Scout's story

After Beauty and Gigondas arrived in Southern California from a feedlot in WA, we had 3 horses, including Sunni, my PMU gelding. I thought our "herd" was complete. I'd occasionally peek at the horses on the BLM online adoption website and I showed hubby that website. HA! Little did I know, he was soon "peeking" at it also.....(sneaky guy!). During one of their online adoptions, he fell IN LOVE with a little yearling from Salt Wells Creek, Wyoming. There was a prison training program that took the mustangs and matched them up to a prisoner, who began training each one of them. I believe it was the Riverton Honor Farm. Scout was one of those mustangs. She was halter broke. Well, hubby soon became hooked on Scout and decided he HAD to have her! He registered and when bidding began, he watched her bids go from $125, to $135, to $150, to $175 and upward. Of course, he was AT WORK when all this transpired. When the bidding got up to $450.00, he had 3 screens open and a T-1 line. With less than 30 seconds left, he put in his final bid of $495 and won her! (You NEVER want to play cards with this guy...he's one of those people who figures out who has what card...) He'd been watching the increments of the bids and knew that people were going up about $25 a bid, so he increased his bid by $45 and won her with 3 seconds to spare! Of course, he then "refreshed" his computer and discovered that he'd won the bidding on her! He also knew that I had always loved palominos, and he was also bidding on Cali, but his bid on her was never challenged. Of course, HE didn't TELL ME for a couple of days~!

So, we had 2 new horses, who were BOTH several states away. Hmmmm..... He called the BLM and learned that 2 gals from Northern California had also bid and won 3 mustangs from Salt Wells Creek and he contacted them and talked to them. Turns out, they both worked at Yosemite National Park and they were taking a stock trailer to Wyoming to pick up their 3 horses, who were presumably herdmates to our two. In fact, they have a "sister" to Scout and a "brother" to Cali~ we stopped by one summer and visited them, up in Mariposa, CA. Hubby offered to pay for their gas for the entire trip if they would also pick up our 2 mustangs and drop them off in Lancaster (where we were boarding our horses at that time). It wasn't that far off their own route home, so they agreed. They had 4 drivers and took turns with the long drive, so they were tired when they pulled in at midnight.

So, early April, 2007, Scout and Cali were delivered to Southern California! They were both yearlings, both "halter broke" and both very different! Scout was NOT halter broke. She was afraid of humans. It took our trainer over an HOUR to finally get a halter on her! And, she was SMART!~those little wheels in her head were always figuring things out! And, she decided she did NOT want to be around humans! We couldn't approach her. She always ran away. Our trainer did halter her and work with her and greatly respected Scout! I thought I'd post some of her "before" and "during" pics. Since we brought the herd closer to us a year ago, Scout is the one that has proven to be the most curious, friendly, and intelligent. She now craves human attention and mugs for the camera! She's still a BRAT, however, and is an alpha mare. She chases Cali around relentlessly, but if I take Cali down to the arena, she has a snit fit! With her stocky body and short legs, we figure she will someday make a great trail horse for hubby (I doubt, with my back, that I'll be able to ride her)...SOMEDAY. She's still only 2 years old and we are slowly working with her and Cali. I'll do Cali's story tomorrow.