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Mustangs Gone (un)Wild


The Mustang Diaries


The Mustang Diaries: MA Equine Affaire 2025
We had a GREAT time last month representing the United States Wild Horse and Burro Association at Equine Affaire by bringing three of our mustangs: Cash, Penny, and Atlas! What a big test for these horses to handle the immense amounts of stress and pressure at this event. I am extremely proud of how everyone behaved despite the commotion of kids, dogs, bikes, golf carts, other horses, loud noises, new arenas, the coliseum, and PURE CHAOS all at once! We were present for all f
maryahcarlin
Dec 2, 20251 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Sierra (Sunny) Gets her FIRST Rides
Amid the chaos of this week getting prepared for Equine Affaire Expo we also found time to get Sierra her first 2 rides! Previously known as Sunny, we have decided to call her Sierra as she is no longer pending sale and ownership has been returned to us. Due to life circumstances her home fell through and she will be staying for additional training while looking for another one! Sierra did AMAZING W/T/C during both rides and is already making big progress. She’s a very smart
maryahcarlin
Nov 6, 20251 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Oakley Groundwork Update 3 - Session 20ish
At this point, I've lost track of how many full groundwork sessions I've done with Oakley. Surely its 20-30 by now, so I'm just going to go with "20 ish". Yesterday, I introduced Oakley to a few new exercises and obstacles to further advance his training. I had an old tarp lying around and instead of putting it away, I decided to get use it as a tool with the horses for a few days. I laid it out in the arena and backed Oakley out of his corral for the session. We started with
maryahcarlin
Oct 24, 20252 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Axl Regains Some Freedom
A large step for Axl yesterday as he went out to pasture for the first time. Being a wild stallion for 10 years and only being rounded up by the BLM almost 1 year ago, this felt like watching him discover that little piece of himself that has been missing since the roundup. For 10 years, the world kept moving without asking him for anything back, and then, in the span of a few months, the world asked him to be patient and to learn again how to listen with more than just his e
maryahcarlin
Oct 22, 20253 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Oakley Haltered Groundwork - Session 6
Yesterday, my focus with Oakley was on reviewing known groundwork exercises, refining hind quarter yielding, establishing clearer...
maryahcarlin
Oct 3, 20252 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Oakley Haltered Groundwork - Session 1
As I entered the training arena with Oakley two days ago, I carried no equipment, only the quiet assurance I hoped to project onto him....
maryahcarlin
Sep 25, 20252 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Axl & Oakley - First Halter!
Axl, and one of our new residents in for training, Oakley, are making leaps and bounds in their journey by accepting first halters! Both...
maryahcarlin
Sep 24, 20251 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Sunny's First Saddle
Yesterday, after months of patient groundwork and trust-building, we would introduce Sunny to the saddle. Sunny, like all mustangs,...
maryahcarlin
Sep 22, 20252 min read


The Mustang Diaries: A Lot of Firsts for Atlas!
Taking Atlas from the training pen to the place he is now, becoming a willing and versatile partner, has been an incredible journey,...
maryahcarlin
Sep 1, 20252 min read


The Mustang Diaries: Atlas's First Ride!
After months of patient groundwork, trust-building exercises, and careful handling, Atlas was ready yesterday to take his first official...
maryahcarlin
Aug 22, 20252 min read
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