CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — Hoofed animals gathered on public lands will take center stage this weekend as the third annual Southern Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival aims to showcase their abilities and help them find loving homes.
The Bureau of Land Management hosted the Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival in northern Utah for 25 years before broadening adoption opportunities in the southern part of the state. The festival offers a fun, family-friendly environment where attendees can observe the versatility of wild horses, also called mustangs, as well as burros.
“It’s amazing what these wild horses and burros do with ease,” said Lisa Reid, public affairs specialist with the Bureau of Land Management’s Utah office. “They can do anything, given the opportunity and time, that you would ever want in a horse.”
The Southern Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival is free and open to the public. The show will start at 10 a.m. on Friday and 8 a.m. on Saturday at the Washington County fairgrounds in Hurricane.
The Bureau of Land Management offers a trainer incentive program to youth and adults who work with wild horses and burros, and this year’s event will feature 13 halter-gentled horses and two halter-gentled burros up for adoption. These animals, which were gathered on public lands in Utah and Nevada, have spent the past 60 days learning essential skills and behaviors such as walking on a lead, backing up, stepping over logs and loading into and out of a trailer.
“By the time these horses are shown, they’ll have gone from wild to mild in 60 days,” Reid said.
These wild horses and burros will participate in an extreme trail challenge and a trainer incentive program challenge, which gives potential adopters a chance to see their abilities and personality traits. Attendees will also be able to ask the trainers questions about each animal and their training process.
This is the first year that burros have been included, and Reid said she’s particularly excited to see them take on the challenge. Four saddle-started horses, which have been working with a trainer for the past 100 days, will also be available for adoption.
The adoption event begins Saturday at 11 a.m., and the bidding will start at $125 per animal. The Bureau of Land Management collects a fee of $25 from each adoption and everything else goes to the trainers, Reid said. Anyone interested in adopting will need to fill out an application on-site.
The festival also features a show open to past adopters of any wild horse or burro branded by the Bureau of Land Management. About 100 owners usually participate, Reid said, traveling from Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Colorado and Wyoming.
“The people that come to our festivals come because of the camaraderie,” she added. “We pride ourselves on creating a family-friendly environment, and we pride ourselves on our mustangs. We’ve had great response from the local community on how wonderful it is to have our show down in Southern Utah.”
The Bureau of Land Management currently manages and protects wild horses and burros on 26.9 million acres of public lands across 10 Western states. Unchecked herds grow rapidly due to a lack of natural predators. To prevent overpopulation and overgrazing, the Wild Horse and Burro Program gathers excess animals and offers them for adoption or sale to good homes. Learn more about the program and the Southern Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival here.
Written by ALEXA MORGAN for St. George News.
Event details
- What: Southern Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival.
- When: Friday, Oct. 14, starting at 10 a.m. and Saturday, Oct. 15, starting at 8 a.m.
- Where: Washington County Legacy Park, 55oo W. 700 South, Hurricane.
- Tickets: Free.
- Resources: Event flyer | Facebook.
• S P O N S O R E D C O N T E N T •
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