Chance and her owner Jennie:

 Arlington Washington is where Jennie Kreutzer and her boyfriend Charlie call home. Jennie decided to be the  “ stays at home girlfriend” to take care of their “furry” children, and considers herself lucky to be retired at the age of thirty-nine.

 

Jennie began riding at the age of seven, owning and showing until she was eighteen years old, when she took a hiatus from horses until about eight years ago, when a friend of hers needed to downsize their herd.

Jennie had been following the Mustang U blog, took part in a naming contest that Tracey Westbury offered to name the foal of a Sale Authority mare Tracey had named “Liberty”. Jennie came up with the winning name of Liberty’s Last Chance, and the wheels were put into motion!

 

Tracey being the mustang enabler that we all know her to be convinced Jennie that she needed to come and meet this spunky little foal. Jennie and Charlie took the trip, and when they arrived, after one look Jennie claims she was head over heels in love.

Chance not being weaned yet had to remain at Tracey Westbury’s place, but finally moved home to be with Jennie and Charlie in October of 2009. 

Jennie was able to work with Chance and establish that bond of trust while she waited on her filly to grow, helping to lay the groundwork for a lasting bond.

  

WHBA: Jennie, what Herd Management Area did your filly Chance come from?

 

Jennie: Chance was born in the corrals after her dam was captured from the Sheepshead Herd Management area.

 

WHBA: So how old was Chance when you adopted her, and how old is she now?

 

Jennie: Chance was only four months old, and is now four years old.             

 

WHBA: Was Chance the first mustang you adopted or owned?

 

Jennie: Chance is my first mustang, but I adopted a Jackie’s Butte Oregon filly during the Internet adoption last July, and her name is Rio.

 

WHBA: So what made you decide to adopt a mustang?

 

Jennie: Owning a mustang has been a childhood dream. When I was around ten years old, I seen television commercials by BLM about adopting a wild horse and I knew that someday I wanted to adopt one, and that dream became a reality in August of 2009 when Chance came into my life.

 

WHBA: Well we know you already have two mustangs, but do you plan to adopt more in the future?

 

Jennie: I would love to adopt more mustangs, however right now we have two mustangs and two domestics, and that is all my property can handle. I would never sell one of my domestic’s anymore then I would give up my mustangs. I do know from now on though, I will only be adopting a mustang!

 

WHBA: Jennie, did you gentle Chance yourself, or did you have some outside help?

 

Jennie: I did gentle Chance myself, even though Chance was only four months old when I started working with her, you could not just walk up and pet her. I had to get her to trust me, but once I had her trust, she was super easy to gentle. Of course, it helped that she was so young. I have done all of her training and as of right now she has had approximately two-dozen rides under saddle. I have also taken her on three trail rides so far. I have never bonded with a horse the way Chance and I have bonded. My boyfriend Charlie says he can see that bond between us. Chance to me is one of a kind, in this lifetime horse. She is my rock, my soul and my heart horse. This is why I wanted that number one registration number for her so badly. I am so blessed that I won!    

 WHBA: So Jennie, what type of riding do you mainly do?

 

Jennie: Currently I ride western, and do a lot of trail riding.

 

WHBA: Do you participate in any shows or organized rides currently?

 

Jennie: I have not shown Chance yet, but my plan is to start showing her this next year after she has had some more training. I am also planning on doing some organized trail rides this year as well.

 

WHBA: So what advice would you give to a first time adopter?

 

Jennie: The things I want people to know is that mustangs are not simply “mutts” or “good for nothing” horses. Mustangs are extremely smart and athletic and capable of doing anything a domestic horse can do.  You have to have a lot of patience and time in gentling a wild mustang. There is simply no rushing the gentling process. Every mustang is a bit different, and you will find some that are easy, and some that may prove difficult to gentle. Yet once you gain a mustangs trust, they will give you their all. They are such loyal horses with hearts of gold.

 

WHBA: Jennie, thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for us, and we hope you will keep us updated on your journey with Chance! Again, congratulations on winning the auction for the first registration number with Wild Horse and Burro Association!