Rain doesn’t dampen A Morning with Mustangs event

On the rainy day of Saturday, Sept. 13, the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Center hosted the annual event A Morning with Mustangs. This event was held to put shine upon the local wild mustang herd located just north of Lovell as well as the book author Chad Hanson. While the sun was not shining, the event was successful.

Before any events began, the center provided free refreshments, baked goods and candy from all local sellers to those attending. To begin the events of the day, the rescued Pryor Mountain filly Whisper was brought to the center for people to meet and listen to her miraculous story. Whisper was born on the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range in September of 2022 to the older mare Cecelia. A few months after her birth Cecelia died, and Whisper was left alone with the stallion Sundance.

Due to her being so young the Bureau of Land Management, with the help of Nancy Cerroni, removed the foal and brought her to Nancy and Steve Cerroni’s ranch in Lovell. Here the two nursed Whisper back to health, and throughout the next few years Whisper grew to become a legend. She still lives at the Cerroni ranch but was brought to the center on this special day for all to see and learn about.

The main highlight and event of the day was the presentation and book signing by Chad Hanson. Hanson has written many books including “In A Land of Awe” and “The Wild Horse Effect.” These two books are for sale in the mustang center. Hanson’s presentation covered a wide range of information, capturing his entire audience, who all shared a love for not only the Pryor Mountain wild horses but all wild horses. Hanson himself focuses primarily on the horses of Stewart Creek in southern Wyoming. 

Hanson began his presentation with facts about himself and horses in general, including their ancestry. Hanson gave a brief history of the equine species, first pointing out that the earliest known equine fossil, known as the “Dawn Pony,” was found in Fossil Butte, Wyoming, and dates back 55 million years. He was then able to tie in the fact that Natural Trap Cave northeast of Lovell on Little Mountain is a hot spot for not only many equine fossils but wooly mammoth and saber tooth cat fossils, as well. 

Next, Hanson went into the language of the horse, how it is similar to other intelligent animals such as elephants. He gave a specific example within a herd of horses on the Red Desert, where the mares do not leave the band to deliver their offspring; rather, they have them surrounded by the band. This is a very unusual and rarely heard of instance, and Hanson explained that the horses are so intelligent they are “teaching themselves rituals” by watching older band members and adopting their traditions. This is an example of cultural and historical learning.

He also dove into how physical horses are with one another, how they are almost always with another horse or exhibiting companionship. This is shown through mutual grooming, nuzzling and individual proximity of one another. Hanson explained this is how horses communicate, that this is the “language of touch the horses speak” and it is essential to the horses’ survival. It’s the way they are able to distinguish one another because they “identify each other by a sense of breath.” This is one reason why, on wild horse ranges, including the Pryor Mountains, there are significant stud piles of manure. They are for identification purposes through the sense of smell.

Lastly, Hanson went into the preservation of wild horses and how that has looked throughout the years, including a new possible fertility control darting technology. He also explained some of his own work of preservation through court cases for the Salt Wells and Divide Basin horse ranges.

After his presentation Hanson held a book signing for his books within the center, writing direct messages to the book owners. Overall, it was a very successful Morning With Mustangs.