My Makeover horse has arrived!

It started with a crazy, rushed trip to get him. Kathy had found this lady, Joan, who adopted a horse and needed transport so we would be able to split the gas money (HUGE relief) and she decided to come along for the ride. Joan wanted to look her horse in the eye before making the final decision to take him home. Joan turned out to be this wonderful, quiet lady that it was a pleasure to get to know. We left Thursday night, later than planned but with high energy and lots of stories to tell. We had to rest in Bishop, Joan being the morning person, managed to get us all up and moving at 5:30 am. We left only a tiny bit behind schedule and arrived at 11am Friday, June 8th to get our horses at the BLM in Reno, NV. I was nervous to see what was waiting me. Joan was equally so. We both signed our papers and Kathy backed the trailer up to the chute. We stood on the ledge and waited. Joan kept saying that she needed to get a good look at her boy before she made the final choice. The BLM guys said that she could see him when he ran up to the loading chute. The horses ran up and I just looked at this HUGE horse that appeared to be extremely drafty and I could not believe that he would fit in the trailer! Joan saw her boy as he ran by, neck tag taken off and then jumped into the trailer. I think the only part of his eye she saw was his whites! They handed us the horses' neck tags and I said congratulations Joan. She still had her mouth open in disbelief at how quick it all happened!!!!We arrived home at dark, horses having traveled very quiet, and unloaded and arranged for Joan to come back Sunday so we could load her horse to go home. Saturday morning I took a peek, threw some feed and went off to work. When I got home, 20 minutes before dark, I sat by their feeder on the other side of the fence with my hand sticking though the fence to offer them to smell me. I was talking to Kathy when my big boy decided to walk over, smell my hand and then use his lips to move it around. WOW! I was so excited and couldn't believe it!!!! What a huge step for a wild horse!Sunday (June 10th) I wake up to play with my boy (still no name) and find my round pen flooded from the water being on all night. That leaves me with being extremely careful not to have a horse or me slip in the mud. I sit in the pen. Joan's horse, Lyric, is curious but does not touch me. My big boy can not stand it and has to smell this object scrunched down in his pen. He smells my hair and me all over before walking away.

I toss the rope a little to just let them see it. Neither seem to afraid of it coming near them. I open the pen off the round pen to put my boy in so we can load Lyric. My mustang is much more nervous in this smaller pen (24ftx30ft) but still smells me once before I quit.Monday I play a little with a pole (which is just a long piece of pvc pipe) to rub on his back and neck. He is a little nervous so I just take it real slow and get him used to it. I am able to approach him and touch his face a little. I am going to name him Freedom and am calling him Free for short. My friend, Lisa, suggests that I look for that word in other languages also. Freedom seems to be settling in but I make sure that this first stage of training I do slowly so as to build his trust in me. I want to have a relationship with this beautiful mustang. It is not about competition and pushing him, it is about Free and me. Me teaching Free to trust and understand that I am his leader and will guide him through all new situations. Free teaching me how to communicate with him better each day in the language that he will understand.