Each trainer and a wild mustang spend 100 days working together, preparing to compete in a handling and conditioning class, a pattern class and a leading and riding class. The top 10 competitors will then compete in a free style performance. At the conclusion of the event, all horses will be auctioned.

Mustangs have protected as National Treasures since 1971 when school children across the country wrote letters to congress, but due to declining resources and over population, horses are forced into government holding facilities where taxpayers spend millions of dollars on their care every year. According to the information on the Bureau of Land Management's web site, 42,000 horses in short-term and long-term corrals and pastures are in need of adoption.

Wild horses still roam on public lands, but BLM culls wild horses from the range in order to sustain natural resources, grass and water, necessary for horses and other wild life to continue living on public lands. Every time a horse is adopted and moved from BLM holding facilities, taxpayers are saved $10,000 per animal.

The mission of the mustang heritage foundation is to increase successful adoptions of the wild horses in these facilities. While transforming a wild horse into a sensitive equine partner, adoptions help protect wild herds for future generations.

The events for 2017 have been named Extreme Mustang Makeover. The 6 cities scheduled for this years events are:

• Jacksonville, FL May 18-20
• West Springfield, Mass, June 15-17
• Reno, NV. June 23-24
• Lexington, KY. July 6-8
• Monroe, WA. Aug 17-19
• Ft, Worth, TX Sept 14-16.

These events will feature wild mares, geldings, 4 to 7 years that have been living in BLM off range corrals.

Horse and trainer information, photos and videos of horses along with schedules can be found on:

Extreme Mustang Makeover