Surprise Gelding of Sand Wash Basin (Name TBD by Sponsors!)
Surprise Sand Wash Basin Gelding's Story:
“…he trots the air. The earth sings when he touches it. The basest horn of his hoof is more musical than the pipe of Hermes.”
Henry V 3.7.16-18
This dynamic bay was recently adopted by an anonymous horse lover who is brand new to the world of mustangs. She first came to know about BLM auctions after visiting Return to Freedom last summer and listening to a wild horse photographer explain some of the politics surrounding the federal government’s mismanagement of the nation’s wild mustangs. Incensed, but with some trepidation and a fair amount of self-doubt and a little smidge of crazy, she chanced upon this gelding, aged at 18 during the October Canon City auction. The photographer advised her that if she really wanted to help, she should choose a horse that was 11 and over. His was the first video she watched of the last handful of Sand Wash Basin horses without bids going into the last days. That he was captured in a pen photograph trotting level despite ragged hooves was stunning; he was flagging his tail, stomping around, and looking regal. He also, being older and only captured and gelded the prior year, carried himself with the authority of a stallion. That, and his status as an “unknown” maybe left him at the end of the line. Someone else made a single bid, and so the adopter, misreading how auctions sometimes go, chose a younger 12-year-old gelding, but a very close spitting image. Then, this stunner of a horse never disappeared from the auction listing, and it became clear the bidder had rejected him. Lesson #1. So, the next three months were spent making plans to care for the other – who is now lovingly named Behne Peregrine and earnestly cared for under the generously wise stewardship of For the Love of Aria – but dreaming about this one…until, that déjà vu like return to the last days of the last auction but this time in January.
Having watched the page for days and seeing no bids, and then one bid, and then two bids, the adopter reached out to Nirvana Mustang Sanctuary hoping to secure a lifetime home for this special horse that kept trotting through her daydreams. Convinced that he is related to her younger “unknown,” Behne, she was haunted by not understanding how these auctions work, why horses become labelled “unwanted,” why horses recede into never-seen-again holding pens, what “sale authority” means and how the heck one is supposed to know if there is a kill buyer on the other end of a bid? Well, no need to even go there because she tossed her hat in the ring and Nirvana Mustang Sanctuary is welcoming this gorgeous mover and his new adopter home to the sanctuary. SWB horses have a special place in our hearts and helping not-so-crazy adopters who fall in love with a horse just from a picture are the kind of folks it’s our pleasure to help. THIS is the precise reason why we do what we do!
Sponsorship Tiers:
Bronze Sponsorship: $15/mo
Includes: Mustang's Full Known History, Mailed Photos of Your Mustang (one time), and a Monthly Mustang Update
Silver Sponsorship: $30/mo
Includes: Mustang's Full Known History, Mailed Photos of Your Mustang (one time), and a Monthly Mustang Update
Gold Sponsorship: $75/mo
Includes: Official Certificate of Sponsorship, Mustang's Full Known History, Mailed Photos of Your Mustang (one time), a Monthly Mustang Update, a t-shirt (one time), Invites to Sponsor Only Events at the sanctuary to meet your mustang!
Platinum Sponsorship: $125/mo
Includes: Official Certificate of Sponsorship, Mustang's Full Known History, Mailed Photos of Your Mustang (one time), a Monthly Mustang Update, a t-shirt (one time), a Mug with your Mustang on it (one time), invites to Sponsor Only Events at the sanctuary to meet your mustang!
Diamond Sponsorship: $200/mo
Includes: Official Certificate of Sponsorship, Mustang's Full Known History, Mailed Photos of Your Mustang (one time), a Monthly Mustang Update, a t-shirt (one time), a Mug with your Mustang on it (one time), Wall Canvas featuring your Mustang, Invites to Sponsor Only Events at the sanctuary to meet your mustang!