Here’s Tillie, a 3yo Twin Peaks CA Mustang filly we gentled, processing the many sensations that come with wearing a pack saddle.

To me, ponying, packing and ground driving are key ingredients to uneventful starting and laying a solid foundation for any direction a Mustang may go in the future.

Properly prepared, the first time with the pack saddle can and should be a non event, even for this spunky, opinionated, easily outraged princess.

Tillie is quite the lady and very expressive. She’s also a super cool, smart, hilarious young horse full of personality.

Tillie was adopted and went home to her person early this year.

Here are some of the updates we’ve received (shared with permission):

“A little update: Tillie is the absolute best in the whole world! I love her so much. She has adjusted so well and even earned going into the large turnout at night. She’s a very willing participant in whatever shenanigans I come up with and loves to go for walks. She has been super brave and calmly goes into the indoor arena (even through the scary small door!) and we are working on cross ties. I have also realized I can bribe her to go pretty much anywhere as long as it involves a grooming session. She is absolutely a princess 

“

“Is there a support group for people who just got their mustang but their mustang is so awesome that they think they need another one already? Asking for a friend…”

“She’s such a good girl! We have now done 3 rides in the round pen. Did a little trot last time. This weekend we’re gonna see if we graduate to the indoor arena. And she has convinced everyone on the property that she needs attention at all times.”

“I love her so much!!!!! She is such a joy to be with and I can’t wait to go back to the barn every time I leave!!!!”

This is why we do what we do at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy

If you’re interested in learning more about backcountry packing with horses whether you’re taking riding horses or just leading pack animals, or how to utilize packing for the saddle starting process, there’s still time to sign up for the PACKING WORKSHOP next Saturday, May 3rd, in Guffey, CO.

Contact us if you’re interested and please help us spread the word! 

We love sharing our passion for horse packing. These workshops are another way we can not only support the wild horses in our care but also help you educate yours … Or even help you justify getting one because packing out camp, sheds etc really get heavy after a while 

We’ll be using our Ambassador Mustangs to show elements of the process, so if you’ve been wanting to meet them, you’re in luck 

#horses#horsemanship#mustang#training#learning
#adopt#nonprofit#makingmountainmustangmemories

This year’s packing workshops are on

May 3rd

June 7th

July 19th

at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy in Guffey, CO.

9.30am to 3pm

$125 per person if paid in advance (Venmo, PayPal, CashApp, Square, cash or check) or $140 if paid on arrival.

Registration via DM, email info@wildhorseoutreach.org or phone 719-377-8587. Please provide your full name, a good email address and phone number, as well as how you’d like to pay.

We cover gear needed for equines and humans in the backcountry, putting on a pack saddle, throwing the box hitch, navigation, stock containment, feeding equines and humans in the backcountry, and preparing equines and people for pack trips.

Plenty of opportunities for questions and hands on practice.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Help us spread the word please! Proceeds go towards supporting our work with wild horses

*If you want the full immersion experience and live and breathe packing for a week straight on the western slope you need to get a hold of Colorado Pack Company LLC . Gabe is the real deal and you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone more passionate about going and teaching backcountry packing. Plus his family is wonderful and the mules are super cute!*

#horses#mountains#adventure#learning#letsgo#fun

#outdoors#joy#makingmountainmustangmemories

Pictured: Annie Oakley’s 3rd gentling session.

20min of feel, timing and the right tools for the job. Some patience, being quick on my feet when I need to. Knowing when to praise and release, knowing when and how to ask. Fail safe? No. But practice makes better.

1st session: Neck rope prep.

2nd: Neck rope on and off again (from a distance, gotta be safely creative with a wildie you can’t get near), body control, more touch with the lunge whip.

Thank you Tay Martin for capturing Annie Oakley’s first touch. AO is a 6yo tri colored pinto Mustang mare from Cedar Mountain UT. She’s here for gentling for her adopter and is not available.

Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy in Guffey, CO offers gentled Mustangs for adoption and gentles wild horses for clients. We can help arrange shipping from and to other states. We also offer lessons, consultation and training at your facility, as well as remote coaching.

It’s important to remember that some Mustangs take longer to let their guard down than others. No amount of wishing or fairy dust can speed up that process. We can teach them the skills and make the gentling process as easy, clear and enjoyable as possible.

Turning in their wild card is an inside job and takes as long as it takes, and in some cases significant time, effort and resources on the part of the adopter.

“Mystery pain” isn’t at all unheard of – but often overlooked – and can make learning and trusting much harder for the horse. Stallion fights, resource shortages, being bred and carrying foals starting at a year old are no joke for a species that tends to be a bit fragile under the best of circumstances.

Thank you for your support Rowdy’s RopesMontana Rio Buckaroo HatsOutback Trading Company LTD.

#horses#progress#patience#growth#learning#goals

#wildtowilling#makingmountainmustangmemories

Here’s Spur. The biggest weirdo with a bent nose.

He’s a 15.2hh and growing, gangly 4yo bay roan gelding facility born to a Stewart Creek WY Mustang mare who thinks he’s a dog. My dog, to be precise.

We inadvertently spent a lot of time together from the beginning. He had what would be the first of many Spur moments shortly after he arrived and tore his cheek wide open.

Gentling then had to progress quickly for him to get meds on board and his wound tended to. We do have a chute, that’s a last resort.

Spur has big feelings and wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s sensitive, emotional, and at times more than a little impulsive. We’ve worked through many, many Spur moments together. Occasionally we still do.

He does best with clearly communicated and readily, fairly and consistently enforced expectations.

Boundaries create safety and he does thrive on knowing the rules. Sometimes the most insecure (humans too) test their limits the most.

He eventually got sent out to pasture for picking on Tay Martin . He was still a bit watchy and flinchy then and I was concerned he’d rewild himself.

He hasn’t, quite the opposite actually. He circles the house, trying to figure out why he can see but not walk through windows. He waits and watches for me when the others wander off to graze.

He follows me around the pens, forever stepping on the water hose I’m dragging, and comes trotting up in the middle of the pasture. Unless I’m not alone, that’s still suspect.

He does that in the dark too, and all I hear is the heavy thump of approaching hooves before his excited crooked face appears.

Spur’s a strange one. The other day I was scratching Lacy who in turn offered to groom Spur. He was so sketched out that he walked off and hid behind me, leaving Lacy to groom the air.

Despite all that, he’s the boss of his little herd and does require reminders that when I’m with them, pushing the others around is a no-go.

We’re still figuring out whether Spur is a permanent member of the Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustang herd or if he’ll eventually be offered for adoption.

In the meantime he’s getting a permanent brand inspection so he can legally adventure with us this summer

We have several lovely, less (or differently) quirky, gentled Mustangs available for adoption.

Reach out and let us know if we can help you find yours!

#horses#mountains#happy#easter#adopt#friends

… We offer those too and it’s always fun to meet and help new people and their wildies!

A couple of weeks ago I drove north to work with Willow, a pretty sorrel 8yo Desatoya NV Mustang mare with kind, wise eyes, and her owner.

She’d had minimal handling in the past and got passed a around a few times until finding a soft landing.

Willow leads a good life as part of a colorful herd of friendly trail horses and a few longears, thankfully on enough acreage that mother nature and the many rocks these here Rocky Mountains are (in)famous for are keeping her feet in decent shape.

She has not, however, volunteered to “self-gentle” and despite her human’s spending time and working with her has remained quietly aloof and evasive.

Her current owner wanted to know if Willow is trainable with the potential of eventually becoming a riding horse, or if she should find a sanctuary type situation for her as a long-term plan.

We set up a small pen for our session with Willow, coaxed her in with grain and, after some preparation, put the neck rope on her. She wasn’t touchable, so I used the same method as I do with the brand new wildies at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy that aren’t about to walk up to a person or let me walk up to them.

She quickly figured out how to yield to light pressure *See the “Walmart bag” metaphor in the video… We’re talking about a super thin plastic bag here, the kind that we used to have here in Colorado, not the big fancy tote bags that can hold milk or laundry detergent*

We worked on touch from a distance, leading, moving hips and shoulders, through her wanting to switch directions to put her “easier side” towards me and ended with a calm Willow who seemed happy to engage and receive some guidance on how to do this strange people thing.

An hour and a half of quiet, strategic work still doesn’t magically tame a wild horse with 4+ years of practice in walking away from humans, so with a bit of patience and finesse, the neck rope came off via the hook on a stick from several feet away.

It’ll take work – time, setting things up so that the desirable behavior is easy for her to figure out, and teaching her all the things she’ll need to know to get to the point of accepting a rider – but she’s a horse that can get there.

Her owner now has new tools in her training tool box to hopefully make good progress with her girl.

On behalf of the Mustangs, we’re grateful for adopters and owners who seek help and input when they reach a point with their wildie where they have questions or don’t know how to proceed with the tools they have.

Reach out if you’re looking for help or have questions. Remote coaching is available also, and we take client Mustangs in for gentling in Guffey, CO.

#horses#learning#coaching#mustang#wildhorses#teaching#outdoors#adventure#mountains#progress

#wildtowilling#makingmountainmustangmemories

‘Nuff said. We can all do better.

And, who else is ready for wildflowers and high country adventures?

This was steeper than it looks and there was some walking/sliding/questioning life choices involved.

Note to self: Believe the lines on your GPS when they’re really close together

It was also totally worth it, the Mustangs did great and the dogs still found snow patches to roll in.

Ready to sharpen your backcountry riding and packing skills? Our first one day packing clinic of the year is coming up on May 3rd in Guffey, CO. Message / email us to sign up and meet some of the Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustangs!

#mountains#adventure#summer#joy#horses#bekind#colorado#wild#makingmountainmustangmemories

Introducing Zinnia (Zin), an adorable 7yo Buffalo Hills NV Mustang mare. She’s spending some time with us at her adopter’s request.

The goal is to determine whether she’s doing right by her if she keeps and continues to train Zin, or if it’s in this little mare’s best interest to be returned to BLM and go to long-term holding where she can be a wild horse and run with a herd, while still receiving food and basic care.

Zin had never been touched and didn’t know how to lead when she arrived. Less than a week later she’s leading softly by the neck rope, is touchable on both sides nose to nail with the lunge whip and touchable by hand on her face.

Many Mustangs will eventually choose to accept touch. Some need a little extra help and direction.

Thriving in a domestic setting is more than just receiving food and what humans consider love. It also includes receiving basic care: Haltering, leading, loading brushing, deworming, spraying/doctoring, feet handling.

Many thanks to Zin’s adopter for sending her girl to Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy for another shot at enjoying life with humans and being a good citizen.

In addition to adopting out gentled Mustangs and gentling wildies for clients, we also offer learning opportunities and remote coaching. Reach out and let us know how we can help!

#mustang#horses#NewBeginnings#learning#training

#hope#nonprofit#makingmountainmustangmemories

Up here we have at least 16 seasons. We have 1st through at least 4th winter etc. Another season is “sprinter”, where the weather can’t decide whether it’s winter or spring.

That’s what we encountered on a harmless little after-work ride recently. We took one look at the north facing slope and it was definitely winter over there, so we opted for (mostly) south facing.

That side was better. We still encountered slippery ground and were post-holing through 2ft of snow to get to the dry-ish part and one of my favorite sunset spots.

‘We’ were 2 riders, 4 Mustangs and 2 excited Shepherds. On a cloudy, moody evening where it looked like it might snow or blow us right out of the saddle.

It didn’t. The clouds gave way to beautiful golden light and we caught spectacular views of snow capped distant mountains.

Tay Martin learned how to read the ground and adjust path and speed accordingly. She managed Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustang Tiny from Salt Wells WY and her Devil’s Garden Mustang filly June just fine.

Tiny is special with a capital S – that’s only partially a compliment – and DG June was born a firecracker. Jennifer Martin messaged me shortly after Taylor lost her heart horse to old age and a failing body, asking me to send June, then a weanling we had gentled, home with her.

Not everyone wants a small, fuzzy bundle of dynamite for their first baby horse to bring along, but that’s what Taylor got. It’s been some kind of a ride, because June has big feelings and she’s not afraid to express them.

Taylor got frustrated, asked for help, and kept going. Over and over. At 3yo June is still opinionated. She’s also a pleasant, safe to handle, well adjusted and age appropriately educated youngster.

The point with a strong willed horse isn’t to break their spirit but to help them channel it. The point for a timid human isn’t to “cowgirl up” but to ask, learn, prepare and practice so we don’t need to just “be brave”.

Handling 2 willful Mustangs on interesting footing, on a chilly, breezy March evening at 8700ft elevation isn’t an entirely easy feat. But it’s doable, even enjoyable, and so good for the relationship between horses and rider.

We can all do hard things. Nobody said we should jump straight into the deep end, nor do we have to do it alone.

Need help on your personal or Mustang journey? We’ve got you! Reach out for more information on how we can support you or how you can help us help wild horses

#mountains#horses#sunset#winter#courage#joy#wild#adventure#makingmountainmustangmemories

Doc, 6yo palomino pinto Mustang gelding from Stewart Creek WY has found his person. He joined Cinch on his trip north with hauler Brice Bebout and now lives in beautiful Montana.

I hadn’t listed him as available just yet, knowing it would take the right kind of person for him, when that person reached out, interested in adopting. I love when it works out that way.

She got approved to adopt through Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy , and several phone conversations and videos later she decided to move forward. With trainer support, consistency and a flexible timeline.

Steve Mantle taught me that Mustangs tend to progress from avoidance to acceptance and finally to craving. Some can stay in avoidance or acceptance longer than others.

Depending on their personality, physical limitations and past experiences, they may reach craving in some areas while still being avoidant or merely tolerant in others.

Doc is a stoic horse. He quietly holds it together without major signs of upset until he gets overstimulated and has a big reaction.

Horses like that are easily misread and mistaken for “ok” because they’re “just standing there”, when really they’re tense and on guard

A lot of time goes into fostering relaxation, emotional regulation, mutual respect, trust and softness. That’s an open-ended passion project because while we can help a horse adjust and understand, we can’t make them let their guard down.

His color and size (15hh) were working against him in a way because big, flashy horses tend to attract a lot of interest, regardless of their temperament.

It makes our job of placing them into a suitable home harder because we have to disappoint people who, while they may have the means to adopt and care for the horse in question, may not be the right fit based on intended use, time constraints, experience level, trainer support or lack thereof and various other factors.

We advocate for both the wild horses in our care and our adopters’ safety and best interest when matching a Mustang with a person. We will sometimes suggest a different horse instead or ask an adopter to keep in touch so we can help them find just what they are looking for.

We appreciate everyone’s understanding and continued support. You enable our nonprofit organization to continue to help wild horses and their humans be safe and happy, long-term.

We have several lovely wildies available or coming available for adoption. Please feel free to reach out and/or or check our website.

Here’s to happy trails for this big boy and his adopter

Training halter & lead: Rowdy’s Ropes

#mustang#branded#horses#adoption#adventure#joy#nonprofit#makingmountainmustangmemories

Yesterday morning Tay Martin and I were having some fun with Wyoming Mustangs Lacy (middle, dun, 10yo, Divide Basin), Rock (right, bay, 4yo, Little Colorado) and Spur (left, bay roan, 4yo, Stewart Creek) and the German Shepherd boys Denali (Humane Society find, wears Rex Specs for an eye condition) and Ranger (free on Facebook).

Spur and Rock had learned to be ponied together after sunset the evening before, and obviously retained the lesson.

We’re looking forward to another summer of gentling Mustangs, supporting adopters and connecting with amazing people.

We have a new mare in for an assessment and basic handling if she’ll allow it, I’m headed to do a consultation on a reluctant wildie next week, and we’re looking forward to meeting some of you at the BLM adoption event in Castle Rock in April.

The 3 friends in this video, Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustang gelding Tiny from Salt Wells WY and the other wildies we’re currently working with all came from the Cañon City, CO holding facility, the same place the horses for the Castle Rock event are coming from

Adopting a wild horse is a big responsibility. If you choose to adopt and decide you want help, we offer learning opportunities both in person and remotely, we gentle horses for clients and adopt out gentled Mustangs to suitable homes.

Starting this year, we’re also offering empowerment retreats for women who want to invest in themselves, grow and connect with a supportive community while working with and learning about Mustangs, in collaboration with Wild Spirit Mountain Lodge

Reach out with any questions or to book your spot!

Proceeds from the retreats and all aforementioned programs go towards the care, training and placement of gentled Mustangs into great homes. We’re able to do the work we’re doing thanks to your support and it means so much!

Special thanks to

Rowdy’s Ropes

Montana Rio Buckaroo Hats

Outback Trading Company LTD.

for believing in our work with wild horses and supporting what we do!

#BLMmustang#wildtowilling#mustang#mountains#spring#horses#wildhorses#sunshine#joy#together#nonprofit#makingmountainmustangmemories