Epic Jumping Picture

The title says it all.

Mustang Heritage's Youth Employment Program

One of the reasons I have this blog is because it's part of my job (the other reason is for the joy of doing it XD). Even though my employment period with the the Mustang Heritage's Youth Employment Program is about to come to a close, I will keep posting updates.


Here's what Mustang Heritage says about the YEP:

Now Filling Positions! Apply Today!

• $500 salary available for all positions!
• Youth and young adults ages 15-24
• 12-week, work-from-home opportunities
• Tasks include researching the history, plight and current issues surrounding the American Mustang and then sharing this knowledge with others through social networking, press releases and community presentations.
• For more details regarding specific positions and/or duties download the Opportunities & Expectations document
• To apply for a position download, complete and submit the YEP Application.

Or visit their website:

http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/youth.php


The great thing about the YEP is that even if you're not training a mustang they pair you with someone who is so you still get a realistic idea of the process. And you get to do it at your own pace (at least on a weekly basis) and most of it you can do from home (assuming you aren't training a mustang). Naturally I highly recommend it!

First picture of Jasmine

We were looking back through the pictures I took of the Mustangs while they were in the holding pens during the pickup for the Extreme Mustang Makeover in TN and I found some I had taken of Jasmine before we even knew Rachel had drawn her. Jasmine has put on a lot of weight since then. No more ribs showing! And her mane is in much better shape. Obviously we thought she was pretty cute then too, though!

SEMM Stars Champion Freestyle Performance

Our Brandee Livingston and The Fonz won the Stars division. Fonz was bought at the auction for a mere two-hundred dollars and he won seven-thousand dollars at the event!

Flooding at the barn

About 3-8 ft of water flooded the barn. We lost everything in pastures, props for Texas, hay. The arena was 2.5 ft under water. The water was only seven inches away from getting in the actual barn.

Fonz got a kick out of the water though.

Teddy Riding Bridleless

Docs Teddy Bear TN EMM Mustang 6 weeks of training Purina Challenge Mustang:

Sponsorship by Purina

Three Mustangs competing in the Murfreesboro, Tennessee, Extreme Mustang Makeover have been chosen to take part in the Purina Mustang Challenge to show how the proper nutrition in Purina feeds can transform a horse in three months. Two of them are Cohn Livingston and my sister Rachel.

They'll be be given free feed up till the competition in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, Extreme Mustang Makeover on October 21-23 at the Tennessee Miller Coliseum on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University.

"Purina has a long history of providing superior nutrition to equine athletes," said Patti Colbert, Mustang Heritage Foundation's executive director. "Many of America's Mustangs are removed from the wild each year due to lack of food and water sources so their body conditions sometimes reflect this. We appreciate Purina sponsoring this challenge to show how proper nutrition can improve the health and well-being of Mustangs."



About Land O'Lakes Purina Feed LLCLand O'Lakes Purina Feed LLC (www.landolakesinc.com) is a national organization serving producers and their families through 4,700 local cooperatives and independent dealerships throughout the United States. The company, in combination with its wholly owned subsidiary Purina Mills, LLC, is North America's leading feed company, providing producers, cooperatives and dealers with an extensive line of animal feed, ingredients and services designed www.horse.purinamills.com/ . For more information on Purina horse feeds, log on to www.horse.purinamills.com or www.purinadifference.com.



Here's where I got some of the info for this post if you want to go and read the full article by Jennifer K. Hancock:

http://cs.thehorse.com/blogs/press-release/archive/2011/08/10/mustangs-begin-competition-on-purina-feed-plan.aspx

Population Management in Mustang Herds

Population Management in Mustang Herds

By Diane Ward

An estimated two to five million mustangs spanned the states up to the 1900’s. However their population declined drastically as domestic livestock competed with them for resources. The public and government viewed the mustangs as excess to be slaughtered, and captured for military and personal use. The abuse included hunting from airplanes and poisoning. The mustangs were too large to occupy the continually shrinking land and in response in 1934 to 1963, the Grazing Service paid private contractors to kill the herds and allowed carcasses to be used for pet food. Ranchers were often permitted to round up any horses they wanted, and the Forest Service shot any remaining animals.

            It was not till the first federal wild free-roaming horse protection law in 1959, or Public Law 86-234, that it was prohibited to use motor vehicles for hunting wild horses. This became known as the Wild Horse Annie act after Velma Bronn Johnston who campaigned against the cruel treatment of the mustangs. Humane treatment and protection of the mustangs was increased further by the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971.

            Mustangs are now recognized by the United States Congress as “living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West, which continue to contribute to the diversity of life forms within the Nation and enrich the lives of the American people.” However overpopulation and herd management is a continuing concern. Currently the Bureau of Land Management is in charge of monitoring and controlling the mustang herds. It was stated in the Salazar Wild Horse Initiative that the BLM “seeks nothing less than ensuring healthy herds of wild horses and burros thriving on healthy public rangelands, both now and for generations to come.”

            More than 38,000 wild horses and burros were estimated in 201 by the BLM to be roaming on BLM-managed rangelands in up to10 Western states. Most mustang herds have no natural predators to keep their numbers regulated which can allow herd sizes to double about every four years.  Because of this the BLM must remove thousands of animals each year to control population. The guidelines and techniques used to round up mustangs are strict and humane. For instance one method uses a “Judas horse” which is a trained horse which has been trained to lead wild horses into pen to be easily removed. Then the mustangs are given homes through adoption and are still protected under the act until the first year of ownership.

            Since 2010 nearly 225,000 Mustangs have been adopted. Several programs that support mustangs have missions to further mustang adoptions, including the Extreme Mustang Makeover which is considered “Ultimate 90-Day Wild Mustang Training Competition,” and provides hundreds of trained mustangs to the public every year. The Mustang Heritage Foundation is a “public, charitable, nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating successful adoptions for America’s excess mustangs and burros.” Since 2007, the Mustang Heritage Foundation has placed more than 2,000 Mustangs in adoptive homes.

Bibliography:

Mustang Heritage Foundation: http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/

Extreme Mustang Makeover: http://extrememustangmakeover.com/

U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management: 

http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/whbprogram.html

Billings Gazette:    http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/article_aaad6ae6-98e2-11de-9717-001cc4c002e0.html

Blooper reel

Not everything goes the way we planned while training the mustangs. I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.

Rachel's mustang running away from her.

   

 This picture was taken by Kelly Pippen. Mimzee doesn't like the saddle.

Rachel getting dragged by her yearling mustang.

Big Mak wins at 4-H

Here's the link to the BLM's facebook page where they posted Rachel's picture with Big Mak: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=255692147779292&set=a.143505385664636.28074.125639020784606&type=1&theater

"Rachel and her adopted mustang, Docs Big Mak recently won the Grand Champion in Halter for grade geldings at the Mississippi State 4-H Championship show. Rachel and Big Mac were up against some great competition, but Big Mac walked out with the BLUE!"


Here are some pictures!

Mestengo: The origins of the American Mustang

Mestengo: The origins of the American Mustang

By Diane Ward

            The name Mustang comes from the Mexican Spanish word mestengo which is derived from the Spanish word mesteño meaning stray or ownerless horse. Mesteño more accurately describes the American Mustang because they are arguably not a wild breed, instead mustangs are legally considered feral, because they are not  indigenous to the land. The original mustangs were the descendants of domestic Spanish horses brought over by European explorers in the late 15th and 16th century, however their roots can be traced back to the 8th century.

            In the 8th century, the Moors invaded Spain bringing with them desert horses known as the Barbs or Berbers which were a cross between the Andalusian and Jennet. By 1492 the Moors had taken the country and started exploration to the New World.  The king of Spain ordered in 1492 that all ships sailing under the Spanish flag carry horses and because of this horses sailed with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to Santo Domingo (now the Dominican Republic). In 1519, Cortez brought 16 horses to the America’s mainland during his march to Mexico City. Two decades later De Soto started his Exploration from Florida to Mississippi with over 200 horses. Cornado brought over 500 horses in 1540 when he began exploring Mexico and the southwest United States. 
            By 1640 Native Americans were acquiring horses and by the 1700’s nearly every Native American tribe owned horses. Some of the most notable tribes for horsemanship were the Comanche, the Shoshoni, and the Nez Perce. While the Comanche became the leaders of the Plain Indians Horse Culture, the Nez Perce became master horse breeders, and bred the Appaloosa, one of the first distinctly American breeds.  

            In February 28, 2010, the Bureau of Land Management estimates that approximately, 33,700 horses and burros are roaming on BLM-managed land in 10 western states. Because wild horses have virtually no natural predators and their herd sizes can double about every four years, the BLM must regulate herd size. If the herd size was not regulated, the herds would consume the natural resources and eventually cause a “crash” in herd numbers. The ecosystems of public rangelands are not able to withstand the impacts from overpopulated herds, which include soil erosion, sedimentation of streams, and damage to wildlife habitat. Much of this is due to the fact that the mustangs are not a native specious, and do not self regulate to the land, making the BLM’s management necessary.
            Today some herds still retain a heavy influence of the original Spanish stock, but there is myriad diversity throughout herds and locations. Signs of Thoroughbred bloodlines or other light racehorse-types in the mustang herds were a part of a process that led in part to the creation of the American Quarter Horse. Other herds show signs of the intermixing of heavy draft horse breeds turned loose in an attempt to create work horses and more isolated herds. Because the mustang herds have been added to both deliberately and accidently by western explorers and various other parties up to the mid-century, there is a great variety of colors, and builds between herds. The modern mustang has several different breeding populations which are genetically isolated from one another, giving them distinct traits traceable to particular herds. These herds vary in the degree to which they can be traced to original Spanish stock with many having a makeup of more recent breed releases, however there are still some herds that are relatively unchanged from the original Spanish stock.

Bibliography:

 The Mustang Heritage Foundation.

 http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/

National Wild Horse Adoption Day

http://www.nationalwildhorseadoptionday.org/

Buru of Land Management

http://www.blm.gov/

The Spanish Barb Breeders Association

http://www.spanishbarb.com/SBHA_Breed_History.html

Teddy Bear

Meet Teddy Bear, Cohn Livingston's mustang for the Extreme Mustang Makeover!

Mr. Billy has been a huge help. I have some pictures of him on an earlier post teaching Rachel how to drive a horse.

My sister's and I had won a talent show eariler on the day this was taken, so we gave an encore to everyone at the barn...including Teddy Bear.

My little sister giving a solo.

Karate Kid pose on Allegro

This picture was taken way back before the Extreme Mustang Makeover's Lunge Line Futurity  (sometime around august 2010) when I decided to take a break from working on the actual lunging.

 

Check it out! I'm on KarateKidPose.Com a site about taking random pictures of the famous pose! Here's the exact link: http://www.karatekidpose.com/2010/08/

Here it is from the movie:

I'm going to have to attempt it again this year...

 :]

Charity Horse Show Performance

The Ward sister trio of the DLFS Extreme Team preformed at the Walking Horse Charity Horse Show. This was an awesome opportunity because all money raised goes to Blair E. Batson Children's hospital for sick children and cancer patients. DLFS (http://dlfsms.com/Home_Page.html) provided horses for three nights for the show to grant wishes of cancer children who wanted to ride a horse in the show. The show was on April 1, 2011 at 7pm at the Equine Center.

Jasmine

Rachel has decided to name her yearling Jasmine. Jasmine is a filly from Wyoming and was born in the wild (as opposed to being in a facility). Here are some pictures of Jasmine and Rachel during their first week together.

First touch. :)

 

Mustang Pickup

It's time again for the Extreme Mustange Makeover (http://www.extrememustangmakeover.com/emmtennessee.php)! We picked up the mustangs yesterday, but I'm only just now getting around to writing about it. It always seems the first day has enough stuff happening to supply at least several posts, so I'll continue with this later.

Pictures from the pickup at Piney Woods:

My sister, Christine, petting one of the yearlings. Looks like they're friendly again this year!

Loading the mustangs in the trailers is done by running them into a small chute where they can be safely haltered and then running them into the trailer.

Pictures of Fonz and Mimzee

Here are some pictures of Mrs. Livingston's mustangs! I think they pretty much speak for themselves...

Fonz and Mimzee: