From No Horse Experience to Training Mustangs Worldwide with Grace Thompson | Episode 69

Grace Thompson was not born into horses. She said yes to one wild Mustang before she knew what she was doing—and that decision became a life training wild horses around the world.As a teenager with no horse experience, Grace convinced her parents to let her adopt her first Mustang. Since then, she has trained more than 200 wild horses, competed in Mustang Makeovers, won colt-starting championships, worked with wild Kaimanawa horses at liberty in New Zealand, and prepared Mustangs for Germany’s Mustang Makeover.Grace and I discuss why she left behind her childhood dream of training dolphins and orcas, how saying yes to every opportunity accelerated her education, and what working with ten wild horses at liberty taught her about communication without force. She explains why Germany-bound Mustangs are allowed to become wild again before making the journey, how she keeps competition pressure from overriding a horse’s welfare, and why training hundreds of Mustangs has only deepened her respect for the individuality of every horse.We also explore why liberty horsemanship may become an increasingly important part of Mustang training and how Grace is helping place trained Mustangs with programs supporting veterans.The horse world does not belong only to those born into it. Grace’s story reveals what can happen when you say yes before you feel qualified, keep learning, and allow the horse—not ambition—to determine the pace.ABOUT GRACE THOMPSONGrace Thompson is a Mustang trainer, colt starter, and founder of GET Horsemanship Wild Horse Training Facility in eastern Tennessee. She trains Mustangs for owners and international programs and supports the use of horses in veteran mental health programs.CONNECT WITH GRACEInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/gethorsemanship/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gethorsemanshipFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/GETHorsemanshippHorses for Mental Health campaign: https://horsesformentalhealth.org/campaigns/grace-thompson-g-e-t-horsemanship/CONNECT WITH THE TOUCH OF A MUSTANGWebsite: https://thetouchofamustang.org/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetouchofamustang/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheTouchofaMustangSUPPORT THE PODCASThttps://ko-fi.com/thetouchofamustangFollow The Touch of a Mustang for more stories about horses, the people they meet, and what those relationships reveal about healing, resilience, and being human.