Youth choose BLM horses for summer program

For three years the Bureau of Land Management has worked with the 4-H organization. Kids adopt a yearling wild horse and get 90 days to gentle the horse and prepare it for sale to someone who can finish the training.

“I do it because it’s just cool to see how the horses progress from being these wild untamed creatures that you have to load up in chutes to calm horses that you can load with just a halter and lead rope,” Bailey York said.

Three months, that’s all the time these kids get to take these wild horses from the Challis herd and change them into model citizens.

“First I get in the pen with them and help them get used to people being around them,” said York.

Once those 90 days are up the horse must be halter broke, lead into a trailer, and be able to have all four feet picked up.

“First time I get in the pen with them is probably the most nerve-wracking time for me,” York said. “It’s scary because they’re completely wild horses and they weigh a lot more than you so you don’t really know what to expect from them.”

This is York’s third year of training. Last year she was able to adopt her wild horse for $125 and sell him for more than $700.

Each year the BLM rounds up about 3,000 horses, of those about 2,000 are adopted. Then, only half of those are trained completely. It’s not just about decreasing those horse populations, it’s about changing the attitude around the wild horses.

“The ten [adopted horses] in the 67,000 isn’t going to do anything, but for eastern Idaho, for people to see what youth can do with these horses,” Kevin Lloyd, Challis wild horse specialist, said. “How trainable they are, and how good of horses they can be. I think that will be really beneficial to us.”

Keep an eye out for updates on how York’s mustang is doing over the next three months. Also, be sure to see these horses in action at the Eastern Idaho State Fair this September.