January 31st – May 19th
May 20th
I'm up at 7:00 a.m. and that could only be for one reason: it's go time.
May 19th
Some last minute recon.
May 16th
The two sides of Finley
May 15th
That time my cousin went to feed Finley, but thought he had grabbed too much hay from her at once and tried to snatch it back, haha
May 14th
Finley is already waiting for me at the edge of his pasture when I walk up the barn today.
May 13th
Finley in his full getup.
May 12th
Finley's coggins! He has a health certificate, a few vaccinnes, and a general exam done by the vet as well.
May 10th
Finley and I are going on daily walks, or rides, around town, which has us coming in contact with something truly scary for the first time: the suburbs! AAAAAHH
May 10th
3 out of 4 bridges over the Delware River in the vicinity of where I would need to cross don't allow horses.
May 10th
You would think I had my route across NJ meticulously mapped out months in advances. Well... no, haha. I throw it together within two weeks of departure. And I do this because I know I can without issue. Still ... I have options to mull over.
May 9th
I practice picketing Finley more in an empty pasture. He is getting the hang of it!
May 6th
... with a plastic bag, a procedure that had me worried silly about how he would react, because who wouldn't thrash madly over that?! Yet he didn't lose control. He was amazing, and by the next day, his health is back to normal. (2/2)
May 6th
Finley did INCREDIBLE with the vet!! She went right up to him, shined a light in his eyes, checked his pulse, gave him a shot of banamine, took a blood sample, and induced respiratory distress to check his reaction time by literally suffocating him ... (1/2)
May 6th
I just began walking behind Finley a few days ago. Before then, it wasn't safe. Now here I am sticking a thermometer up his butt! He is unusually affectionate as we wait for the vet to arrive. He encourages me to stroke his forehead and cheeks.
May 6th
I come to the barn to find Finley like this. His face all inflammed, eyes red and puffy. Completely transformed from yesterday. I immediately call the vet.
May 4th
Finley is let out to pasture for the first time overnight. I'm not sure it was the right decision. I'm scared I won't be able to catch him tomorrow.
May 4th
After getting Finley settled at his new barn, I cycled to my grandparent's house a few blocks away and, upon entering their driveway, spotted this big, beautiful brown moth on my bike waiting ot be found.
May 4th
It's time to leave our training barn and head to my grandparents in eastern PA, 3 hours away. Thank you to my roommate for driving us!!
May 3rd
Finely saw the farrier and did so exceptionally well, despite having never been handled in that way by a stranger. He didn't kick out, he hardly fidgeted! Proud moment.
May 2nd
May 2nd
My last ride on Finley under our instructor's watchful eye. This is the furthest I've gone on him yet, and with his hoof boots and saddle bags on. We trotted and cantered together for the first time, too!
May 1st
I brought the tarp back out for a fun groundwork session! Finley handled it like a champ.
April 30th
Picketing Finley for the first time out in an open field with my tent pitched nearby.
April 30th
Spring is here! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
April 30th
Working on our sidepass and backup.
April 29th
... but what a beautiful place to land! 😀 (2/2)
April 29th
Bike troubles to and from town! (1/2)
April 28th
Round two of highlining! with me close by to check up on him throughout the night.
April 27th
Finley's first time loading in a trailer! He goes in readily, but is a ball of nerves once inside.
April 25th
Our instructor takes Finley for a solo ride to the highway while I am bedridden with bronchitis.
April 27th
Finley with his hoof boots on! His reaction to them is pretty tame, haha. He mostly glances back at them like "what the heck?"
April 23rd
Finley's boots have arrived! These suckers cost me $218.
April 22nd
Our instructor rides Finley out and I ride him back to the barn!
April 22nd
Finley's first time in a dry lot, being exposed to the electric fence!
April 21st
Highlining Finley overnight for the first time ended disastrously. Lesson learned!
April 20th
April 20th
Measuring Finley's hooves to purchase him Renegade hoof boots.
April 18th
Our instructor snuck a blanket on Finley when I wasn't looking! Good for a mid-April flurry.
April 17th
April 17th
This gravel truck is Finley's most formidable foe. He refuses to pass by it without veering into the far lane.
April 16th
6 mile walk today! We encountered a highway for the very first time. Aiming to do 10 miles tomorrow. That might be a little ambitious.
April 15th
I deworm Finley. He is disgusted by the taste and, instantly, blames me for it, regarding me as if I have mortally betrayed him, threatening to violently pull back if I dare to touch him. As if that single act has him questioning whether he can trust me at all. He comes around in a few minutes.
April 15th
A midday rest in each other's company. I crawl through the slats next to him. He stands shortly thereafter.
April 14th
I had to seriously wonder after unhaltering Finley last night: how would he be in the morning? Would he readily allow me to halter him again? He does.
April 13th
It's time. I take #7184's cattle tag, and his halter, off and I give him his name: Finley.
April 13th
#7184 is started under saddle! My instructor takes him out of the indoor arena and onto trails on his 2nd-4th ride.
April 12th
#7184's first bath was a success (err, sort of)! One of those moments where I went "damn, he is good looking," a bit mystified.
April 12th
#7184 thinks the hose is a fire-breathing dragon. He does not care if it makes rainbows.
April 11th
Combing #7184's tail for the first time. It is one giant matted mess. This may seem like such a small act, but it's not. Up until now, his back end has been totally off limits. You don't go back there.
April 11th
Some of my gear has arrived-my rope halter, saddle bags, and picket rope! Quality control check by Tilly the cat.
April 10th
Second outing, much longer than the first and, this time, including roads.
April 9th
Hobble training! #7184 will be picketed nightly on the road, so it's critical that he learn how to and that, if he gets in a bind, he recognizes that staying calm and still (rather than panicking) is the right answer.
April 8th
I found this engorged tick on #7184. They seem to congregate on his chest. (I'll pick half a dozen more off over these next two weeks. 🤮)
April 6th
Happy our first outing went so well. Selfie on the way home. 🙂 I'm not sure if that's dirt or oreo crumbs on my face.
April 6th
#7184's game face.
April 3rd
I tried giving #7184 his first taste of "human" food, an apple! Given his love for processed "apple snacks" I figured it would be a real hit. He took one bite, considered it, took another piece ... and spit it out!
April 6th
"You want me to do WHAT??"
"Walk down this hill, please."
"Over that Agent Orange? Are you crazy?!"
"Dude, it's sawdust. And this is barely even a hill. It's a slight incline. Come on."
- the first 5 mins of our outing
April 3rd
... but then he'll do something like this, lie down unprompted and close his eyes without a care in the world as I crouch over him and stroke his cheek. (2/2)
April 3rd
I went to take #7184 on our first long walk off property; he had other plans! 😂 It's funny, whenever I approach #7184 as he's standing tied, he will side-eye me wearily, looking like a loaded gun ... (1/2)
April 1st
#7184 being ponyed off of the kubota (a golfcart like thingamabob)
March 31st
My first time on #7184.
March 28th
My instructor lies #7184 down. At this point, we had already discovered his uncanny love for lying down at random, so it was not (too much of) a surprise when he immediately rolled over when asked. "Well, that was easy."
March 26th
"He is so stoic." #7184 is lunged, fully saddled, with a tarp drapped over him, while a blizzard rages on. The pressure is increasing on him as the days go on. He rises to meet it with a steely look in his eye and a set in his jaw.
March 25th
Despite the chilly weather persisting, #7184's fur is beginning to shed, revealing his brand more.
March 25th
#7184's first saddling. He takes it in stride. In fact, to my surprise, he doesn't explode at all.
March 25th
I put a saddle pad, shortly followed by a kid's saddle, on #7184's back for the first time under the guidance of our instructor
March 23rd
#7184 being led into the indoor arena for the first time by our instructor.
March 23rd
I sit outside #7184's stall whenever I get the chance.
March 21st
#7184 having his back feet picked up with rope for the first time by our instructor.
March 19th
#7184 mimics his stallmate, letting his lip droop in relaxation. I have never seen him do that before. Ha!
March 18th
#7184 and I learning to lunge under the guidance of our instructor.
March 18th
A newfound love: cats, and their butts! #7184 gives one of the resident barn cats a sniff. He is intriuged.
March 17th
#7184 hasn't decided how he feels about having his face brushed through the bars of his pen. I think he still feels quite alone even when he isn't.
March 16th
Finley was brought to his new barn today. It's the first time I've seen him in over a week. As I stand outside the round pen, he lies down for a roll!
March 11th
When you have no washing machine, you do wash in the sink! 🤪 Fine country livin'!
March 11th
The motel I rented a room in for a week. They returned my call at the final hour, before I had to return to the mountain top, and contend with a major snow storm there. No microwave, mini fridge. Flunctuating water pressure and a bar below, but four walls and a roof over my head, and, tonight, that is enough.
March 10th
This little road lives in a state forest, atop a mountain ridge. I came to it with the intention of it being my new home. I only had to stay a night.
March 9th
My bike chain constantly jumps off its casette when I shift gears. This locks my pedals. I can't ride on until I manually pull over and yank the chain back on. If I'm goign anywhere, I need to see a mechanic.
March 9th
While I've been stewing in a motel room, plotting my next move, my bike has had to fare with the snow!
March 7th
Donating plasma again to get by.
March 6th
My last look at Finley as we say our goodbye. For now, maybe forever. I don't know. All I know is that I'm leaving to be homeless, for a while, and he can't come with me, yet.
March 2nd
Rope burn. #7184 jerked away during a desensitizing exercise, and some of my skin went with!
February 27th
After being stalled overnight, it takes #7184 10-20 minutes to step out of his stall and into the barn the next morning. He is scared of the concrete flooring of the barn ... and everything else on the other side of this doorway.
February 26th
... because while we hardly know each other, surrounded by so many unknowns in that moment, I was the thing he knew most to draw comfort from. (2/2) I see #7184s brand in its entirety!
February 26th
It's a monumental day: #7184 is led out of the round pen for the first time and into the barn, where he is tied! I can't shake the way he looked at me for guidance as I was leading him ... (1/2)
February 25th
#7184 lets his pent up energy LOOSE! He is not the only one going stir crazy penned up.
February 19th
The boy with the crooked blaze and the look of eagles in his eyes, and a breakaway halter that has snapped and is liable to fall off at any moment.
February 16th
I sleep beside Finley for the first time, and I wonder why I never have before. I wake up in the night to find him lying next to me.
February 16th
#7184 inquiries with me through the bars of the round pen. I'm reading a book, and he's wondering if it's edible. I admire his curiosity. It helps lift my spirits which are . . .very, very low.
February 15th
February 11th
I never knew #7184's mane was interlaced with gold and white strands before today. It's gorgeous. I'm blown away by it. And to think people overlooked him in the corrals for his color. Sorrels like him are often the horses passed over for being "boring."
February 11th
No matter our progess, every morning, #7184 resets in some way. Sometimes it's like starting from scratch. A step forward, a step back. Everything is so fragile, uncertain. See both his back legs cocked, wobbly in fear? We debate our next move.
February 10th
#7184 bravelly leads over a tarp when I ask him to! I am really proud of the progress he is making with leading, he is so light.
February 7th
#7184's face as I brush out his mane with a curry comb for the first time. Tense. Weary. Calculating. Liable to snap. This is how he always looks.
February 10th
The same day I touched #7184 for the first time, he let me clip a lead rope to his rope halter. This allows me to begin leading him around the round pen!
February 7th
After 8 days, I finally touch #7184 with my bare hand. He flinches at my approach, every time, but once my fingers connect, he seems to settle. I only touch him for a few seconds. I could cry in joy.
February 7th
My first time touching #7184 with my training stick!!
February 7th
Hay belly.
February 5th
I managed to lay the end of a whip gently over #7184's back to precipitate touch with what is essentially an extension of my arm. Upon contact, he jolted forward, trotting a few laps around, before quickly stopping and relaxing.
February 4th
#7184 has come around to approaching me, but we still struggle to bridge the last 5 foot gap between us.
February 4th
I must use the backside of a shovel to knock the frozen latch to the round pen open this morning. It is too icy to do much.
February 3rd
#7184 was NOT ready to be touched by the "handy" stick (a 3-4 ft pole with a stuffed glove attatched to it)
February 3rd
I'm in the round pen with #7184 all day in the freezing rain. We inch towards something that feels like progress.
February 3rd
The weather for the day. Yuck!
February 2nd
#7184 takes hay out of my hand for the first time as I stand on the other side of the round pen, beside another horse who is also eating out of my hand. Baby steps.
February 2nd
I glimpse #7184's brand for the first time. Usually his split mane covers it.
February 1st
#7184 is much more comfortable with my presence when I sit on the other side of the round pen, where we can regard each other through the safety of the steel bars. He is not ready to take hay out of my hand yet.
February 2nd
Believe me, manure is much harder to scoop when it is frozen solid to the ground!!
February 2nd
I enter #7184's round pen with a sled to collect his manure. He tentatively follows, allured by the possibility of grain, which he has already taken a liking to.
January 31st
My first night with #7184 in the round pen. He watches me closely.
January 30th
I zoomed in on this photo looking for #7184, scrolling from right to left, and just as I thought he wasn't pictured ... BOOM! there he was, the last in the pack. August 31st, 2021. Photo by Tara Thissell, BLM.
January 30th
A snapshot from #7184's capture. The BLM uses helicopters to round the mustangs up. August 31st, 2021. Photo by Tara Thissell, BLM.
January 30th
From a distance, the photographer actually mistook #7184 as the mother of the foal. August, 2020. Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
I find it interesting that #7184 was pictured so closely with another stallion, seemingly sharing the same mare and foal! July, 2020. Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
#7184 in the wild, grown, with another stallion, a mare, and a foal. July, 2020. Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
#7184's natal herd, galloping freely. The horse in the lead is the head stallion and, potentially, #7184's father. September, 2018. Photo by Beverely Shaffer.
January 30th
Another look at #7184's natal herd. He is in the center front, standing sideways. September, 2018. Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
Since #7184 was a yearling in 2018, he likely left home, setting out on his own for the first time, the same year I did in 2019! Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
#7184 out in the wild as a juvenile (yearling). September 2018. Photo by Beverly Shaffer.
January 30th
The earliest known photo of #7184 as a yearling with his family. June 12th, 2018. Photo by Belinda Greb.
January 29th
On our way home to PA from the adoption center in TN, the mustangs nearly escaped as one of our trailer doors got knocked off its hinges when they crashed into it.
January 29th
#7184's coggins.
January 29th
#7184's adoption paperwork
January 29th
My first look at #7184; he is crammed in the corner, trying to avoid being picked on by the bigger geldings
January 28th
I googled my mustang's numbers, #7184, for curiosities sake. Out of millions of possibilities, the 1st and only result to pop up was Newark, NJ. As Newark, a town less than 30 miles from where I intend to start my journey, has the zip code 07184.
January 28th
The official herd management areas of Oregon. #7184 is from "Palomino Butte," just south of Burns, OR. Without capture, his herd faced dying of dehydration in the desert.
January 28th
Distribution of mustangs in the U.S.; 60% are in Nevada alone.
January 28th
This BLM infographic illustrates how, as of 2022, there are an estimated 82,000+ mustangs in the wild, on public lands that can only safely sustain a third of that population.
January 28th
This is one of the bay Stinking Water geldings that was available alongside #7184.
January 28th
The photo that started it all, my first and only look at Finley before I chose him. #7184.