California Wild Horse Sanctuary
Mustang - the word itself is evocative, symbolising freedom, an untamed spirit, the romance of the Wild West. But while the term has been adopted by sporting clubs and car companies, America no longer wants its feral horses, an issue that is as controversial as it is emotionally-charged.
In 1978, Dianne Nelson made a major life-changing decision when she rescued a band of 80 wild horses destined to be slaughtered, and founded the Wild Horse Sanctuary. The sanctuary sits on 2,023 hectares of mountain meadow and pine forests near Shingletown; a few hours' drive northeast of Sacramento, California's state capital. Dianne's property is now home to around 300 wild mustangs and burros, many of which were rescued from federal lands in the western US.
Life is good for Dianne's charges. Here, they can roam free in their natural habitat, sharing the hills with other wild species including black bear, bobcat, mountain lion and badgers. When the grass is low, they are provided with hay; and while they enjoy this benefit of human interaction, these animals will never be broken in; they will continue to live as they have in the wild for hundreds of years.
Of course, looking after this many unrideable horses does not make good financial sense - there are a lot of mouths to feed, without a guaranteed income. So, to help pay the bills, and to increase awareness of the plight of America's mustangs, Dianne has opened the sanctuary to the public - inviting guests on two or three-day trail rides to view herds of wild horses up close in a natural setting.
Like most horse treks conducted in the litigation-heavy US, the trek horses are restricted to walking pace, though this allows riders to creep up on the wild horses without scaring them away. As the mustangs see their domesticated cousins ambling along, some follow with curiosity, while others peek out cautiously from behind trees, sniffing for danger and ready for flight. Newborn foals trot behind their mothers, born into a happy, danger-free environment.
As in the wild, the mares are led by several stallions, each with their own distinct territory. The newest addition to the mob is a magnificent white stallion named 'The Phantom', who, until recently, roamed the hills near Dayton, Nevada. With his natural habitat curtailed by urban development, this elusive creature was relocated to the sanctuary along with one of his mares.
With his proud bearing and fine features, the quality and breeding of 'The Phantom' is immediately obvious to any horse lover. Many of America's wild horses were once domestic stock that either escaped or were deliberately released into the wild. The original mustangs - a word derived from the Spanish word meaning 'feral animal' - were of Iberian descent, brought to the Americas by the conquistadors. Captured and domesticated by Native Americans, they became their primary means of transport, and played a significant role in the battle for the Wild West.
In 1971, the United States Congress passed a bill to protect America's wild horses, acknowledging mustangs as living symbols of the pioneer spirit of the West. The slaughter of mustangs in the wild was made illegal, and their numbers were controlled through a capture programme.
But the system appears to be failing. Horses over the age of ten are exempt from protection, and those not immediately adopted as pets are kept in cramped holding pens for years on end, or end up as dog meat. Today, there are less than 37,000 wild horses in America, their numbers cut by half since the introduction of the bill to save them.
Dianne's mission is clearly one of preserving a dying heritage. But even her efforts are thwarted by modern-day realities - there isn't room on her property for more animals, and she cannot afford to allow nature to take its course without some form of intervention. In order to control the breeding of the wild horses, she recently granted researchers the right to conduct an experiment with a contraceptive vaccine. The results have been very successful.
And for the foals that are born at the sanctuary, there is an adoption programme with around 30 weanling colts and fillies offered for auction each year to approved buyers. For those not in the position to own a horse, there is also a sponsorship programme - by donating US$38 a month for feed and veterinary care
For New Zealand visitors curious to learn about the destiny of the American mustang, there is no more enjoyable way of experiencing the sanctuary than participating in one of its trail rides. Not only will you get close to a disappearing American symbol, you'll be playing a role in preserving the spirit of the Old West.