Growing up, hearing those words – in German, no less – usually from my mom or one of my grandmothers was a certain indicator of impending trouble. This is different. Remember when we did a fundraiser late last year for a chute? Well, the stars aligned in such a way that required things to be …
Category: Stefanie’s Notebook
Mar 10 2023
Mustangs on NPR
In other news, this past week we had the pleasure of giving Ashley Ahearn , journalist, horsewoman and Mustang adopter, a behind the scenes look at the what, how and why here at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy . She flew out from Washington to spend a blustery winter day with us and do a …
Mar 09 2023
Moana’s surprise
I’m all but speechless (doesn’t happen often ) and overwhelmed with gratitude and excitement about this week’s events. Somehow Mustangs bring out the best in people and the best people together, and with so many neat things coming together all at once, it’s hard to decide where to begin… We’ve been keeping a baby announcement …
Mar 09 2023
After gentling, before riding
Here’s Blanca, the bestest, fluffiest, toughest and cutest old mare, putting up with a young Mustang, DG Petrie, while getting a job done. Petrie is a coming 3yo filly out of last year’s load of Devil’s Garden Mustangs from the Double Devil Wild Horse Corrals. We’re currently working on the new load… We’re only a …
Mar 05 2023
Short and sweet – The value of brief, low-key sessions
This is gentling session # 3 with Behne, 12yo per BLM paperwork, from Sand Wash Basin, Colorado. He already has a loving home, he is with Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy for basic handling and to learn to like human interaction. He leads, backs, is starting to yield shoulders, hind quarters and send off in …
Mar 03 2023
Gentling older Mustangs – Cary in the rearview mirror
This boy is 9yo Sand Wash Basin Mustang gelding Cary, the youngest of the older geldings we’ve recently had the pleasure of working with. Interestingly enough, with his relative youth he was the more challenging one even though the others took/are taking a little longer to settle down initially. The other geldings are/were 11 (Schatzi, …
Mar 01 2023
Matching effort
This post was inspired by a conversation with a dear friend about an entirely non-horse-related topic, but as with so many things, I find it applies here too. I believe that we need to be willing to invest quality time and effort into our horses before we can expect better results. We have to remember …
Feb 23 2023
Connection-based gentling
Frank Stetson again, coming 4yo sooty buckskin Sand Wash Basin Mustang gelding. He’s with Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy for gentling and to learn that interacting with humans is actually pretty cool. If you’re drooling now: Yes, he really is that cute. No, sorry, you can’t have him. He has a home, and no, sadly …
Feb 22 2023
The highline
This is a question I get asked a lot: How do you contain the horses in the backcountry, especially overnight? There are several ways that can work depending on where you are and what works for you and your stock. Highline, lowline, electric fence are a few. Some people keep one animal tied in camp …
Feb 19 2023
DG Petrie – Be careful what you wish for
This is a post for and about the newest member of our Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador herd: Petrie, a coming 3yo Devil’s Garden Mustang filly and one of the 10 DG Mustangs from the 2021 gather on U.S. Forest Service-Modoc National Forest land that were passed over for adoption and sent to us …