Map-My-Mustang: Elisa Wallace

In this episode, we focus on the fascinating world of mustangs with none other than Elisa Wallace, a renowned five-star event rider and mustang trainer.

Elisa, one of Etalon's esteemed Athlete Advisors, shares her journey of bonding with horses, from the thrill of working with a new "Wild One" to the profound connection forged through training. She takes us through the unseen moments that don't make the youtube channel and sheds light on why she is so passionate about these horses.

We also introduce the groundbreaking project, Map-My-Mustang, revolutionizing the way mustang owners connect through genetic analysis, geographic mapping, and herd comparison. Discover firsthand how genetic testing has transformed Elisa's program and the profound impact it has had on her equine companions.

But hold onto your reins, because there's a shocking revelation awaiting. Christa spills the beans revealing that two of Elisa's mustangs are actually full siblings! Yes, you heard it right, full siblings in the world of mustangs.

Stay tuned to uncover which two horses share this remarkable bond and learn how DNA testing can unveil the hidden stories of your equine companions.

Learn more about Elisa Wallace:
Website
Youtube Channel
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Facebook

Etalon Links:
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Transcript

You know, going with the horses and working with them.

0:08 
And you know, there's the excitement of when you get a new wild one in and you go through the motions of it and th those first touches and then you're kind of like in the middle of training it.

0:19

And you're like, oh my God, why am I doing this again?

0:22

And then you're like, and you get past that hump and then you're like, I love doing this.

0:27

Look at how far we come, look at how good you are.

0:30

That was Alisa Wallace, one of our athlete advisors.

0:33

She's someone many of us admire for the incredible bond she has with her horses.

0:38

Alisa is a five star event rider, a Mustang trainer and most of you probably subscribe to her youtube channel in today's episode.

0:45

She'll be helping us introduce map.

0:47

My Mustang.

0:48

This is Elon's latest project that connects Mustang owners through genetic analysis, geographic mapping and her comparison.

0:56

ELISA will give all the details on how genetic testing has impacted her program.

1:00

But wait, there's more two of Elise's Mustangs are actually first degree relatives.

1:05

Krysta will spill the beans.

1:06

They're full siblings.

1:07

That's No, that's crazy.

1:10

Keep listening to find out which two horses are related and discover how you can uncover more about your horse's story through DNA.

1:17

This is genetics, unbridled, powered by etalon equine genetics.

1:21

So, to kick this off, Alisa, I would love it if you could tell us a bit about how you jumped headfirst into the world of mustangs.

1:29

I got into Mustangs back in 2012.

1:34

, 1 of my good friends, actually, Rebecca Bowman had, I've done a couple of makeovers and I had, you know, it's always fun to follow along with the journey of watching the horses change.

1:48

And,, there is a season where my event, horses had been injured.

1:53

So it was a little bit of a lull and she actually filled out an application and entered me.

2:00

She put a lot of pressure on me to enter,, a competition, a makeover competition.

2:05

And that's where I got my first Mustang pledged and we ended up winning that competition and I kept him and then the addiction of mustang began really.

2:17

So, obviously, we've talked about genetic temperament testing in the past and how horse owners are really starting to use this as a training tool.

2:25

I noticed most of your mustangs are double curious while your evening horses have a copy of vigilance.

2:30

Can you talk a little bit about how you see your horses express these traits in their everyday behavior?

2:36

My cult that I read actually has a vigilant.

2:39

Ok.

2:40

Ok.

2:40

Very interesting.

2:42

Which that track as well.

2:43

What do you see?

2:44

So those horse, so typically the horses with the vigilant scene are more reactive versus the horses.

2:51

With the two curious on there, the, the ones with that are just curious are, you know, typically not dramatic or overreactive about certain things like Toddy Michael.

3:04

Like he's a good boy, but like he's just a drama llama.

3:09

, and he is a bit the same way.

3:12

So you just have to explain things to them a little bit differently than typically a horse that like versus Dior who she was, it was she was a very confident horse.

3:24

And that it totally made sense because she was never even in tough situations, even when she did get worried, it was always easier to bring her kind of back down to you versus the ones with that vigilant gene.

3:37

They know, no, they just, they want to go away.

3:42

They, their, their way to survive is to put space.

3:45

I'm really curious to know with all the horses you have tested over the years.

3:49

What do you feel is the most impactful part of your results?

3:52

I say that because I'm assuming with all the time you spend with them, you might have some suspicions beforehand.

3:57

Is there anything that surprises you or that you feel is especially helpful?

4:02

Probably the health stuff is also, you know, important.

4:07

because for Mustangs, especially being on the east coast, you know, ones that have the PSFM or, you know, any of those sensitivities that they could have would be important,, as far it's, it's, it's really just, like, interesting to see kind of what you think because, you know, there's a lot of, you don't know.

4:27

So there's just a lot of guessing oftentimes with the mustangs, it, it all made, it all makes sense to me when I get results back that the horses come back, you know, mostly heavier in draft because I mean the,, especially out in the west, like those horses were exposed because we had a lot of miners out there, we had a lot of draft horses.

4:49

We had a lot of ponies that were in the mine.

4:51

And then on top of that, you had the ranch horses and the cavalry.

4:56

So it all really makes complete sense to me if you kind of know the history of America and kind of like where they all stem from.

5:04

But what was interesting with the oars like in comparing to my other mustangs, my other mustangs were around 10% ish thoroughbred cause I, I, me being an inventor, I'm always curious about the thoroughbred blood and she was more so leaning towards 20% thoroughbred, which I thought was interesting as she is a very naturally forward,, type like she's very going there.

5:31

And she was, you know, a lot a lot of people called her a potato.

5:34

, she was, I had to turn, we called her Princess Butterball in the beginning.

5:41

But,, it turned into muscle but she, she definitely, because mustangs and again, this is comparison to Thor breads, right?

5:49

So mustangs aren't always the fastest when you galloped on a thoroughbred at Mach Five and then you galloped on a mustang.

5:56

It's quite different.

5:57

But, but Dior had, had some pep, she could, she could bust a little bit of a move.

6:03

So,, it was interesting to see that kind of correlate with kind of what I felt, in, in her genetic results.

6:11

Yeah.

6:11

And we might,, looking at his results, we might go back and look at the horses like me that those are the animals that are similar in genetic composition,, in his report.

6:21

And maybe we might reach out to some of these folks and see if their animals have similar build or characteristics.

6:28

, and then we want to reach out to some of these owners whose horses are,, matching to Dior and it looks like through the find my herd, we found a close relative.

6:38

Did you see that?

6:41

I haven't yet?

6:42

No, because I know there's a lot of people posting on it.

6:44

Yeah.

6:45

So there's a second degree relative which means could be a half sibling, uncle, aunt or even they share a grandsire or something like that.

6:54

, yeah.

6:56

, 79% similarity that horse comes up as the top match in the genetic horses like me, but also comes up in the find my heart is directly related, which are two different things here.

7:09

And this one also has a pretty low inbreeding coefficient.

7:12

So, Dior for a mustang or for any horse really has a very low inbreeding value.

7:21

Oh, wow.

7:21

Oh, they were traveling.

7:23

Yeah.

7:24

Yeah, this horse is out cross.

7:25

, but this horse is in breeding value is extremely low which bodes well for health and wellness and, you know, genetic variability.

7:35

I mean, where the, or is from is Oregon.

7:38

So,, I mean, that could be, who knows?

7:42

I mean, the Oregon horses are pretty tough and they have to travel a long way.

7:45

So, are there, are there a lot of options there breeding options in Oregon?

7:51

Like, what is the Oregon situation like, I, I mean, I know, II, I don't have a map that I'm looking at but like there's Palomino Buttes, there's sheep's head and then there's a couple of other like herds around and then I'm, I'm just not quite sure.

8:08

I don't know.

8:09

They just, I know they travel a lot.

8:11

, and then you've got your Nevada horses that can be all different shapes and sizes and stuff.

8:18

Yeah.

8:18

Have you guys found?

8:20

I guess that would be something interesting if we, if, if you asked us in our description of the horse and you guys are doing nothing for us to put down the A MA because that might also help you with location to have that as a more information.

8:38

Yeah, we've noticed with the herds that we've tested a lot of assumptions from the owners, they usually have a good clue of who the sire and who the dam is.

8:47

But then using our herd mapping and genetic analysis, it's really helped them get the scientific proof of how each horse is connected and related.

8:56

And sometimes it's a big surprise.

8:58

I know we just talked about Dior a little bit but Eton and Wyeth being first degree relations, was that a total shock to you?

9:05

That Eton and y are like related.

9:07

They're full siblings.

9:10

That's no, that's crazy.

9:12

Well, because so, but I, but I actually, so the there's a photographer from Wyoming.

9:22

Is that, yeah, that's where they're from.

9:24

And so she, I actually know I have photographs of Yi's mother and his father.

9:31

00, if only photos were DNA.

9:34

Yeah, that would be awesome.

9:37

But the friend, but she also has wise half sibling who is a black and white paint, that's like 16 hands.

9:47

Oh, wow, that's pretty cool.

9:49

Yeah, for the longest time when we looked at that, I was worried like I didn't know if maybe Eton was Wyeth sire.

9:55

And so I ran off said Katie check the parentage, blah, blah, blah.

9:59

And she said well, Eton is homozygous black and So it's not possible for him to do this desire.

10:10

I'm like, oh.

10:11

Right.

10:12

I should probably know that because if I remember correctly because I have the pictures because again, the girl, this girl, like, studied them too, so it's interesting to see what matches up.

10:23

But why's mother was like a dark day paint?

10:27

, and then his fire was also a paint as well.

10:33

So, so, yeah, I don't know.

10:37

It would have to be a half, he would have to be a half sibling if Eton was homo, I guess black.

10:42

Right?

10:44

Well, so if both parents were Bay based, they each carry at least one copy of black.

10:49

Ok.

10:50

Yeah.

10:50

Wise mother is a dark Bay tri color paint.

10:55

Like Pinto.

10:56

That's cool.

10:58

So, well, if, if, if, why's mommy got adopted, call us?

11:05

Yeah, I think, I don't know what happened to her, but I do know I have pictures of them but that, that, that does,, that, that, that contracts that they're related.

11:16

They both have a good dose of squirrel in there for sure.

11:22

I remember seeing,, the stream of our friend Eton running through the traffic.

11:30

Yes.

11:31

But like Ethan is such a dork because like, yes, he could be tough that way.

11:35

But like that horse can also, he, he came back and went and did a demo and inside the Coliseum and was very good.

11:43

So,, but I've kind of, now he Eton really likes to chase cows.

11:48

But he's mainly just been,, he's a companion to my competition horses because he, he's got sticky stifles and got a chip on his pole.

11:58

So I don't really, and he's a lot of work.

12:00

, but he's living his best life.

12:03

I mean, as being a blueberry in the field,, versus Wyeth is my up and coming.

12:10

, competition must thing.

12:12

So it sounds like Eton has things figured out.

12:17

Yeah.

12:17

Well, that's what my, my groom Megan says, you know, Eton is smarter than all of us.

12:24

He figured out how to do minimal work and get maximum, you know, whatever he wants.

12:30

So, pretty much.

12:32

Yeah, that's, that's what happens when you hang around with guys more handsome than you just, you know, no good can come of that.

12:39

Yeah.

12:41

Oh my.

12:41

Yes, that's awesome.

12:42

It's got it all figured out.

12:43

, another thing that we've noticed with talking with mustang owners is them talking about the similarities and differences between herd from herd.

12:52

And so we were kind of wondering what the different mustangs you've owned and knowing where they came from.

12:56

Have you noticed anything that is just very distinct to where they came from?

13:01

And other horses that you've seen that are related.

13:05

I have kind of a wide variety of horses.

13:08

So I've got the two Green Mountain Wyoming Boys.

13:12

So that's why in Eton and, and I know about the Green Mountain horses is they kind of have like three subgroups where you've got the ones that are super squirrelly ie, like mine.

13:25

But like athletic, you've got ones that kind of come out that are super well minded, quiet, quiet horses, bombs can go off and they're fine.

13:33

And then you've got kind of like the middle of the road, but there's like three distinct, like subgroups of green mountain horses that are like that.

13:40

, Eton was like one of my toughest horses and poor why?

13:46

Like he had some physical things.

13:48

But as far as like his fractured jaw and had an abscess and all that good stuff.

13:55

But when is Adobe Town and she's Wyoming and for me, it seems like the Wyoming horses are pretty, pretty athletic type.

14:08

I've also had some divide basin horses, which is also Wyoming.

14:13

But what's interesting is like the new horse I have in Mateo, he is, he is on the bigger side, but he is definitely not on the quicker footed side.

14:23

He's rather everything goes slow.

14:27

He says I'm a good walk trot horse.

14:30

You guys, I really don't need to gallop.

14:34

And then I'm trying to think my Oregon horses and then pledge.

14:39

So Oregon would have been Dior and then pledge is Nevada and run is Colorado and they're all, they're all so different.

14:49

What I found where is the most different is like Ro who's from Colorado is like spooky of rocks.

14:56

So versus my other mustangs like, don't care.

15:00

But he is, I'm like, or is that from like mountain lions hanging behind rocks or something.

15:07

But I don't know, they, you know, you can see like 20 horses from the same herd and they literally are every size, shape and color.

15:16

I mean, it's still thinking about the whole rocks.

15:19

That's, it's just so funny.

15:21

It's a really interesting observation and I mean, that would make sense.

15:25

Maybe he volunteered to be rounded up.

15:26

He's like, no, this place I'm done, I'm half room because when I got him, he was like, playing with the clipboard.

15:37

I mean, he is very, very, he's a very, he was a very friendly horse and I do know a lot every single horse that I know from his herd, he's from the East Douglas Peon herd in Colorado.

15:50

They've all been good jumpers.

15:53

I'm like, and I don't know if it's, I don't know some horses, some horses like in winter, the Adobe Town horses, they're good little jumpers.

16:04

Green Mountain has good jumpers, which I know because so it's just always interesting to see how and it's, it's often times how mustangs react to things.

16:14

So you'll have some horses where, when you lead them over a pole or something, their answer is to jump it.

16:20

That's the type of horse I like.

16:22

Versus if someone's looking for a trail horse, they just want to like, walk over it, but I want it to jump.

16:31

Yeah, that was, I think you kind of already answered that earlier.

16:33

But,, we were kind of wondering what you looked for when you were picking the mustangs for when you go to compete with them.

16:40

And we talk a lot around here about discipline, suitability and horses being strong in certain areas and then as well as what fits our rider and what they're looking for.

16:48

So we were kind of curious when you're picking your horse to compete with what you were looking for.

16:54

Well, it could be very, very difficult to pick out Mustang, you know, obviously, it's easier if you're in person because you can like see them and feel their connection a little bit, but often times they're in a pen with a couple of other horses.

17:09

So it's, you know, it's not like how you can go to a barn and be like, I wanna see that horse jog on a straight line and let me lung it over a jump.

17:17

Like you're totally going based off of body type and confirmation and kind of how the horse is interacting is, you know, you're just basically guessing.

17:29

So like for instance, when I picked bor, you know, I kind of picked bor because she is built very nicely.

17:37

Like, I like how she came out, but I wasn't, she was built a little straight behind.

17:41

So I was like, well, she's not gonna be like an upper level event horse, which I didn't want, because I didn't wanna keep another one.

17:48

It sounds sad, but I didn't wanna, I didn't wanna keep another one.

17:51

My job is to try to get more mustangs into people's homes and not just mine.

17:57

I really like how her neck kind of came up out of her with her.

18:00

So I thought, well, she, she'd make a really nice, like, all around type horse where she could do dressage, she could, you know, do all the things.

18:09

And then based on her behavior in the pen, she was the boss mayor.

18:14

So,, I like that about her because that's a confident horse.

18:18

That can be like, yeah, no, you stay over there, I stay here.

18:22

Those are the rules.

18:23

I really liked that about her.

18:25

And so again, like you can also, versus when I think back to Eton when he was in the pen and, you know, there was about 20 some odd horses in that pen together and, and I had picked why?

18:40

And I remember seeing that little black horse and he was just so scared and he was just trying to put as many horses in between what he thought he was afraid of.

18:49

And I was like, that sucker is gonna be tough because he has a high flight.

18:53

And sure enough, I was right on that scenario and these, these observations are so helpful as we're looking at the genetics because as you're saying these things, some of the stuff that we see in the genes matches up in others are still a mystery but we can keep looking based on what you say.

19:09

Right.

19:09

You're saying?

19:10

Oh, I saw this, look for it and, and with more people participating, more mustangs animals that are related to that animal, animals that are in that same surrounding that helps us narrow down and look for these behaviors that we think are, you know, you're born with it.

19:26

Right.

19:27

Yeah, it, it's very interesting how, again, how similar they can be and how different they can be kind of all in the same time because there's, I mean, there's some horses that you're like that, you see, for instance, in this mustang competition,, there are a lot, a lot of the mayors were from the same age and a as, as your was.

19:49

, but there's a group of buckskin mayors and they all look the same, all kind of the same demeanor,, a little bit but all, a little bit of that longer lines.

20:00

I was like that have to be the same stud, like, because they were the same age.

20:06

But I was like, yeah, someone's daddy got around because way too similar, like, just body types and, like, it, there was a clear stamp of a horse,, that was like three or four of them that were, that way.

20:23

It would be nice to be able to follow them.

20:25

Right.

20:25

And see what they do.

20:26

And how similar they are and how much the influence matters as they go forward.

20:31

That's what we're trying to do.

20:32

Right, is slowly build this map so we can figure out.

20:35

All right, where's my herd?

20:37

What are they doing?

20:38

And how well do they do in this, that versus the other?

20:40

And again, it comes back to suitability.

20:42

How well are you doing in this discipline?

20:44

Is this the right horse for you?

20:46

And next time I go shopping over at Lisa's?

20:48

Which one do I need?

20:49

Versus which one do I want?

20:52

Right.

20:53

Right.

20:53

Right.

20:54

Yeah.

20:55

Like, it'd be neat if you guys could get in with some of the makeovers to where, like all those horses could get tested and then that would help because you would just start getting so much more information.

21:06

That would be awesome.

21:07

Mustang makeover people if you're listening, call us.

21:11

Yeah.

21:12

A lot of times people don't quite understand because they say it's like misinformation, but I don't think it's that way.

21:18

Like to me it's just gathering information on horses.

21:21

So it's just gonna be changing all the time because with the more information you get, the more it changes.

21:29

It's true.

21:29

Well, and that's the trouble I think is that when this kind of science came out there were efforts to, you know, quote unquote breed test a horse, but that just isn't really possible.

21:44

, for most quote unquote breeds because it's just a label we threw on them.

21:48

Right.

21:48

I mean, what is a mustang?

21:49

Well, they have some genetic similarity but exactly, it's just like if I'm gonna do, I mean, Toddy is technically a hol Steiner, but he's 76% thoroughbred.

22:01

So, but, yeah, that's what people don't understand.

22:06

Like, just because it's, it's a standard bread, that's not what it is or, you know, a Belgian or?

22:14

Right.

22:14

Right.

22:15

Well, everything is a mix of other stuff.

22:17

Right.

22:17

They, they weren't all just born on the planet in the breed that they are, it doesn't work that way.

22:22

And they have to understand that shared genetics is not the same as being sired by or out of an animal.

22:31

We, you and I can have similar genetics if one or more of our relatives are German or Chinese or whatever.

22:38

But that doesn't make us close relatives or even the same at all.

22:43

It just means we share a small chunk of overlap of genetics because the original people had it and passed it on.

22:50

Right.

22:51

Right.

22:52

Yeah.

22:52

I mean, I've grown up with quarter horses and I know when I first learned all the different things that go into quarter horses, my mind was just blown and I think now we finally have more and more people realizing there's all these different things that go into these breeds that we now know and it definitely impacts what pen they're best suitable in and, you know, your favorite features about your horse and so that's kind of our goal with Mustang owners is that I think they're starting to finally understand a little bit of, you know, what, what we can do and sometimes you get a result back and you go, oh yeah, I knew that or I was thinking that was already going to come and then it's something totally from a different angle that surprises you.

23:32

So our hope is that maybe we can kind of get the discussion going with people who know the horse is the best.

23:37

So, and, and the mustang people, God bless them.

23:39

They are much more open to exploration than the average horse person.

23:45

It seems a lot of research they do on these animals.

23:48

They do a lot of research.

23:49

They take a risk when they adopt one, when they train one, when they step into a pen with one and when we get on the phone and do consults, they have a lot of questions, but they're good questions and they're interesting and they're open minded and they share information.

24:06

It's really, it's, it's a really cool group of people.

24:09

We really enjoy them.

24:10

Yeah.

24:11

And I think that's mainly because like, again, we're getting horses that we have.

24:15

I mean, you're lucky, like I was lucky that I have like pictures of why an eton in the wild.

24:20

Like you're getting a horse that you, you don't have any information on and, and you build such a connection with this horse that you want to kind of know and learn everything about it because, like, that's just human nature.

24:35

Right.

24:35

Right.

24:35

And the more tests, the more horses we test, the more research we can do and it just, it goes back with working with the horse owners and understanding, you know, what they notice about their animals, working with them, us making sure we pull all that information and then combine to see what we can see.

24:51

So another question I have and I don't know if anything comes right to your mind.

24:57

I know I've heard you guys mention a few really cool things about Eton and I know I've heard about him.

25:03

quite a bit around here.

25:04

Do you have any like fun stories or any something just with working with your mustangs that you feel that people don't know about?

25:12

But that would really a story that would be exciting for people to learn.

25:15

Tell us your dirty secrets.

25:17

Come on, we want to hear them entertaining stuff.

25:21

I was at this before and I came up for, I don't know.

25:29

There's all their stories out there a little bit but if I may, Alisa, this is part of the reason like for me to you, you're one of my favorite people and you're one of my favorite people.

25:41

You and your partner in Crime Laney as well.

25:43

Because what you guys do that very few people do is you put yourself out there when things go right and you do it, when things go wrong and trolls be damned.

25:57

The rest of us are learning from you.

25:59

, and even if people say, oh, well, you know, they're not wearing a helmet or they're not doing this or they're not doing that or whatever, they're saying people can stand on a soapbox and lecture you and I think the majority of us are standing in the same spot as you go.

26:14

Yeah, I've been there.

26:16

What did she do?

26:17

How did she do it?

26:18

Right.

26:19

And mistakes happen and trials and tribulations happen.

26:23

But very few people are open and honest about that.

26:26

And those lessons are, I think more valuable than the perfect ride.

26:30

Yeah.

26:30

, I, here's that story, I guess, I mean, I'm pretty open about all my mustangs and stuff but,, you know, everybody thinks that fled was perfect and super easy and all this stuff.

26:44

But I can't always catch everything on camera because often times it's just me.

26:49

But like that first two weeks when I was working in because Flood was still Italian and I was working on sending him to the right and the horses in general mustangs especially, they get, they're all used to us coming on them to the left side, we're all used to the left.

27:08

So it's obviously harder to teach horses to go to the right and they're one sided, whatever.

27:14

So I'm working on getting him to go to the right and he doesn't want to go to the right.

27:17

And, you know, I have a very good connection with him already but working, working, working and there would be time to joke around.

27:26

Like, is this even a Mustang because it's so easy.

27:29

And then, well, he's not really going to write.

27:31

And the next thing I know my butt's on the ground because he got fed up with me trying to send him to the right.

27:40

He came and he grabbed me right on top of my collar bone and he ran with his mouth and he ran right over top of me.

27:46

And I said, who say wild horse?

27:51

And,, then we, that was the conversation we had and then he had never, he never did it again.

27:57

But,, that was the one time that pledge and, and that happens.

28:02

I mean, they are wild horses that and things, stuff happens.

28:07

Like I have been put on the ground before.

28:09

Like I've been charged, they put me on the ground and it's like, ok, noted, but I gotta do something a little different, right?

28:18

Like that's their form of communication.

28:20

But I'd say that's an interesting story.

28:23

I guess that doesn't always out there because II I couldn't sell it.

28:28

It wasn't my camera.

28:30

We need to attach a GoPro to you.

28:32

Get it all.

28:33

Oh, my goodness.

28:35

Yeah.

28:35

Yeah.

28:36

That she could be like her own Truman.

28:38

Show horses, trust him.

28:41

I trust him with my life.

28:42

Like, I mean, that horse I've been in so many situations with and he's my dude.

28:46

It's just the way it's funny to look back and that's a little bit,, part of, you know, going with the horses and working with them and, you know, there's the excitement of when you get a new wild one in and you go through the motions of it and th those first touches and then you're kind of like in the middle of training it and you're like, oh my God, why am I doing this again?

29:08

And then you're like, when you get past that hump and then you're like, I love doing this.

29:13

Look at how far we come, look at how good you are.

29:16

And you know, it's just kind of like, it's just how it, it goes a little bit like, or you're in or you get the wild one and you're like that anticipation of OK.

29:28

Now, what did I do?

29:29

I got this wild horse and I have to make it something.

29:35

So it's worth something.

29:37

So it can be, you know, they, they are worth something.

29:43

So that, that's kind of like the whole point.

29:45

And there's just always a little bit of that hesitation before you step in and, and it's the same feeling sometimes or I don't know if anyone can relate, but like when I'm at Kentucky and I'm about to go in the box, at a five star.

30:01

And I'm like, what am I doing this for?

30:04

Why?

30:05

The adrenaline pumping?

30:06

And you're, there's that little bit sense of dread, but then there's that weird part of you that loves that part that like makes you sick.

30:12

It's kind of like the same thing when you get a wild horse, like all those same emotions are the same things that I feel.

30:18

So, I think that's why I like training the mustangs and it kind of parallels a little bit with venting.

30:25

Have you had yourself genetically tested actually to my husband and I have, and it was interesting because there's a 10% Italian in mind that we don't know where that came from.

30:41

Are you actually gonna ask that question of your parents and grandparents or you just kind of like giggle quietly?

30:48

Well, so my mom's adopted and she just found her, her mo her genetic mother like a year or so ago, but her mother, so that actually really helped because I've been harping on my mom to like find her genetic mother for the longest time because of for health, health situations.

31:09

My mom has a lot of fixing like she has pancreatitis and all that stuff.

31:14

So I wanted to know, well, come to find out like we found out the story and, but my mom still couldn't quite find, she couldn't find her biological father.

31:26

So I'm guessing that we're, the Italian probably comes in.

31:30

Is that missing link right there?

31:33

Because the other side of my family, my dad's side, it's pretty heavily documented and it's a lot of English, Scottish and Irish.

31:41

So a lot of Scottish,, I mean, Wallace.

31:45

There you go.

31:46

But,, yeah, we've got Scott in our family as well, so I understand.

31:53

Yeah.

31:53

So that, that little is, has been very interesting.

31:58

, and for my mom, she found that she has several half siblings and stuff like that.

32:05

So, yeah, it's, it's been interesting to kind and now I, it actually helps though.

32:11

When I go to the doctor, I had very important things like,, oh, by the way, there was breast cancer in our family that I didn't know about.

32:20

So,, all the things that it's so important to have just health wise.

32:27

It is, but it's more than just health.

32:28

I mean, I think that they haven't done a lot of it with, with people yet because it's a little bit controversial obviously.

32:34

But there are these genes for, like, for instance, temperament in the horses, it crosses over, works in dogs and people too.

32:42

And the vigilance in dogs is aggression and in humans it's thrill seeking.

32:46

That's why I was sort of curious.

32:47

Like, what did your DNA say?

32:51

Yeah.

32:51

Right.

32:52

You're an endorphin junkie.

32:55

I know my, yes I am.

32:57

And then I'm not like, I'm very, I don't want to jump out of an airplane, like, I don't wanna die but, like, I, I do like dumping things on my horses and having adrenaline that way.

33:09

, so, yeah, it's very interesting.

33:13

I know my mom had some, like, I forget because she did a different test than we did.

33:19

, and it said she had like an athletic, an athletic gene in there which is milestone sprint type.

33:27

Yeah.

33:28

, so, yeah, it's, it's all very interesting.

33:34

So I'm, I'm just curious.

33:36

Have you actually looked at the statistics between the number of injuries from jumping out of a plane versus venting?

33:42

No, but I just hate airplanes on, that's just not on the bucket list, like height, height, heights and airplanes and like, equipment failure are like, kind of like, you know, when I have to drive over a bridge, I have to really tell myself to focus, staying, just keeping my eyes on the,, bridge.

34:04

So I don't, like, freak out.

34:07

I mean, I don't freak out but like, I just, the idea of like, and when you're driving over a bridge and be like, oh, well, if you lost control and your car just went off, like my brain goes there.

34:18

So I just stayed focused.

34:19

It's a lot of mental work and that's why she knows how to get a horse over a waterhouse.

34:25

Yeah, that makes sense.

34:27

That, that's easy.

34:28

That's no problem.

34:29

That's not very, not always for the average person but.

34:34

Right.

34:35

Oh, Well, these are awesome and I know we're just so grateful to have you as one of our Elon athlete advisors and all your experience and interactions with these animals.

34:45

It's just, it's awesome to be able to talk with you and then, you know, look at the results and then obviously people are inspired by your story with your horses.

34:55

I'm gonna throw in one more question here and then make sure I got everything that everybody else wanted to ask.

35:01

But do you have any advice for horse owners, considering genetic testing for the first time?

35:07

Well, my advice would be to do it because again, I think it's really important to have kind of that information because again, like it makes like for my soul, like thought it made complete sense, like the stuff that came back on him and it, if I was considering to keeping him a stallion, like if you know, there's a lot of things that can pop up genetically that, that we're starting to learn about that can help us with our breeding programs.

35:38

And so I think it's really important.

35:41

And for again that in, in training wise and, and knowing about if your horse is vigilant or super curious and kind of how sensitive they are to things like it, it just gives you a better understanding of our horses.

35:57

And that ultimately the goal is to understand them better and, and train them better and have Happy Horses.

36:04

, and Dior, actually, she has a new home now, so it was really great for her new owner to kind of be like, oh, my gosh, that's so amazing.

36:16

You got to see the results too.

36:17

So, that was fun.

36:18

That's awesome.

36:19

Maybe we can invite her.

36:20

We're going to try to get a group of mustang people together to talk about their experiences and their animals and where they came from and what they've done with them.

36:29

And I'm sure you know about that.

36:31

And she's certainly welcome to join us on that since she's a newbie owner of this gorgeous, gorgeous horse.

36:38

Oh, my God.

36:41

Yeah, she's a looker for sure.

36:43

It was, you know, it was really funny when I was in Texas because there was like, the announcer called her Dire.

36:51

I was like, oh, it's your, yeah, I was like, it's not that, oh my gosh.

36:56

No.

36:56

And then there was like one of everyone else though, like I was like Dior and they're like, oh, I get it.

37:01

Well, one Dior also means the gold people.

37:04

Not also, it's a bougie clothing designer line.

37:09

Hello, here's your, like it tracked.

37:12

, and there was like one other girl who was like, did not know Dion was like, where are you, where are you from?

37:19

What are you under?

37:21

But Absolutely Diora is so fitting on this horse.

37:24

Lovely.

37:25

Yeah.

37:26

Well, her personality too, it's just she was very much that outgoing death.

37:31

She loved domestication and she loved the funner things in life and that she's a bougie.

37:38

She's a bougie girl.

37:40

She understands Bling.

37:41

Bling.

37:42

Yeah.

37:43

Yeah.

37:43

So,, but that, that was really exciting and again, well, I know me and my two girls are gonna be getting another set of wild ones then to be training for the classic,, makeover that will be held in September at the Kentucky Horse Park.

38:00

So that's gonna be really exciting because that will be the first English a makeover.

38:07

We get to do like jumping and stuff.

38:10

Yeah.

38:10

So for one, so it's pretty funny because like all my mustang friends are like freaking out and I'm like, ha ha.

38:16

Now it's my turn.

38:18

Now you have to conform to me.

38:21

That is awesome.

38:24

Another big thank you to Alisa for spending the day with us and thank you to all of you for listening to this episode of Genetics unbridled.

38:32

If you like this episode, make sure to leave us a review and give us a follow on Spotify Apple or wherever you listen to podcasts to learn more about Alisa and her horses.

38:41

Subscribe to our youtube channel or keep up with her on Facebook and Instagram at Wallace evening for more about Elon and Mat, my Mustang.

38:50

Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram at Etalon DX or visit our website Etalon dx.com to learn more about our genetic testing.

38:59

We'll see you next time