For Release: Sept. 5, 2003
Contact: Mindy Odom (661) 391-6049
CA-N-03-91

Free horse training demonstrations coming to Stockton wild horse event
Wild horses and burros will be available for adoption

Patience, understanding and a gentle hand are the keys to calming a frightened wild animal.

That will be the key message, when Phil West, a California horse trainer, offers free horse training demonstrations during the U. S. Bureau of Land Management's wild horse and burro adoption event, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 20 and 21, at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds in Stockton.

West, from the Bishop area, will work with untrained horses directly from the BLM adoption pens, to show how gentle approaches and careful attention to every reaction of the horse can help build bonds of trust - not fear - between horse and human. His demonstrations will run throughout both days of the adoption event.
West is a Mono County sheriff's deputy with extensive wild horse training experience. He trained and rides Abby, a 12-year-old mustang, on mounted patrol work, and says his mount handles situations from crowds to schoolyard visits calmly and confidently.

His training demonstrations are part of the BLM's annual wild horse and burro adoption opportunity in Stockton. In the event, 80 wild horses and 20 wild burros will be available for public adoption. A group of yearlings, already gentled to halter, will be among the animals available.

The event runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Adopters can complete applications on site. Silent bidding opens the adoption from 9 to 10 a.m. Saturday, with bids starting at $125 per animal. Horses and burros not taken during bidding will then be available to adopters on a first-come, first-served basis for BLM's standard $125 adoption fee. Adopters can preview the animals when they arrive at the fairgrounds Friday, Sept. 19, at about 2 p.m.

Complete information on the event and adoption requirements is available by calling toll free, 1-866-4MUSTANGS, or by visiting the website at www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov.

The horses were gathered from wild herds roaming near the California-Nevada border northeast of Susanville, including the Twin Peaks area, which is known for producing good-sized mustangs. Burros come primarily from herds in the Southern California deserts. The animals were gathered in the BLM's work to manage wild herd populations in balance with rangeland food and water sources, and other range users, including wildlife and permitted livestock.

-BLM-

Northern California Support Team
2950 Riverside Drive - Susanville, CA 96130