Gus couldn’t cut it on a ranch, but the 20-year-old chestnut horse has found another niche in life as an unofficial cheerleader for Cody Middle School.
By a happy twist of fate, Gus ended up in small pasture right next to the school, and the horse that is so friendly with people he’s been described as a “1,200-pound dog” absolutely loves it. When kids pass by his pasture on their way to or from school, Gus comes running.
“He actually anticipates the bell ringing at the end of the day, and then he just goes up to the fence and waits for the kids to come out,” said his owner, Kaylyn Dunkle.
Gus’ pasture is owned by her father-in-law, Brad Dunkle, who also adores the horse.
Gus is hugely affectionate, although sometimes mischievous, Brad told Cowboy State Daily.
“I’ll be out there working on the sprinklers, and my knees aren’t that great anymore, so I’ll just lay down on my stomach to work on the sprinklers,” Brad said. “And Gus will come up behind me and push me with his head. He’ll roll me over, like I’m a whale or something.”
Though the Dunkle property seems like the ideal place for Gus, there’s been trouble in this horse’s paradise lately.
As the neighborhood around the property has grown up, the Dunkles say they’ve been finding junk in Gus’ space, including some dangerous stuff.
Most recently, Brad found a razor-sharp blowgun dart. Far from being a toy, it was a full-sized hunting dart, he said.
“If Gus had stepped on that, it would have ruined his foot,” Brad said.
Couldn’t Hack The Ranch Life
Kaylyn bought Gus in 2007 in Colorado, where she was living at the time.
She’d been looking for a horse when she saw an ad: “American quarter horse, $150.”
That was a bargain was too good to pass up. It turned out the price was so low because Gus wasn’t much of a ranch horse.
Apparently, pushing herds of cattle and rushing to cut off strays just isn’t his thing.
“He was owned by some cowboys, but he wasn’t fast enough for them,” Kaylyn said.
But Gus’ slothful approach to ranch work didn’t bother the Dunkles. She was looking for a gentle riding horse and a good companion, and Gus fit that role perfectly.
“Me and him, we just clicked,” she said.
‘1,200 Pound Dog’
Brad, a retired crane operator, moved to Cody and bought his property in 2013.
“We I first came here, it was mostly open space surrounding me,” he said.
But gradually the area started to fill in, becoming more like a busy neighborhood, and less like a semi-rural property on the outskirts of town.
In 2020, Kaylyn, a USDA inspector, wanted to move with her family to Cody. But she was concerned about finding a place for Gus.
“That was the only thing holding me back from moving, I was worried about Gus. But my father-in-law told me, ‘Bring your horse, he can stay on my property,’” she said.
Gus had a 30-acre pasture in Colorado, so Kaylyn wondered how he would adjust to the property in Cody, which is about only an acre.
He did fine, because there were so many people to interact with, including the middle school kids.
“My neighbors call him a ‘1,200-pound dog,’ and that’s a good description,” Brad said.
Even Likes Dogs
Interactions between horses and dogs can sometimes be tense, but Kaylyn said Gus likes dogs just as much as he likes people.
The volume of traffic near the property in Cody was a challenge at first and “he had to adjust to all the cars,” she said.
Once his apprehension about vehicles was gone, Gus began to revel in his surroundings.
“With so many people walking by, he likes to go up to the fence and visit. And dogs too. He really likes meeting dogs,” Kaylyn said.
A Frightening Find
Brad said he was angry and worried to find the blowgun dart in Gus’ pasture Sunday. He found the dart “sticking in the ground” as if it had come in from a high angle.
He’s not sure if somebody was actually trying to shoot Gus with a blowgun, but he hopes that wasn’t the case.
“I don’t know if it was deliberately malicious, or just a one-off case of stupidity,” he said.
Either way, Gus could have been seriously hurt by the dart, either by it hitting him or by him stepping on it, Brad said.
He said that so far he hasn’t found any more darts.
Kaylyn said she’s noticed an ever-increasing amount of garbage and junk in Gus’ little pasture.
Beer bottles worry her the most. Broken ones could easily cut the horse. And if he stepped on an intact bottle, the force would drive shards of glass deep into the tender parts of his foot, she said.
“I don’t think people are trying to be mean and throwing things at him. I think they’re just being careless,” Kaylyn said. “I’d just like to remind folks to please be more careful.”
Meanwhile, Gus continues to enjoy life in his busy surroundings full of middle schoolers and others who visit every day.
Though 20 years old is getting up there in age for a horse, “Gus still has plenty of spunk left in him,” Kaylyn said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
