Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2022 December 4

= December 4 =

Mustang, a maverick horse?
Quote from Maverick (animal): "A mustang is by definition a maverick horse." But Mustang does not mention this - so does this claim hold up? --KnightMove (talk) 07:42, 4 December 2022 (UTC)
 * That was added about two years ago by a possibly no longer active user. It sounds more like an observation than a solid usage. Presumably any normally-domesticated animal could be considered a "maverick". However, the term doesn't quite seem to fit for wild animals. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 10:01, 4 December 2022 (UTC)
 * As the term is used for animals, it is normally applied to domestic livestock, specifically horses or cattle grazing on rangeland, that, although some rancher's property, have not been branded – in a context where such property is usually branded. (Herds of Friesian cattle held for dairy production are usually not branded, but one wouldn't refer to them as "mavericks".) Since free-roaming mustangs are not domestic livestock, it is strange to use the term for them. --Lambiam 11:34, 4 December 2022 (UTC)
 * It be gone now. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 11:43, 4 December 2022 (UTC)