each one a pat or a scratch as they
rubbed up against her. “And this is
Prince. He was born in the BLM facility.
If we would not have gotten him, he
might never have even seen grass.
There are so many horses in those
holding facilities that won’t see grass for
years unless they are adopted. That’s
why my heart and soul is into this.”
“Do you name all of them?” I asked.
“Yes, most of them,” said Sandra.
“I try not to name the ones going to
the Makeover because they have to
still be wild. But every time one leaves,
we always cry. It’s like letting your
child go to college. It doesn’t matter
if this is my horse or if he’s going to a
client across the world. You’re the first
human to touch it, the first one the
mustang trusted. It’s not just a horse or
a number for us. We all put our heart
into it. I have an awesome crew. I have
a lot of people who are part of
this operation. My vet, Dr. Faulk
is a big support. He’s awesome.
I couldn’t do this without him.
He draws the blood for Coggins
and does whatever else needs
to be done. The horses that are
gentled, I can pet all over. But
we have to run the ones for the
Makeover in the shoot because
they are wild. And our farrier,
Brett Register, is just great too.
He’s so good with these wild
mustangs.”
Waving to a man on a skid
steer, Sandra said, “I want you to
meet my dad.” Sandra’s parents
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had arrived from Germany only a few
days earlier. “My mom helps me in
the house because we have so much
to do right now to get the mustangs
ready that are going to the German
Makeover.” As we walked, she said, “My
dad works so hard. He cleans the pens
or does anything that needs to be done
to help me.” Her chin lifted. “He’s not
just my dad. He’s my friend.”
Charlie Kraus shut down the
machine and jumped down spryly. I
would never have guessed his age was
seventy-three. After introductions, I
asked, “How long do you plan to be
here?”
“Three month,” he said with a
strong German accent. “The daughter
telephoned. She said, ‘You must come.
I need your help.” Charlie shrugged as
if deciding to leave Germany for three
months to help his daughter needed no
further explanation.
When I asked Sandra about the
knee brace, she said, “I got hit by a gate
with a little bit of force.” She shrugged.
The work of gentling mustangs is clearly
not without risks.
96 Toombs County Magazine