Wild mustang a mascot for horse adoption

BLUFFDALE — DaVinci visited North Star Academy last week. This visitor wasn't a creative genius, but he had run free in Utah hills for more than a year before he was plucked from the wild.

The 5-year-old mustang was brought to the school to help educate students on the wild horses that roam the state.

Bureau of Land Management wild horse specialist Kyle Hansen said many people aren't aware that there are just under 500 wild horses roaming about 60 miles away from Salt Lake City.

"We want kids to know that there are wild horses out there today, they are part of our cultural heritage and we need to be taking care of that," Hansen said.

But it's a trick to keep the herds the right size — a number that is not detrimental to the environment but still preserves them in ecological balance.

Hansen said that when settlers first started coming West there were around 2 million wild horses in the United States.

Now about 28,000 run wild in 11 Western states, with between 2,500 to 3,000 head in Utah.

The herds can grow more than 20 percent per year, but too many horses can eat the habitat "out of house and home."

To keep that from happening, under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act, the BLM captures some and holds wild horse adoptions where residents can take a mustang home.

The excess horses are offered to qualified people through the BLM's Adopt-a-Horse program. And after caring for an animal for one year in a BLM-approved environment, the adopter is eligible to receive title, or ownership, from the federal government.

Families can adopt an animal for as low as $125 — that comes with vaccinations and disease testing.

DaVinci was just over a year old when he went home with Joyce Smith. It took a while for him to warm up, but in time she was able to gentle him, ride him and even get him accustomed to strangers.

"They are different than domestic horses — they're not silly and they can quickly figure out what will hurt them and what won't," Smith said. "Wild horses know they can take care of themselves . . . yet they have the herd dynamic and are used to taking direction."

Smith has visited a number of schools with DaVinci, educating students on the herds and the adoption program.

For more information visit www.ut.blm.gov or stop by the Utah Wild Horse and Burro Festival Friday and Saturday at the Equestrian Park in South Jordan. The event is free and open to the public.

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E-mail: terickson@desnews.com