STORM

Storm is a wild horse (mustang). She was born on the range and rounded up in October 2004 from the South Steens HMA, on the southwestern flank of the Steens Mountain in southeastern Oregon. Stampeded by helicopter into a holding pen and separated from her family and friends, she was transported to the BLM holding facility in Burns, OR, where she was sold at auction a month later to a man who forcibly bred her, sold her two foals, and then abandoned her to a man with mental health issues. She was kept on a degraded pasture with no supplemental care for over a decade.

 

In April 2015, our founder Lara received a call from a friend who had answered an ad on Craigslist for "free horses" and was concerned about the situation he had stumbled across. The man handing over horses had been convicted of horse crimes and was going to jail. He had been ordered by the local sheriff to give his horses away so as not to profit from their sale, and a suspected "kill buyer" was on the scene. The friend had witnessed him driving one horse aggressively into a horse trailer and Storm was due to be loaded next. Lara made a decision that day that changed the course of her life. Begging the friend to intervene, she arranged for Storm to be taken to safety that day. 

 

Storm arrived still wild (ungentled), untrusting, underweight, and malnourished. Volatile when approached, it was clear she had never been handled. She had a large scar on the right side of her body, a side she was highly protective of, pointing to possible abuse from her previous owners. While highly fearful of humans, Storm accepted friendship from Shanti, a rescued goat who had imprinted on a pony as a doeling and loved horses. Over time Storm slowly learned that some humans could be trusted too.

 

Storm's color is known as Grullo or Grulla, which is part of the dun family of horse colors. She has primitive markings including a dorsal stripe, zebra bars on her legs, light guard hairs on her mane and tail, and dark ear tips and edging, all considered evidence of ancient equine DNA, and an example of atavism. Our first rescued wild horse, Storm was gentled by our founder Lara, and is our Wild Peace Sanctuary ambassador.