My Wild Horse Story: Tara Kilpatrick and Ink Print

Tara Kilpatrick began her involvement with wild horses 20 years ago. After moving to Southern Nevada, she and her husband David began exploring the Mojave Desert. She soon came across her first sighting of wild horses in the Red Rock Herd Management Area and began documenting the herd’s animals and social interactions. Her documentation and field monitoring has aided the local BLM Wild Horse and Burro Specialists greatly. Tara and David’s assistance in conducting public outreach programs has been invaluable. They have dedicated thousands of hours and miles to the Wild Horse and Burro Program over the years and have helped numerous people learn about and understand our American Living Legends.

In August of 2019 an emergency gather was conducted within the Red Rock HMA due to lack of water resources. After the gather, Tara was able to visit Ridgecrest Regional Corrals to document who was gathered and obtaining tag numbers while visiting the animals she had known since their birth. One stallion that was gathered had always been her favorite, a 17-year-old buckskin affectionately named Ink Print. She had always dreamt of owning a wild horse but until the gather was conducted had never seriously considered it. But Tara has formed many friendships over the years, and the community came together to make her dream come true. A neighbor offered boarding space and a local TIP trainer Brian Smith offered to put Ink Print through his training program.

Since the time of the gather, Tara has learned so much, not only about how to take care of horses but of how supportive and caring the wild horse and burro community is. She has been able to meet and talk with many different people and she has provided photos and stories of nearly every horse that was gathered due to her extensive documentation. Many of these people have taken Tara into their hearts and are so grateful for the knowledge she provides to those who do not have wild horses near them or want to know more about the local Southern Nevada herds.