Happy Birthday to Me, Her Name is Capri...

...and if you'd like to adopt her, there is just a small fee. And a BLM contract, of course. Isn't she cute? Yes, today is my birthday, and tomorrow this little doll will be in my gentling pen and we will begin getting to know one another. I can hardly wait! Capri is 5 years old, 15 hands, and has been in the corrals at Burns, Oregon for 18 months. She is from the Palomino Buttes Herd Management Area, same as Siesta, and was gathered at the same time.

Capri has a very refined look to her, with a nice long, smooth stride. I have it on good authority that she is significantly more beautiful in person than in her photos, as these were taken while she was still in her winter woollies. I have to wonder if Capri and Siesta are sisters. Capri is a darker color, and a little less Arab-looking, but they bear a lot of similarity to each other, and they both have the cutest little golden mustache on their upper lips. I'm thinking that it is a family trait, as it doesn't show up on all of the Palomino Buttes horses.

But whether the two mares are related or not, I know that they are two different horses with different personalities, likes, fears and reactions. I don't know what I'll do differently this time, but I have some experience now which will surely come in handy. I'm looking forward to enjoying all of the "firsts" again. First sight, first feeding, first sniff, first touch, first softening of her eye. Mustangs are so much fun to work with. There's a deep, emotional side to them, related to leaving their wildness behind, that makes gentling them very rewarding. Earning the mustang's trust, and then her respect, is an honor and a responsibility, and so is training them to be civilized, solid citizens. Siesta turned out great, and so will Capri!

Adios, Siesta

They say all good things come to an end.  My time with Siesta has ended, but her leisurely life of domesticity is just beginning.  You may have read an earlier post that mentioned a plan to send Siesta home on June 11th, via a BLM adoption event in Ellensburg, Washington.  That plan was foiled by the outbreak of Equine Herpes Virus-1, a nasty illness that was responsible for the cancellation of nearly every horse event in the Western United Stated for a period of several weeks.  Thanks to the helpful people in Burns and a very cooperative mustang trainer here in my town, we were able to arrange a ride home for Siesta yesterday.  

The trip was a long one.  It usually takes 10 hours, but do to a snafu it took almost 16 hours.  Siesta, bless her, was a very good girl and is now in her forever home.  Her adopter, Barb, is very happy with her and reports that she is settling in gradually, in typical horse fashion.  She'll have a couple of days to recover from the trip and get acquainted with her new people, then it will be time to advance her training and begin to earn her keep.  I was able to say goodbye knowing that I had given Siesta my whole heart while she was here.  I feel proud of her and proud of the accomplishments she made while she was with me.  I have to confess that the tears I shed yesterday on her behalf were not happy ones.  I felt like a chunk of my heart had been torn out and fed to wolves, but today my emotions have moved toward happiness and the wonderful memories of Siesta are keeping me company.  Soon Barb and Siesta will have a hard and fast bond between them, and nothing could make me happier.

This is my last view of Siesta.  As you can see, she's terribly upset about being left behind!  The gentleman that hauled her for us let me put her in one of his grassy pastures the night before the trip.  Siesta had very limited grass while with me, so this was a huge treat for her.  Adios, Siesta, and happy trails.

River Saves the Day

My neighbor, Rick, whom I work for and ride with, and I took River on her second trail ride last Saturday.  It was a gorgeous day, with beautiful clear skies and real summer-like heat.  Our favorite place to ride in the summer has amazing views of Mt. Rainier, the Olympic Mountains, and the North Cascades.  The trails are fun but not too challenging, and are enjoyed by as many mountain bikers as horseback riders.  There is a huge, glorious, grassy meadow that we love to canter the horses through.  The meadow is on a gradual slope, so when we get to the top the horses are too tired to be silly.  Rick and River followed me on Buddy through the meadow, and she did really well.  Cantering under saddle is still kind of new to her, so having a big space to practice in was perfect.  For most of the rest of the ride, River led while Buddy followed.  She took each new trail eagerly, and really enjoyed all of the ups and downs and twisty turns.

It was a three-hour ride, and our plan was to make a big loop and return to the parking lot via a trail that we fondly refer to as "Bear Boulevard," because last year we encountered a bear there (no harm done, funny story, tell ya another time) and we often see fresh, steamy bear sign.  Just before Bear Boulevard there are a couple of itty-bitty bridges to cross.  River is not afraid of bridges.  Not big ones, not medium sized ones, and certainly not teensy ones.  But on this day there was no way, and I mean NO WAY, that River was going to cross that first little bridge.  We even tried to bypass the bridge and ford the itty-bitty creek.  Nope.  The obvious conclusion was that there was a big, nasty mama bear up ahead and River was saving our silly hides.  Or maybe I'm being generous and she really is afraid of itty-bitty bridges.  I guess we'll find out next time!

Warmer Weather

I love my Carhartt jacket.  It's purple, with a soft, fuzzy lining, deep pockets and a hood.  It was a gift from my husband and kids this last Christmas, and was very much desired by me.  My last Carhartt was the standard-issue baby-poop brown, and a men's style.  I loved it, too, but this new one is wonderful.  

Today I'm going to wash my beloved jacket and hang it up with my other winter woollies, because today, if our local weatherman is right, marks the first day of a real, lasting, warming trend.  We are kissing La Nina goodbye! 

The grass is growing, the chickens are fat and sassy, and the garden is beginning to flourish.  My youngest daughter and I each enjoyed a fat, juicy, pea pod yesterday, a sure sign of spring.  Now if the horses would finish shedding, that would be a sure sign of summer!

Hot Stuff

Siesta was waiting very impatiently for me to finish my chores yesterday so that I could play with her.  She would trot to whichever end of the arena I was working outside of and holler at me to hurry up, and she tossed a couple of good bucks my way to emphasize her point. 

She is quite the little princess and knows when it should be her turn for fun.  She loves to hang her head over the rail and watch me clean stalls.  Peek-a-boo is her favorite game!

There's something about Siesta that puts all of the other mares into heat when they are around her, even this gorgeous Nokota mustang yearling filly.  The two of them enjoyed some "necking" yesterday.  They checked each other's udder out, too, as if to ask, "Got milk"?  "Nope, I don't.  Do you"?  "Nope."  Two silly fillies!

Adopted!

It's official!  The paperwork is in, the check has been cashed, and the travel plans have been made.  Siesta has a new mom and dad, and you'll never guess where they live.  In Oregon!  Not just anywhere in Oregon, either, but in Burns, right where Siesta came from!  How about that?

So here's Siesta's life story so far:  Born wild in the Palomino Butte Herd Management Area, which is just 15 miles from Burns; gathered at a year and a half of age; brought to the corrals in Burns to stand around and look pretty for fifteen months; hauled to Northwest Washington State to be gentled, trained, and fussed over by a crazy mustang trainer; and now she's going right back where she started from.  Except this time around, she'll be part of a horse-loving family that logs up to 1200 miles on horseback each summer.  Can you imagine such a life?  I can only dream about it.  Siesta has got to be one of the luckiest dang horses out there, don't you think?

Siesta isn't going home until June 12th, so I have four more weeks to play with her and advance her training.  Yes, I'll miss her.  Siesta is one of those horses that will linger in my heart for a long, long time, but I am so happy for her that she gets to go home, the only tears I'm crying are happy ones.  Mustangs and happy tears seem to go hand in hand, don't they?

By the way, if any of you folks here in Washington would like to meet Siesta before she goes home, she and I will be at the BLM mustang adoption in Ellensburg June 11th for a little bit of Show and Tell.  I'll be choosing my next TIP horse from the ones at the adoption, so if anyone is interested in adopting a mustang gentled by me, contact me and we can work out the details.

All dressed up...

Siesta and I decided it was time to try on a few of the items in the tack room.  We started with the cute little itty-bitty red pony bareback pad...

...and she thought that was just too darn funny.  "You call that a saddle?  Ha, ha, ha!"

So we moved on to the cute little itty-bitty black pony saddle...

...which was still pretty funny.  Maybe we need some accessories?

Yes, a bridle, that's what she wanted.  A snaffle bit and reins, just like a real horse.  All she needs now is a rider!  I stood on a mounting box and scooted her up next to me, then laid my right leg over her back and rubbed it back and forth.  I put some weight on it, too, and she just looked at me like, "Well get on already!"  Believe me, I was tempted, but she's got some learnin' to do first.  Back on the ground, I asked her to give to the bit, left and right and back up.  She did that with no problem, so I'll spend some time this weekend ground-driving her to teach her to balance herself in a frame and practice Whoa and Go.  She's going to be such a breeze to get going under saddle.  Whoever adopts this little sweetheart is going to have an awesome partner!  

I really wish I had taken video of me tacking Siesta up.  She just stood there, ground tied, and let me do whatever I wanted.  I went appropriately slow, I was in no hurry, and let her look at and sniff everything, but, sheesh, most horses at least snort or pull back a couple of times.  Nothing like that from Siesta; it was just green lights all the way.  Cinching up was no big deal, walking and trotting under saddle was nothing, and accepting the bit was pure bliss.  What fun!  Did I mention Siesta is available for adoption?  What are you waiting for???  Get your paperwork into the BLM as fast as you can, 'cause whoever gets this little doll is going to be one lucky cowpoke.

Viedos of Siesta

I've taken some time this week to create short videos of me working with Siesta.  I have a YouTube channel, which is called gentlemustangs.  You can watch me haltering Siesta, tying her and grooming, and playing with her in the roundpen.

Siesta had her first trim yesterday.  My farrier, Beth, is wonderful beyond words, and she did an amazing job with Siesta.  She stood like a perfect angel and was very relaxed.  Beth commented that Siesta's legs were very loose and easy to work with, with no tension at all.  Videos of each hoof being trimmed are posted on the YouTube channel as well.

Enjoy!

Two Months

Siesta has been with me for exactly two months today.  Time really does go quickly, especially when I'm having so much fun.  It's been a blast, watching Siesta develop into a trusting, respectful, willing partner.  She is such a cool horse, a real beauty, a fast learner, and a lovey-dovey sweetheart too.

Interested adopters need to fill out and submit an application to the Bureau of Land Management.  Go here for the form.  Please mail it directly to the BLM at 28910 Hwy 20 West, Hines, OR 97738.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about Siesta, mustangs in general, or the adoption process.  I'd love to hear from you!

Just a Horse

When does a wild mustang become just a horse?  I'm not really sure.  It wasn't at any of the moments that made me cry: when I first touched her, when I first brushed her, when I took her number tag off, when I snapped the rope on, when I slipped the old halter off and slipped the new one on, when I lead her out of her pen, when I let her play in the arena for the first time, when she came in the barn and ate a flake of hay from the feeder.  It wasn't at any of those moments.  Maybe it was when I tied her and groomed her and she just stood there and soaked it up.  Maybe it was when I put a saddle pad on her back and walked her around.  Maybe it was when I bounced the big blue ball beside her and she didn't flinch.  Maybe it was a combination of all of those moments, coupled with a lot of tender loving care, that made Siesta just a horse.  I don't know, but that's what she is now.  Just a young horse in training that has a good, solid mind, beauty, and lots of athletic potential, plus all of the traits that mustangs are famous for.  What more could you want?