Northeast Alabama has a new Mascot!

Trouper and EMM alumni Mustang has been named the official mascot for Northeast Alabama Community college!
More information can be seen here: http://www.nacc.edu/news/mustang_mascot.htm

EMM 2010 Colorado

I am participating in the 2010 EMM Colorado with Robert this year. Keep track of our progress here: Extreme Team Mustang Makeover

Cash Update:

Hello All-
Many of you who know me personally probably remember Cash our little Buckskin Mustang in California.  For those of you who only know me through the blog then look back here:  Cash the Cow Pony
When we made the big move to Texas we were forced to find Cash a new home.  A few weeks ago I was able to get in touch with his new owner Samantha and I was so touched by their relationship that I had to share it with you all as well.  She has some great video of them together here: Buddy the Spanish Mustang

A neat shot from the 2009 EMM - Photo by Jessica Reurich

If you are in Los Angeles!

GRASS ROOTS RALLY IN LOS ANGELES TO SAVE WILD HORSES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Neda DeMayo, Return To Freedom

805-735-3246, 805-588-5105

Media Alert

Preservationists Decry Wild-Horse Roundups

The Bureau of Land Management has begun rounding up more than 2500
wild horses from the Calico Complex in North Western Nevada, generating
protests
from both the public at large and animal advocate groups. Return to Freedom
American Wild Horse Sanctuary (www.returntofreedom.org) is partnering with
other
coalition members to organize a peaceful demonstration on Wednesday, January
6,
in front of Senator Dianne Feinstein's office in Los Angeles to pressure the
Obama administration to impose a moratorium on roundups by the BLM.

Coalition members supporting the mission and objectives of The American Wild
Horse Preservation Campaign (AWHPC) will join forces In Los Angeles on
January 6
2010. Launched in 2004, the campaign was conceived as a uniting and
grassroots
tool to help protect America's wild horses on their rightful ranges, on our
public lands. The campaign is represented by a coalition of 50 diverse
organizations collectively representing over 9 million people nationwide.

Joining the Coalition will be Wendie Malick, Tatjana Patitz and award
winning
author Deanne Stillman, more surprise guests and other friends of the
horses!

WHO: Return To Freedom, American Wild Horse Sanctuary (RTF)

In Defense of Animals (IDA)

Lifesavers Wild Horse Rescue

The Cloud Foundation

WHAT: Regional Protest of the Calico Wild Horse Roundup

WHERE: In front of Senator Dianne Feinstein's Office

11111 Santa Monica Blvd, Suite 915, Los Angeles, 90025

WHEN: Wednesday, January 6, 2010 from 11AM to 1PM

"An immense amount of tax dollars are being spent on the removal of wild
horses
while less intrusive and less costly 'in the wild' management alternatives
exist," says Neda DeMayo, founder of Return to Freedom American Wild Horse
Sanctuary and a spokesperson for the Campaign. "Americans want their wild
horses
to remain free and protected on the ranges where they currently exist. We
are
asking that the original spirit and intent of the Wild Free Roaming horse
and
Burro Act be upheld so that our grandchildren's children will know the
herds,
who are a vital link to our western heritage".

"While this may be the new administration, it is clearly the old BLM's
intent
on callously slaughtering the wild horses‹our national treasure," states
Betsy
Dribben from the ASPCA. "That is now why we have taken to the streets to
raise
our voices that this is a public debate that must be negotiated upon at the
political table and not by roundups."

Call To Action

Return to Freedom is asking the public to:

· Attend Wednesday's rally if they live near Los Angeles

· Write to their representatives in Congress and ask them to protect
America's wild horses by supporting The ROAM Act (HR1018/S1579). Find your
Reps
at www.congress.org or call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be
connected.

Write to Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and ask him to:

· Call for a moratorium on all roundups until viable alternatives for
minimally intrusive " In The Wild "Management policies are in place to
preserve
and protect our remaining wild horse herds on the public rangelands where
they
currently exist.

· Support management policies that reflect the original spirit and
intent of the 1971 Wild Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act to protect our
herds on
America's public Lands.

The Honorable Ken Salazar

Secretary of the Interior

1849 C Street NW

Washington, DC 20240

Return To Freedom, American Wild Horse Sanctuary

P. 805-735-3246 M. 805-588-5105 F. 805-800-0868

www.returntofreedom.org /www.wildhorsepreservation.com

Mustangs in Dressage update sent to me by Ann

"Ray Ariss called me this morning to let me know that he will be featured tonight at 8 PM on Rick Lamb's Horse Town USA show on RFD-TV.  If you could help me spread the word. Ray is also now a columnist with the HorseTrader magazine and is sponsored by Kruse Feeds.  Hail Yeah is the 14.2 hh mustang that Ray trained for the very first ever Extreme Mustang Makeover - in 2007. The bay gelding is now 5 and is doing piaffe and other upper level dressage. He hopes to show the dark by mare, Hail Mary, in local  Los Angeles area dressage shows this coming spring. He will be also doing an exhibition in mid-May at the Norco "Hit the trail" mustang challenge. If you have anyway to record tonight's performance, i would like to buy the DVD from you.  Thanks a million, mustang brothers and sisters !!!
   Leviticus is showing FEI level dressage this Sunday at 9:37 AM in Moorpark, at the Classic Equestrian Center - his first really big show in 3 years. He is showing Prix St Georges. His new rider is Betsee Finlee, as  Patty Cochrane retired in October of 2006" - Ann Spencer

Another Mustang succesful in Dressage with a youth rider!

JB Andrew

JB Andrew went through the Prisoner Rehabilitation Program as a young horse and was adopted by Ginger Scott as a 2 1/2 year old. Ginger put him in training with Kelly O'Leary and a partnership of a lifetime was born. Kelly began showing him in dressage and in 1990, he took first place in AHSA 1st Level, Region 8. By 1994, Andy had progressed through Levels 2 (1st place Region 8), Levels 3 (1st place Region 8 and Reserve Champion in Region 5), and into Prix St. George. In 1999 he showed successfully in Intermediare I and Kur (Kur is a marvelous test in which the horse performs at anywhere from Level 2 to the top levels but with music, and a free style pattern), as well as giving demonstrations.

Andy is easy to sit at both the trot and canter. He is now schooling at Grand Prix, and his piaffe and passage work have given him a little more spring in his step. His favorite movement is flying changes -- he finds them easy to do. At 15 years old he competed Intermediare 2 in 2000.

Andy is an ambassador for American mustangs, performing his beautiful dressage movements to music and winning fans all over the country in special exhibitions as well as competions. There is a Breyer model of him (Number 943, discontinued in 1997), and the BLM has a collectible card for Andy. Eventually, he and Kelly became such good friends that Ginger sold him to Kelly.

*Source of Information: http://www.equinenet.org/heroes/andy.html

Cowboy Mounted Shooting

This horse Artista was completely wild less than two months before this video was taken. Many Cowboy Mounted Shooting competitors are finding that Mustangs are easier to acclimate to gunfire than domesticated horses. The second video is of the top 3 placers in the 2007 Extreme Mustang Makeover. Watch Second place winner Kitty Lauman perform Cowboy Mounted Shooting with her Mustang Ranger.

BeBe

This is an e-mail I recieved from another Mustang Owner.

"This is my BeBe. She is 13hh & 10 years old now. Bebe loves to go were i go. I will have her till the end of her time. She came out of the BLM in Nevada. She has done gymkhanas & playdays with me & loved it. I have more horses, but there is nothing like my BeBe. "

Mustangs in Reining

Melissa Scott adopted a yearling Kiger stud from the January 2000 internet adoption. Sombra is now a Mustang Ambassador that has been invited to the Kentucky Horse Park every July for the last four years. He also represents the BLM at adoptions and Equine Fairs throughout the east. Below is Melissa’s story about her first National Reined Horse Association competition with her wild mustang, Sombra.

"To rein a horse is not only to guide him, but also to control his every movement. The past two and a half years have been spent with Sombra working on a solid foundation. After all the schooling and riding I felt that it was time to challenge Sombra and myself in a competitive show ring atmosphere, and what better place than a National Reining Horse Show. Saturday morning started very early. I was up at 4:00 a.m. and out feeding and cleaning stalls by 4:30. We loaded Sombra on the trailer at 6:00 a.m. and left for an hour and twenty minute trip to Roan State Community College in Harriman, Tennessee, where the Tennessee National Reined Horse Association Mid-Winter Slip ‘n Slide Reining horse show was held.

Upon pulling into the parking lot, I became very intimidated by the very large nice trailers parked around the barns and arena. The show was scheduled to start at 8:00 a.m. I didn’t have much time to fill out paperwork, tack up, and warm Sombra up. I was a nervous wreck. It was getting close to show time as we entered the large indoor arena. I entered the Green Horse class, the second class of the morning. This is for horses that have not yet earned National Reined Horse Association money. Sombra was the only horse in the class that was competing for the first time. There were five horses in all.

Sombra and I were second to compete. The pattern assigned for the class was number 10. Everyone took their turn and waited for the final scores and placement. I was so very excited when I thought I heard that I tied for third. When I realized I had actually tied for first, I was very surprised and very happy. We had the option to run the pattern again or flip a coin for first place. We decided to flip the coin. I called heads and won!

My score was 62.5 with 70 being a perfect score. In conclusion, it was a very rewarding experience. I feel the most important aspect of Sombra’s performance was his calm and willing attitude through the entire pattern. He performed all maneuvers slowly and correctly. Some of the other horses had more talent, but were not consistent in maneuvers and overall performance.

An interesting thing happened while I was at the event. Another competitor made a comment that I should cover up Sombra's BLM freezemark as a mustang would never be allowed to place well. I guess we proved him wrong. Mustangs do not specialize in one specific discipline, but can hold their own in many different endeavors and get the job done."

By Melissa Scott

**Source: http://www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov/news/winter2005/sombra.html

Another Dressage Superstar!

Pictured above is Leviticus aka "Levi" a nearly 17hh BLM Mustang from the Black Rock Desert in Nevada (owned by Ann Spencer). Levi has competed with Patty Cochrane all the way through Prix St. George. On multiple occasions they have shown at high levels against Warmbloods and other "typical" Dressage mounts and came out on top. They score consistently between 60 and 72% on their tests. Levi is truly a great example of how versatile the Mustang can be. There is a Mustang out there that matches everyones taste, from a 13hh childrens mount to the 15hh Reiner to this 17hh Grand Prix Dressage horse.
Congratulations Ann, Patty, and of course Levi on your wonderful success!
To read more please see the following website:
http://www.iceryder.net/levi/index.html

Margarita

I am especially proud of this Mustang Success story because this mare Margarita started her training with us! After only a few short months of gentling and training she was purchased by Beverly and her family. Beverly's teenage daughters rode her for another few months and now she is the horse that they put their beginner friends on to ride! They ride her in Gymkhanas, Playdays (she won the Ribbon race at a Playday put on at our ranch), and now even for vaulting! Margarita is a loved member of Beverly's family and we are so happy they have made such a wonderful team.

New Mustang Documentary

http://web.me.com/mestengoette/ReinFree.org/Mestengo_PREMIERE.html

Mustangs to take part in Obama's Inagural Parade!

This is a notice that was recently forewarded to me by e-mail. How exciting that our Nations horses will be taking part in the most American ritual of all!

Jim Camden
Staff writer
December 9, 2008

Mustangs that were running wild less than two years ago will be part of next month's inaugural parade for Barack Obama.
The formerly wild horses are part of the U.S. Border Patrol's mounted unit,which operates out of Colville, Metaline Falls and other Inland Northwestlocations.
The unit received an invitation to bring eight of its mustangs to Washington, D.C., next month to march in the parade with the agency's honorguard and bagpipe and drum team.
For the unit, the invitation represents a chance to show off a successful program that blends environmentally friendly practices and criminal rehabilitation. For the horses, it represents a long journey from runningwild on federal land to marching down the broad avenues of the nation's capital.

For More information please see

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/12082008.xml

Jill and Gypsy compete in Dressage and won the USDF All-Breed Dressage Award for Mustangs in both Training and First Level (they are now schooling 2nd :)

They also Trail Ride (competitively with NATRC), are Ambassadors for the Mustang Breed and performed at the Western States Horse Expo in Sacramento CA in 2005, perform at liberty, as well as Carriage Driving.

Check out their website at:

http://www.jillandgypsy.com/

Cash the Cow Pony

These pictures were taken at a friends ranch when Cash had only 8 rides on him and was 2 1/2 years old. We were helping to bring in a herd of nearly 100 head of cattle and we came to a place where we had to herd them through a small gate. Cash and I were part of the group that was supposed to catch the herd and make sure they did not pass the gate instead of going through it.

Just before the herd reached us a few cows split off from the group and the other riders with us took off to catch them. Meanwhile Cash and I had the entire herd of 100 cows mooing, bleating and rushing towards us (if you have never been on a cattle drive, the sound is deafening). Poor Cash was so intimidated that his whole body shook! I reached down, stroked his neck, and told him "easy." Bless his heart he held the line and pushed every single cow through the gate by himself!

Truly, once a Mustang puts his trust in you they will do anything and go anywhere. Many other colts I have started would have left me in the dust to push the cows in myself.

Spotlight on Endurance

Char Antuzzi competes each year in the Tevis Cup Endurance Ride, riding a mustang named Sir Galahad who was rounded up with other wild mustangs by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management."I like the mustangs because...the day they are born they do an endurance ride," Antuzzi said.Many horseback riders pick Arabians because they are born in the desert. But mustangs are, too, and they have survival skills that allow them to expend the least amount of energy possible and stay alive, Antuzzi said. "Because they always have a reserve, they'll never run themselves into the ground," Antuzzi said.
They can also recognize danger faster than many other horses, she said. On one trail ride, Sir Galahad stopped, his ears perked up and he started quivering. Antuzzi did not understand why he would not go anywhere until she saw what lay in their path."Around the bend there was a pack of coyotes," Antuzzi said. "And the horse behind me was clueless."These equines stay aware of the dangers in the wild and sustain themselves water hole to water hole, she said. Nine-year-old Sir Galahad has covered 1,000 endurance miles, finishing 15 minutes past the cutoff two years ago and earned his buckle last year. Riders earn a Tevis Cup buckle if they complete 100 miles in the time allotted."Mustangs are consistent," Antuzzi said. "They don't go fast, but they trot up a hill, down a hill, over logs, through creeks. They just maintain this forward momentum."by Tanya Roscorla, who can be reached at tanyar@goldcountrymedia.com. http://www.auburnjournal.com/articles/2006/08/01/news/top_stories/03tevis1.txt

*Source: www.mustangs4us.com*

US Marine Corps Color Guard

The US Marine Corps Color Guard uses Palomino Mustangs EXCLUSIVELY!

**source: http://www.mustangs4us.com/ **

Welcome to the Blogsite for Mustangs

Hello Everyone,

I have created this blogsite to help publicize the value of the American Mustang. My goal is to encourage people to not only adopt Mustangs, but to realize what kind of horse they can have if they invest proper (or professional :) training and handling in them.

If you have a success story(ies) about you and your Mustang (pictures too!) I would love to post them here.

Please help us spread the joy and appreciation of the true American horse... The American Mustang.

Thank you,

Madeleine

Please e-mail stories and pictures to madeleine@extremetrailhorse.com