He found recovery through horses. Now he’s bringing that message to Rigby

RIGBY – Mustang Recovery Challenge, a nonprofit that uses horses to help people struggling with drug addiction or mental illness, is hosting a horse-themed carnival fundraiser in Rigby this Friday.

It’s happening at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds at 5 p.m. There will be a carnival in the parking lot that will include food vendors and music from the local band Fall River Boys. There will also be bounce houses, pony and wagon rides, dummy roping and unicorn pictures.

A horseshoe tournament will take place at 6:30 p.m.

Renowned horse behaviorist West Taylor from St. George, Utah, is the main attraction. Nonprofit founder Darci Parry tells EastIdahoNews.com he’ll give a presentation about mental health while working with a live mustang. His wife, Kami, will also give a few remarks.

West battled an alcohol addiction for 25 years and it was horses that helped him on his journey of recovery, according to his website.

At his lowest point, West “crashed his life, lost his business (and) all of his money.”

Parry says West’s pivot point was his encounter with a bear in the Alaska wilderness. In that moment, Parry says he told God that if he got him out of that situation, he would turn his life around.

At age 40, West was forced to start over. He and his family moved back to his grandfather’s ranch to regroup.

West discovered that working with horses outside was therapeutic and knew that was what he wanted to do in some capacity.

“I don’t know what I want to do, I just know it has something to do with horses,” West told Kami at the time.

Over time, he began working with wild horses and learned to change his own life in the process.

“As I was doing that, they were reflecting and showing me everything I was doing that wasn’t working. I was getting beat up, bit, stomped, kicked and chased around … but I eventually found myself and found a way to slow this down,” West told EastIdahoNews.com in 2024.

Decades later, West is now an expert in the industry. He’s helped clients across the globe break wild horses using a training method he developed based on years of scientific research. He’s also a motivational speaker.

He’ll be sharing some of his life experiences inside the arena at Jefferson County Fairgrounds during Friday’s presentation.

“He teaches you how to teach your horse how to regulate their own nervous system,” Parry says. “Just like a mustang has to rewire its neural pathways (while learning to trust its owner), you can rewire your own neural pathways to improve your mental health.”

Where did mustangs come from?

According to Taylor, mustangs exist because the Spaniards brought horses to the American continent by boat in the 1500s. They later sailed back to Spain and left the horses behind.

Many of today’s mustangs are direct descendants of horses from 500 years ago.

He says that’s part of the allure of owning a mustang.

“America was settled on the backs of horses,” says Taylor. “Having that raw connection to the settlement of America … is really nostalgic.”

Taylor was the keynote presenter at the inaugural Teton Horse Experience in Rigby two years ago. Parry and her husband are the co-founders of the annual event held at the Wind River Arena.

RELATED | Horse expert shows crowd at weekend expo how to connect with wild mustang

At the time, West got in a corral with a wild mustang provided by the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and showed those in attendance how to properly engage with a horse and build a relationship without scaring it off. His demonstration focused on getting the horse to raise its head and look him in the eye. Watch highlights in the video above.

Parry says the mustang West is working with this time around has been around humans much longer.

“It’s not halter broke, but it’s not fresh off the reservation either. The horse has been around humans, and he is familiar with them,” says Parry.

Whether or not you’re a horse enthusiast, Parry says this event will be worth your time, and she encourages people to attend.

“You can learn how your mental health affects you and how to get out of the rut of stagnation and go out and pursue your dreams,” she says. “You don’t have to like horses. You just have to have the ability to desire change and make your life better.”

While West’s presentation is free, carnival tickets for individual activities are $1. Wrist bands will also be available starting at $20. Registration for the horseshoe tournament is $25. All the proceeds from the event will benefit Mustang Recovery Challenge.