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[HVIDRIDER]

I HAVE MAYBE THE CRAZEST HORSE IN THE WORLD. HE IS A MUSTANG (MY BROTHER IS THE WILD HOUSE SPECIALEST FOR THE BLM IN UTAH). ANY WAY THIS HORSE ONE TIME YOU CAN PET OTHER TIMES HE WANTS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU. WE THINK THE PREVIOUS OWNER USED TO SMACK HIM IN TH HEAD WITH A BOARD. KIND OF A CREEP I THINK. ANY WAY I GOT HIM FOR NOTHING BUT I WANT TO BE ABLE TO RIDE HIM. ANY SUGGESTIONS?

[MyStIc139]

i dont no very much about training horses cuz im sorta a novice but i think maby the best advice is get some help from an experienced horse trainer or whisperer if hes that wild.....then u can get advice about *** to do...
neways hope ure horse gets betta and u get to ride him :D

[Peace]

I have absolutely no experience training mustangs, but it seems like to me clicker training might be worth looking into. Here's a site describing the use of clicker training with wild caught mustangs:
http://www.kbrhorse.net/tra/clickr01.html

This method was first developed for use on captive wild animals, like dolphins and sea lions, so I would think it'd be a good bet for a mustang.

You could also try searching the members list under the name "Outrider." Right before he stopped posting, he was doing some work with a young mustang.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

[Tootsie4U]

Wow, you make even me feel lucky. And I sure got a brat of a horse!

THis is a GREAT website for training wild (and not wild) horses. It starts at square one and goes from there. They even have an entire section about training wild mustangs...

http://www.kbrhorse.net/pag/train.html

[Peace]

Can't find Outrider's mustang posts - I could have sworn he was just starting to work with a filly right before he stopped posting! Anyone else remember that? Or has senility finally caught up with me? :p

[mikka]

May I ask a stupid question? Are mustangs a true breed or is being "undomesticated" one of their qualifiers? In other words, are there mustangs who've bred and trained for more than one generation in domestic circumstances? If so - or even if not - is there a mustang "conformation" a/o "personality"? Can anyone tell me about the history of this horse? Also, does anyone know the history of the small horses who live on an island off the coast of, erm, North Carolina/Virginia? Thanks!

[MyStIc139]

i have a few books on horses and i read the bit they had on mustangs and i believe their ancestors were the spainish horses bought to america by the spainish conquistadores. Some of them obviously escaped or were set free and formed herds. Later on other horses were brough into america like the war horses and joined the already wild herds. They are now protected and only poor quality stallions are culled to improve the blood lines.
So I think mustangs are a mixture of quite a few breeds but is now one breed in its self :)
im not sure bout the horses on the North Carolina/Virgina islands/coast but they are prob another version of the mustang or very similar :D

Ok thats the end of my lesson hope that answers ure question but if u want more info try looking it up on google or something like it :)

[jenna_horse]

If he has been roughly treated in the past it is important you are very gentle with him. It is going to take him time to build up a trust with humans again, when he is well behaved reward him and praise him. Horses always repond better to praise then punishment. You must be somebody he enjoys spending time with. If he is being fed, while he is eating fuss him, let him know you aren't out to hurt him. It will take a long time, but will be worth it in the end! :) Jenna xx

[CobNut]

First of all, what have you already tried?

And what does your brother suggest? I mean, it sounds to me that you have a pretty impressive source of advice availabel to you really close to home there. Don't overlook it!

[Rakeli]

What does he actually do, other than be cuddly at some times and not at others? All horses sometimes don't want to know you, especially if you've woken them up etc etc, so don't worry about it!

I would get the Parelli level 1 pack and work through the ground skills (I would carry on up to level 3 on the ground, but if you don't want to do that I think that level 1 is the minimum for safety). Then just take your time, trust your instincts. How old is he, as if he is under 4 I wouldn't back him just yet. There are loads of really good books about backing, and as CobNut says, your brother sounds like he could offer you a lot of help too.

Good luck.

[FreedomStar]

Watch him at all times to see how he behaves in his new home. First start by gaining his trust. I suggest that you should spend long moments around his stall, and do everything around him that you possibly can, i.e. eat your lunch, chat with friends, etc. as he is bound to be a little skittish of you and others. Also, try to groom him, but don't if he gets too wound up. Just try spending as much time as you can. If you have access to a large roundpen or a large turnout area where he can't really hurt himself, take advantage of it and let him have a run in it everyday. Also you might want to look into join up, some of the Heartland series has it, Monty Roberts also explains it in depth, you could try looking into his books. good luck.

[Peace]

Hi, mikka!

Here's a couple of websites with some info on the wild island ponies.

This one is about the herd on Ocracoke Island, NC
http://www.nps.gov/caha/oc_ponies.htm
and this one tells the history of the more famous Chincoteague/Assateague Island ponies in Virginia.
http://www.beach-net.com/chincoteague/ponypage1.html

When we have bad hurricanes, like Hugo in 1989, the ponies on Ocracoke are rounded up and brought inland to keep them safe.

We have ponies on some of our South Carolina islands, too, - Hilton Head used to, but habitat destruction due to the resort development may have been the end of them. I think Daufuskie Island still has a herd - development has been tried there, but hasn't been very successful (some people say it's because the island is so inaccessible, but I prefer to think the Gullah root doctors' curses are responsible! :) )

There's lots of different stories about how the ponies got there - shipwrecked Spanish sailors, planters trying to avoid taxes on grazing lands, etc.

In Virginia, they do herd management much like the BLM does with mustangs out West, and young ponies are rounded up once a year and auctioned off for adoption.