A very nice story.
Taming wild mustang is 'a dance' for horse and trainer
By M.S. Enkoji - menkoji@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, March 14, 2008
As a child, Gena Wasley swept stalls and scooped manure in exchange for the knowledge that brought her here, to a small paddock in Orangevale.
Wasley, 35, trains horses for a living – gentles them, if you will.
But this is a new challenge for her: a 3-year-old wild mustang mare never molded by voice commands or human hands. An animal with legendary roots in the Old West. A horse she must transform into a gentle riding companion in 90 days as part of a unique federal competition set for June.
"In the beginning, the part that takes the longest is building this trust," Wasley says, as she gingerly slips her petite frame between the steel bars of the corral. "It's an honor when they trust you."
A pair of her chaps hang from the bars, something to remind the mare of the scent of its new boss.
Standing regally, a symbol out of synch with the police siren wailing and the lawn mowers grinding nearby, the mare eyes every movement the woman makes, its ears twitching with Wasley's quiet, cautious murmurs. A back hoof cants, ready to kick at any startling movement.
"Good girl, good girl, good girl," Wasley says as she slowly steps through hay, enclosed in a space no bigger than a backyard swimming pool.
As she steps, the mare steps, maintaining the distance between them.
"It's a dance. And I lead the dance," Wasley says.
She is one of 33 trainers who signed up for the June competition in Sacramento, which offers cash prizes to trainers demonstrating the most progress. All the horses will be auctioned off to qualified buyers. The better the training, the higher the bids.
