Within an hour, Annaka is able to put a harness on the mustang and remove it, which involves putting her arms around the nervous creature's neck.

It's a big step.

"What we're trying to do here is show them that they don't have to be afraid," says Kim Cutler, Annaka's father and an experienced horse trainer. "We make a little progress each day."

While gaining this kind of trust is the goal with every horse, in the case of this bay gelding and a second black mustang, the Cutlers have a firm deadline for taming these wild, skittish animals.

The Lewiston family got the two horses on Aug. 8 through a Bureau of Land Management program called Extreme Mustang Makeover. Like the better-known Extreme Home Makeover, the idea here is complete transformation.

All participants have 100 days to train their animal in preparation for a contest that will test the horse's ability to follow a variety of commands, including completing an obstacle course and exhibiting three gaits (walk, trot and cantor or lope). Events will be held in five cities, including Heber City. At the end of the competition, the mustangs will be auctioned off to new owners.

Kim and Annaka are confident their horses will be ready for the show. Soon, they plan to start saddling the two mustangs — after that it's only a matter of time before they are comfortable with riders.

Karen Cutler, Kim's wife, says she is already impressed by the progress she's seen.

"The bay was trying to jump out of the corral," she said. "You can't even believe these are the same horses. Their energy is totally different."

The Cutlers all stress that giving horses a solid foundation early on is essential.

"If you don't have that trust, there is always something between you and the horse," Kim said.

Watching the father-and-daughter team interact with the mustangs, it's clear they are masters of their craft. Both keep their cool even while the animals are agitated enough that they could turn and kick. The approach is calm, gentle and loving. Annaka explains she's not afraid of wild horses because relating to them is second nature. She's been riding since she could walk and has become adept at training colts.

"She puts a lot of the guys to shame with how she can ride colts," Kim says of his daughter.

Now the youngest of the seven Cutler children, Heidi, 15, seems set to follow the tradition. Sitting bareback on a large sorrel quarter horse, she says she would like to train a Mustang in a few years.

"I enjoy riding the one we have," Heidi says, pointing out the filly — which is one of 46 horses the Cutlers keep on their 65-acre Double K Ranch, along with numerous dogs of every shape and size.

"This is a family thing," Karen adds with a smile. Heidi and Annaka "are our last two children at home, so we'll have to recruit some grandchildren next."