This program premiered October 25, 2009.

In this chapter of his story, Cloud is one of two fathers who bring up each other’s sons. Bolder is Cloud’s son by birth – beautiful and golden, but raised by Shaman, a rival band stallion. Flint, dark and determined, was sired by Shaman, but became Cloud’s adopted son. The two sons mature and progress from playful youths into valid contenders for mares and bands of their own. Will one of them rise to take Cloud’s place?

This poignant and engrossing chronicle explores the challenges presented not only by ambitious sons, but also by the harsh mountain weather, deadly mountain lion attacks, and the changing relationships within and between bands of wild horses in the mountains.

The film also touches upon the effect of the on-going efforts of the Bureau of Land Management (the BLM) to administer a program of population control, including infertility drugs and bait trapping, to remove animals from the mountains. It is yet another hurdle that Cloud and his family and the rest of the horses in the Arrowheads must overcome in the day-to-day efforts to survive in the wilderness.

Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions premieres Sunday, October 25 (check local listings).

You can follow the developments of Cloud’s family, along with updates about the BLM measures to control horse population at the Cloud Blog.

If you missed the first two installments, watch Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies and Cloud’s Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns online.

This morning, the Today Show on NBC ran a story on the controversy surrounding these round-ups, which are set to continue.

The third installment of the Cloud saga, Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions, premieres on NATURE Sunday, October 25.

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The trio of accomplished horses and riders profiled on NATURE’s Horse and Rider have one thing in common: they know how to communicate. Indeed, when it comes to “cutting” a cow from a thundering herd, chasing down a polo ball at breakneck speed, or developing the discipline necessary to perform the ballet of dressage, horse and rider need to know exactly what the other is thinking. Misunderstandings could literally be fatal.

Such clear communication, however, takes time for both horse and rider to learn. Luckily, a growing number of experienced “horse whisperers” — men and women who have developed a special knack for getting their point across to their mounts — are sharing their secrets with riders, through everything from books and videos to conferences and workshops.

One of these teachers is Mark Rashid, an Estes, Colorado-based cowboy who has written three books on horsemanship (he’s at work on a fourth), and holds dozens of clinics with riders every years. His Web site, Considering the Horse, has become a popular watering hole for riders seeking to develop stronger relationships with their mounts. It offers heaps of practical advice, honed by decades of experience working on cattle and dude ranches, investigating cases of abused horses, and teaching greenhorns and veteran trailriders alike.

NATURE recently caught up with Mark early one morning in Washington State, just before setting out to work with a waiting group of equine and human students.

NATURE: When did you first take to horseback?

Mark Rashid: I’ve been working with horses since I was about 6 years old. I wasn’t raised on a ranch, but there was one about 3 miles from where I lived in Wisconsin. I spent all my days there for 4 or 5 years.

How did you come by training?

It was by accident. In the 1980s, I was up in the Colorado mountains doing a lot of ranch work on cattle ranches, dude ranches. I was working with hundreds of horses, including problem horses that had a large variety of [problem behaviors such as bucking, not stopping, etc.]. I also worked with a lot of people, trying to teach them how to have a good ride. But I wasn’t very good at it, because I hadn’t learned to communicate. But I realized that working with people was a lot like working with horses: they need to understand what they are expected to do before they can have a good ride.

Later, I was a horse abuse investigator for the state of Colorado, and that gave me some experience communicating with people [who were having trouble caring for their horses]. Then, someone called me to come work with a problem horse. Next, their neighbor called. It just kind of grew from there. Soon, I was working with whole groups of people and horses. Now I hold clinics around the world.

What’s your philosophy?

Basically, I try to help folks get along better with their horses by finding some common ground so they can accomplish what they want to accomplish. I have two main messages — Don’t fight; and be clear. If you can do those two things, it opens the door for pretty much everything else.

The vast majority of horse training is designed to find the bad stuff horses are doing, so we can fix it. I try to find the good behavior, so we can build on it. That doesn’t mean we ignore the bad, but we don’t hit it head on. You try to work around it.

Mark Rashid teaches riders how to communicate with their horses.

Can you give an example?

Well, a lot of people will come to the clinics and say, “My horse doesn’t stop when I want it to.” So, I’ll ask the rider what constitutes a good stop? How many steps do they want the horse to take before it stops? Well, often they don’t know — they haven’t thought about it. They get an idea in their head as to what they want to do, but don’t give a lot of thought as to how they are going to get there.

So the first step is to break things down. Before the horse can know what it is supposed to do, the rider needs to know exactly what he or she wants. Then, you can start making some progress, such as working on how much pressure [the rider can put on the reins] to make the horse stop.

What do you mean by “don’t fight?”

Horses are usually happy to do whatever we want them to do — if they know what we want. But if you come in with the attitude that the horse is [intentionally disobeying], you set yourself up for a confrontational situation, and it all goes downhill from there. But if you say, “I’m not going to fight with you,” you open lots of doors.

Then, people often realize the problem is that they are applying cues that the horse doesn’t understand. It’s a basic misunderstanding from the get-go. It would be like going to Germany and speaking English to everyone and assuming they would understand. It isn’t going to work.

So you help people think about why they are having problems with their horses?

Yes. I really urge everyone to look at all kinds of possible explanations [for problem behavior]. Sometimes, it’s not really a training issue. You have to make sure the saddle fits properly, that the horse doesn’t have some kind of a chiropractic issue. Horses can be stiff or sore. We see a lot of teeth and feet problems. Basic horse care can solve a lot of problems.

What techniques do you use to get your ideas across?

One thing I do at the beginning of some clinics is that I split the people up into “horses” and “riders.” Then, the “riders” have to go back and teach their “horse” a task — such as walkng in a figure eight, then jumping a fence, and then sitting in a chair. But they can only use the words “good” and “no.” Yesterday, we did it with 10 people, and only one of the “horses” understood exactly what it was that their “rider” taught them. The vast majority of the time people can’t get it done. So they realize how important communication is.

Then, I have my students pick a task for me to teach a “horse.” And they come up with some weird things. Once, I had to [teach the "horse"] to write my name backwards in the sand with his foot. But I did it. You just have to keep up a steady stream of “goods” and “nos,” and not just communicate once every so often. You have to be clear about what you want.

NATURE explores the fascinating partnership between animal and human in Horse and Rider.

“Bet Yer Blue Boons” is one of the most agile and intelligent cutting horses in the world, a true champion.

“Rio,” a spectacular polo pony, is a gifted athlete able to sprint at 30 miles per hour, then stop suddenly and turn on a dime.

“Chamont” has the natural talent and physique of a great dressage horse, but also at times a timorous personality that puts a question mark on his future success.

Each of these remarkable animals shares an astonishing trait: the ability to implicitly trust, and perform complex tasks in tandem with, a human partner working toward a common goal. This teaming of horse and rider is arguably the most sophisticated and intriguing example of human-animal cooperation. NATURE explores and illuminates this absorbing phenomenon in Horse and Rider.

To order a copy of Horse and Rider, visit the NATURE Shop.

Online content for Horse and Rider was originally posted October 2002.

Jasper with his mother, Feldspar

Dear Friends of Cloud:

Last week we spent three days on the Pryors with the wild horses and were thrilled to see so many of the 2009 foals. On top of the mountain we found Cloud’s stepson, Flint, with his mare and new son! Flint won the blaze-faced grulla mare, Feldspar, last spring. He lost Feldspar to Prince during the summer, but won her back this spring before the birth of their son. We named the darling grulla colt Jasper. He is a delight and reminds me of Flint as a baby.

Windflower with Flax

Cloud has had a few changes in his family band as well. His daughter and granddaughter, Firestorm and Ember, are now with the coyote-dun band stallion, Jackson. When we walked out to get a closer look at Firestorm and Ember, we had our biggest surprise of the trip. Cloud’s dun mare was with Jackson, too. Beside the mare was a tiny foal that took my breath away. She looks like Cloud did as a foal, not necessarily in color, but in her lovely conformation and bright expression. We named her Windflower. Oddly, the pair has been wandering around on their own for nearly a month, and they weren’t even with Jackson earlier in the day, so we’ll see if this liaison lasts. Because of the cool, rainy weather many of the horses, including Cloud and his family, were far down the mountain. I’m hoping Cloud will try to win back the mare and little Windflower when he comes to the mountaintop. Stay tuned!

Our trip was bittersweet because of the BLM’s plan to remove nearly half the herd beginning on August 30. Many of the beautiful horses who grazed so peacefully in their green meadows could lose what they value most–their freedom and their families. The herd is around 195 horses (excluding foals) and removing nearly half of them would decimate their unique Spanish genetics and jeopardize their future survival. The BLM is going to be targeting not just the young horses but, dangerously, horses 11-15 years of age. This is Cloud’s age group, and over two-thirds of the band stallions fall into this age category as well. The BLM will not even guarantee that Cloud will remain in the wild.

We need national media coverage to save this little herd and so many others that face annihilation. I’m in Sacramento today (Monday, June 15) for the National BLM Wild Horse and Burro meeting. This will be an important meeting that follows the Western States Horse Expo, and we hope that both the public and the media will be there to support the horses.

Happy Trails!
Ginger Kathrens

P.S. The third program in the Cloud series, Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions, will premiere on NATURE nationwide on October 25, 2009. It is our hope that these programs continue to share the beauty of wild horses families and will help to keep them in the wild for many generations to come.