North American Wild Horses

NORTH AMERICAN WILD HORSES

MYTH: My wife wants to adopt a wild mustang. I have told her they are just inbred scrubs, basically no good for anything, but she won't listen to me. Please tell her, I am correct.

FACT: Although some degree of inbreeding happens in Feral Horses, it is not always a bad thing in their case. There is also some proof that the dominant herd sire (stallion), often not only runs his sons out of the herd when they reach sexual maturity, but may harass his maturing daughters too, leaving them on the out skirts of the herd where they are easy pickings for some other bachelor stallion to swoop in and steal.
Living in the wild, is survival of the fittest. The dominant herd stallion must be tough, athletic, intelligent and possess great stamina in order to maintain his position as leader and the only one with the right to breed and pass on his genetics. The mares themselves must also possess all of these qualities in order to survive in the wild. Thus, each crop of foals is born a product of the Survival-Of-The-Fittest breeding program. Those that do not inherit all of the best qualities from their parents, simply do not survive to reproduce. Mother Natures way of weeding out the inferior.
Ranging in size from 14HH to 15.2HH at maturity, and weighing from 800 to 1100 pounds, mustangs are athletic and durable, with outstanding stamina. They are noted for overall soundness, with especially strong hooves and legs. Predominant colors are bay, sorrel and black, although many buckskins, roans, grays, palominos and pintos are found too.
Anyone adopting a wild horse should be an experienced horse person, and/or seek help from a professional trainer who has worked with feral horses before. Lets remember here that we are dealing with a wild animal who has been taken out of his/her natural habitat and locked in a corral. Now surrounded by things that are frightening to them. Things such as human contact. Going on their natural instincts to Flee from danger, if unable to run away, they may choose to Fight instead. In most cases, due to their above average intelligence, they soon learn that humans can be trusted.
Once trained, they excel in any and all disciplines. They are a product of only the Toughest Shall Survive and rarely come up lame or sore. Most never even need to be shod. They can and do make awesome riding horses.