GOSHEN, Ohio — Stepping right out of a western movie shot on the great plains, a herd of wild mustangs are finding a new home in Goshen, Ohio.
“Mustang Journey has a mission, and our mission is to adopt wild mustangs from the Bureau of Land Management, BLM land, to train them, gentle them and re-home them,” said Troy Day, director of veterans programs for Mustang Journey.
As an Air Force veteran, Day has a specific focus when it comes to pairing up veterans with wild mustangs. He sees the parallels between the mustangs' journeys and the journeys of many veterans who come through the program.
“When they come here, they're looking for trust, looking to build trust and then just that transition into the civilian world or, if you will, the domesticated horse world for the mustangs, so that's the parallel,” Day said. “And within that, the veterans recognize that, and they work through that with the mustang and building that trust with the mustang.”
At its current facility, Mustang Journey is a fairly new venture. However, the origin story and its ties to helping veterans goes back a little further.
“We ran like 650, 700 veterans through our program back in 2016, 2017,” said Michael Iacono, founder of Mustang Journey.
He said they recognized the need to branch out and start their own facility and revamp the programs to serve veterans differently while keeping the core focus the same.
“We're not training veterans, we're training horses,” Iacono said.
He said that through training horses, veterans understand how the horses can read you before you even step into the arena, building and teaching veterans techniques to use in life when things can sometimes be a little overwhelming.
“While we don't talk therapy with veterans here, we’re teaching all the time you know, how to breathe, when you're near a horse, horses can read you before you ever walk in. They can hear your heart beating when you're standing next to it,” Iacono said. “You're really taking techniques for life out of your training program.”
The horses are purchased through the Bureau of Land Management auction and arrive with little to no contact with humans aside from their initial capture and transport. Referring to a horse named Cinnamon in a nearby stall, Day said she was once what they call an “untouchable” horse.
“The first week of last May we were not able to touch her,” he said.
Now he points out that her mane is braided and she’ll eat alfalfa out of his hand.
The program works with the VA and with County Veterans’ Court judges to offer veterans an alternative treatment.
Some of the veterans who’ve gone through the program said the experience was an “epiphany of spirit” and promoted confidence, improved self-esteem and self-efficacy.
If you’re interested in supporting the non-profit’s programs, adopting a horse or volunteering you can visit their website. Veterans interested in taking part in one of their multi-week programs can reach out through their website or call them directly at 513-403-7758.
If you have a veteran story to tell in your community, email homefront@wcpo.com. You also can join the Homefront Facebook group, follow Craig McKee on Facebook and find more Homefront stories here.
