Mustang Poker

Mustang Haltering using Distractions
I was in South Dakota gentling some Northern Dancer race-horse colts. There were also several Mustangs which the outfit wanted gentled and readied for sale/adoption to good people. I was having particular difficulty getting to touch one guy. However, he was most curious about me and practically stole things from my back pocket. So I invented a game whereby some of the hands and I would play real poker, drink real beer and, if we had had any dance-hall girls, we'd of used use them to. In subsequent wild-horse workshops, I taught others the game and we eventually ended up on network TV several times. This is a combination of a LOT of savvy and clicker-training. If you know what you are looking for, then you can shape the behavior of the horse. ... Otherwise, this is potentially dangerous. This game is like my earlier game of Soccer-Ball with a training horse ... now I see that once I'd posted pictures, that all the big-names are claiming they started this. Actually, I did, a very long time ago. Anyway, enjoy the photographs. Some are sequential while others represent different States where we were gentling mustangs. If anyone else who was there has some pictures and wouldn't mind me putting them up here, then please send them as it's hard for me to ever take pictures while I am sitting with a wild mustang ... especially on TV .

Mustang Haltering using Distractions

I was in South Dakota gentling some Northern Dancer race-horse colts. There were also several Mustangs which the outfit wanted gentled and readied for sale/adoption to good people. I was having particular difficulty getting to touch one guy. However, he was most curious about me and practically stole things from my back pocket. So I invented a game whereby some of the hands and I would play real poker, drink real beer and, if we had had any dance-hall girls, we'd of used use them to. In subsequent wild-horse workshops, I taught others the game and we eventually ended up on network TV several times. This is a combination of a LOT of savvy and clicker-training. If you know what you are looking for, then you can shape the behavior of the horse. ... Otherwise, this is potentially dangerous. This game is like my earlier game of Soccer-Ball with a training horse ... now I see that once I'd posted pictures, that all the big-names are claiming they started this. Actually, I did, a very long time ago. Anyway, enjoy the photographs. Some are sequential while others represent different States where we were gentling mustangs. If anyone else who was there has some pictures and wouldn't mind me putting them up here, then please send them as it's hard for me to ever take pictures while I am sitting with a wild mustang ... especially on TV .

I am hidden by the mare, and my "Charlie One Horse" is barely visible over her head.

Here is the one and only original. Barry and I are using Clicker Training to convince Bubba to put his halter on .... This is in South Dakota at a wonderful ranch called IRAAM. FWIW, I am on your right ...

Looks like Corvallis Oregon. Frank Bell across and Willis Lamm to my left.

Kansas, I believe. Willis Lamm to my left and Frank Bell across.

And the next bunch is in a series, the same event ...

See what I mean about using their innate curiosity ?

...

Dance-Hall-Girls ... Becky, Janet and Cliff's daughter ...

...

Willis and I call this the "walk-about" for surely , at some time, the mare is going to just take a gander around the enclosure then come right back to us ... so be patient.....

you must do your best to ignore the horse; make no thoughts about her; believe she is not there.

And she's lined-up again and trying to figure out what we want ...

she'll be all over the place and not concentrating on us one iota ... ignore it ... things will come back together.

you might be able to see that Becky is handing one part of the rope halter to me, over the "poll" of the Mustang ... pretty cool !!

ah, now you get the idea ???

more later on if some one sends pictures to me from all the other times ...

Willis Lamm is cracking up. We do get pretty giddy after we have successfully bamboozled the wild mustang to put her own halter on as we stay seated in chairs. But think about it ... all those people who you see chasing a fresh mustang around and around in a round-pen ,,, claiming they are gaining respect and trust .... let's just think about how silly the notion is ... If you need to be a control freak, then please purchase a registered Border Collie and go for it. Leave the poor mustangs alone.

mustang poker