Adoption "Riley" from Sand Wash Basin HMA, Colorado Mustang A Day Challenge #48




Riley
8 by10 Watercolor
by LindaLMartin

 Riley is from Sand Wash Basin HMA and was gathered in the 2008 gather. He has now been gentled to the point that he is ready for a home and further training. Riley is being offered for adoption through the TIP program of the Mustang Heritage Foundation.

He is currently available in Texas at the Ranch of  Madeleine LeClerc and her partner Trainer Robert Carlson.

Last fall I stumbled across the coolest thing I have seen in a long time. Horse Trainers from all over the country and some overseas through luck of the draw take a BLM gathered adult Mustang and in 100 days or less gentle train and generally make useful a wild mustang. The trainer then competes on the horse for prizes and to showcase the animal. The Mustang is then offered for sale at auction. One such Trainer is Madeleine LeClerc.

These events, called Mustang Makeovers, are sponsored by the BLM and are run by the Mustang Heritage Foundation. Another program the Mustang Heritage Foundation over sees is the TIP program or Trainer Incentive Program.  Basically TIP Mustangs are placed in a trainer's care and in 60 days the trainer gentles the horse, teaches him to lead, lift his feet for trimming, stand quietly for grooming and vetting and to load and unload into a trailer. At the end of the 60 days the Mustang is offered for adoption to an approved home for $125. The trainer will then be paid a predetermined amount of money for  the work put into gentling the Mustang depending on its age. Payment is made to the Trainer by the Bureau of Land Management upon adoption of the horse. The trainer can also offer to further train the  Mustang at the new owners expense and teach the new owner the special needs of the newly gentled mustang.



Riley
Photo by LightningBug Creek Photography
Photo Used by permission

 The TIP program was put into place because of the large number of unadopted mustangs now in holding pens through out the country. One of the issues is that a "flashy" horse, usually a pinto or palomino and other horses of bright unusual colors, will usually be adopted but a plain horse such as bay, sorrel, brown with out much white  or a gray horse will not be as readily adopted as they don't look unique enough. Unfortunately the larger number of captured mustangs fall into these  plain color categories.

However, by putting some training time into these wild horses, it makes an opportunity for some one to own a mustang that doesn't have the experience level of dealing with a horse fresh off the range. Thus the horse is made more adoptable. Riley is just such a BLM horse. Riley, from Sand Wash BAsin HMA  was born wild. He has now been gentled to the point that he is ready for a home and further training.

You can contact Madeleine through http://www.westernclinics.com/  They are looking to find an adoptive home for Riley by March 1. If you know someone interested in owning  this sweet mustang please pass the word along.

At Madeline request a portion of the money from the sale of this painting will go to the Mustang Heritage Foundation.
To Read more about the various programs for trainers and the Mustang Makeover go to http://www.mustangheritagefoundation.org/

A special Thanks to  Amy Peterson Spivey of Lightning Bug Creek Photography. You can see more of her mustang photos on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LBCPhotography