[MelissaH]

So are they some intense breed apart from regular horses.

I have heard a few comments like, "oh, mustangs, I don't know if I could handle a horse like that?" or "that's a wild horse, take a lot to tame it."

Are they really that wild and crazy?

[CowGirlUp1833]

There was a study done on a wild breed of canine...I think it was fox to be exact. The study was to determine how many generations of captive breeding it would take to result in a "domesticated" animal. The answer they came up with was 7 generations. I'm assuming a similar scenario can be expected with horses. Wild isn't just a term to be used loosely, its something that should be given a lot of respect and appreciation for its true meaning. I've not worked with mustangs, but I do believe that yes, this would be a more difficult task then gentling/training a domestically bred and raised foal.

[PaintedRocket]

Wow.. very well said, Kim!

[HappyJoy]

no, they are very different than other horses but not phycho or anything. the ones i've seen have been VERY smart (sometimes too smart for their own good) which can be a blessing and a curse. Cabeza is the only mustang i've been around extensively, and he amazes me with how quick he is to learn, but he also isn't afraid to be *ahem* himself. he is very gentle and loving and not at all mean but he still has a really strong instinct for everything. he never acts up big, and has never made a mean move in his life, but i haven't gotten the spook eased out of him yet either. i don't think they are crazy at all, and with the word "wild" it all depends on how you look at it. yes, they are wild creatures that we have the pleasure of training and molding for our uses, but they aren't completely spastic. there will always be a few mustangs that give the whole breed a bad name, but every breed of horse is capable of producing a few dangerous horses. any horse is capable of being dangerous at some point. a lot of the "crazy mustang" stories are started by people who weren't experienced enough to train or handle a mustang. if you are intimidated and unable to handle the horse then it's likely you will classify it as "crazy" in your head. mustangs are amazing animals but it takes a lot of experience to handle one from the wild. i know i couldn't do it at this point, but by getting Cabeza who is already green broke it's teaching me a lot.