Prison wild horse auction set Saturday

Folks interested in owning a real Nevada Mustang can bid on one Saturday morning at Stewart Conservation Camp in Carson City.

Hank Curry, who manages the Nevada prison system's horse gentling program, said 15 formerly wild horses will be auctioned off at the camp next to Northern Nevada Correctional Center Saturday morning.

He said the horses are all 3-5 years old and were caught by BLM on Nevada rangeland.

They spent the past 120 days being trained by inmates in the program.

Curry said the successful bidders will take the horses home but, for the next year, they will still be owned by the Bureau of Land Management.

"That's to keep people from trying to make a profit on them or butchering them," said Curry. "After that, you get the papers."

Curry said the gates will open at

9 a.m., giving potential bidders an hour to look at the horses, see them in action and ask any questions before the auction starts.

"I think one thing that's made this program so successful is truth in advertising," said Curry, who has managed the training for seven years. "We tell you everything we can about the horse so people know what they're getting."

BLM pays the Department of Corrections a fee per horse, which supports the program, the cost of feed and other needs.

Chris Terry, one of the inmates involved in the program, said he and most others who signed up to train the horses had little if any experience with the animals beforehand.

"I never touched a horse before," he said. "I was scared to death of them but after a while, you get to understand them a little more."

Erik Randall said it was all new to him, too.

"There's definitely some fear involved because they're so big," he said.

Terry trained horses for three and a half years but now he and Randall do the feeding, trim hooves and handle other chores involved in taking care of the animals.

"We're like the horse maintenance guys," said Randall.

Terry admitted to getting attached to the horses he trained but said it was OK when he saw the excitement of the winning bidders.

"People get really excited. I've seen some start crying," he said.

He said he's had some people send him pictures of his horses, showing him they did go to a good and caring home.

"But I had one lady who bought one of my horses and she tried to sell him in the parking lot. That sucked."

That sort of conduct fostered the one-year waiting period before ownership to protect the animals.