The Hallelujah Horse Mustangs

HorseIllustrated.com - Full Article

The Wells Creek Wild Mustang Sanctuary houses the Hallelujah Horse Mustangs - arguably the least adoptable horses from a notorious rehoming case.

Story and photos by Shelley Paulson - May 10, 2021

When you think of a sanctuary for wild Mustang stallions, you probably don’t picture it nestled in the heart of midwestern farmland. But that’s exactly where 20 old Mustangs from the biggest horse rescue mission in U.S. history found a refuge to live out the remainder of their days in peace as part of the Hallelujah stallion herd.

The Backstory

Many of the horses who served in World Wars I and II were rounded up from what is now known as the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge on the northern border of Nevada. It became a breeding ground for these “war horses,” most of whom were shipped to Europe, where they were used to pull artillery or carry soldiers into war.

The Sheldon Mustangs who were left after the wars ended remained on the refuge. They were managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), not the Bureau of Land Management, so they didn’t fall under the protection of the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act of 1971, which prevents sale for slaughter...

Read more here:
https://www.horseillustrated.com/hallelujah-horse-mustangs?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=hi_rnl_11Dec2021

Nevada: The BLM Concluded the Owyhee Complex Wild Horse Gather

https://www.blm.gov/press-release/bureau-land-management-concluded-owyhee-complex-wild-horse-gather

November 10 2021

WINNEMUCCA, Nev. – On November 9, 2021, the Humboldt River and Tuscarora Field Office (HRTFO) concluded a wild horse gather. The gather was located in and around the Little Owyhee, Owyhee, Rock Creek and Snowstorm Mountains Herd Management Areas (HMAs) of the Owyhee Complex. The complex is approximately 30 miles northeast of Paradise Valley, Nevada. Approximately 506 wild horses remain in the four HMAs of the Complex. This population estimate does include the 2021 foal crop.

The HRTFO gathered 934 and removed 545 wild horses. 195 studs, 162 mares and 5 foals were released back onto the complex. Mares identified for release were treated with the fertility control vaccine, PZP, to slow the population growth rate of the remaining population within the complex.

The purpose of the gather was to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, to restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.

By balancing herd size with what the land can support, the HRTFO aims to protect habitat for other wildlife species such as sage grouse, pronghorn antelope and mule deer. Removing excess animals will enable significant progress toward achieving the Standards for Rangeland Health identified by the Sierra Front-Northwestern Great Basin Resource Advisory Council also alleviating private land issues.

The wild horses removed from the range were transferred to the Sutherland Off-Range Corrals located in Sutherland, Utah. All the animals will be readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro adoption and sale program. Wild horses not adopted or sold will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. For information on how to adopt or purchase a wild horse or burro, visit www.blm.gov/whb.

Additional gather information is available on the BLM website at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/33902/510

Scientists say Australian plan to cull up to 10,000 wild horses doesn’t go far enough

Nature.com - Full Article

A fast-growing population of feral horses in an alpine national park needs to be substantially reduced in number, researchers argue.

1 November 2021
Bianca Nogrady

Up to 10,000 feral horses might be killed or removed from Australia’s largest alpine national park under a draft plan to control the rapidly growing population of non-native animals. Scientists have welcomed the idea of removing them, but are alarmed that the plan still allows for thousands to remain, threatening endangered species and habitats.

The proposed cull, in Kosciuszko National Park, New South Wales (NSW), contrasts with a ban on lethal control measures in the United States, where large populations of wild horses known as mustangs also cause problems.

The draft plan, released last month, recommends reducing the park’s population of wild horses, known in Australia as brumbies, from an estimated 14,000 to about 3,000 through a combination of mostly ground-based shooting, as well as rounding up and rehoming...

Read more here:
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02977-7?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Newfoundland+Ponies+%7C+Homeless+to+Horsewoman+%7C+TROtt+Receives+Donation+%7C+Cool+New+Apps&utm_campaign=HC_Enewsletter2021-Wednesday+November+3

The BLM is in process of rounding up about half of Wyoming's wild horses in Sweetwater County

WyomingPublicMedia.org - Full Article

Wyoming Public Radio | By Kamila Kudelska
Published October 21, 2021 at 11:38 AM MDT

Former President Donald Trump announced a goal to decrease the amount of western wild horses by the end of the fiscal year 2022. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is following this plan by capturing roughly 4,300 wild horses living in southwestern Wyoming.

This reduces the state's wild horse population by about 45 percent. The BLM said these management efforts are needed because the landscape can't sustain the number of horses. But Grace Kuhn with the American Wild Horse Campaign disagrees.

"In actuality, the number of cattle and sheep in [the] federally designated wild horse habitat vastly exceeds the number of wild horses," said Kuhn...

Read more here:
https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-resources-energy/2021-10-21/the-blm-is-in-process-of-rounding-up-about-half-of-the-states-wild-horses-in-sweetwater-county?utm_medium=flipdigest.ad.20211023.home&utm_source=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=campaign

Nevada: The Humboldt River Field Office and Tuscarora Field Office will begin a Wild Horse Gather Within Owyhee Complex

BLM.gov

WINNEMUCCA Nev. – On or around October 11, 2021, the Humboldt River and Tuscarora Field Offices (HRTFO) will begin a wild horse gather on the Owyhee Complex located approximately 30 miles northeast of Paradise Valley in Humboldt and Elko Counties, Nevada. The Owyhee Complex encompasses over approximately 1.055M acres of private and public lands and consists of five herd management areas (HMAs) which include the Little Humboldt, Little Owyhee, Owyhee, Rock Creek and Snowstorms HMAs. The HRTFO will conduct gather operations using the helicopter-assisted method.

The HRTFO plans to gather approximately 947 wild horses, remove approximately 615 wild horses, and treat and release up to 185 mares from the Owyhee Complex gather area. The released mares will be treated with Porcine Zona Pellucida (PZP) fertility control.

The total Appropriate Management Level (AML) for the Owyhee Complex is 621-999. On May 20, 2021, the BLM conducted an aerial flight or population inventory count where the current estimated population is 1,188 wild horses, which includes foals born this year. The most recent gather was completed in 2018.

The purpose of the gather is to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, to restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. By balancing herd size with what the land can support, the HRTFO aims to address resources issues related to drought and past fire damage and protect habitat for other wildlife species such as sage grouse, pronghorn antelope and mule deer. Removing excess animals will enable significant progress toward achieving the Standards for Rangeland Health.

“The BLM’s priority is to conduct safe, efficient, and successful wild horse and burro gather operations while ensuring humane care and treatment of all animals gathered,” said Humboldt River Field Office Manager, Kathleen Rehberg. “The BLM staff and its contractors will use the best available science and handling practices for wild horses while meeting overall gather goals and objectives in accordance with the Comprehensive Animal Welfare Policy.”

All wild horses identified for removal will be transported to the Sutherland Off-Range Wild Horse and Burro Corrals near Sutherland, Utah, where they will be checked by a veterinarian and readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro Adoption and Sale Program. For information on how to adopt or purchase a wild horse or burro, visit www.blm.gov/whb.

Members of the public are welcome to view the gather operations, provided that doing so does not jeopardize the safety of the animals, staff, contractors and observers, or disrupt gather operations. The HRTFO staff will escort the public to gather observation sites located on public lands.

The gather staff anticipates that viewing opportunities will be limited due to logistics regarding private land, terrain, and weather. Pending the location of the trap sites, viewing opportunities are subject to change. If the traps are located on privately property, public observation will be limited to Tuesdays and Thursdays. If the traps are on public lands, public observation will be offered daily. Once gather operations have begun, those wanting to view gather operations must call the gather hotline nightly no later than 5:30 p.m. at (775) 861-6700 to RSVP. It is strongly advised to RSVP due to potential last minute trap site moves.

The HRTFO is conducting the gather under Owyhee Complex Herd Management Area Gather Environmental Assessment signed in October of 2012. To view the Decision Record, go to https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/33902/510.

Gather reports and additional information for the “2021 Owyhee Complex Wild Horse Gather” will be posted on the BLM website here. For technical information, contact Morgan Weigand, Wild Horse and Burro Specialist at 775-623-1500 or email BLM_NV_WDO_WHB@blm.gov.

This year, we invite everyone to reimagine your public lands as we celebrate 75 years of the BLM’s stewardship and service to the American people. The BLM manages approximately 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The agency’s mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.

More at:
https://www.blm.gov/press-release/humboldt-river-field-office-and-tuscarora-field-office-will-begin-wild-horse-gather

Robert Redford and Bruce Springsteen Team Up For Wild Horses

Horse-Canada.com - Full Article

The movie star/producer and music icon have joined forces to create the documentary 'The Mustangs: America’s Wild Horse'.

By: Kim Izzo | September 29, 2021

The wild mustangs of America just got a boost from a pair of celebrity supporters. Movie star and film producer Robert Redford has teamed with music icon Bruce Springsteen on the feature documentary The Mustangs: America’s Wild Horses.

Mustangs have been in the news a lot this past year with several explosive investigative pieces, including the New York Times, that examined how the Bureau of Land Management’s program where adoptees who were given $1,000 to provide homes for mustangs were turning around the selling the horses to slaughterhouses.

The BLM, whose mandate is to manage the horses, also came under fire for a round-up during the extreme drought season this past summer, including the use of helicopters that is considered inhumane. There are approximately 80,000 wild mustangs roaming the American landscape, and another 50,000 in government corrals...

Read more here:
https://horse-canada.com/horse-news/robert-redford-bruce-springsteen-team-wild-horses/

Northwest Colorado wild horse roundup ends with 70% of the herd removed from Sand Wash Basin

ColoradoSun.com - Full Article

About 100 fewer horses than expected were rounded up via helicopter after national outcry and a plea from Gov. Jared Polis

Jennifer Brown
4:33 AM MDT on Sep 16, 202

Stella Trueblood stood on a platform above the corrals, her eyes quickly scanning through the dust as the wild horses were pushed through a chute toward a trailer. The mustangs that reached the semi truck would ship out of the Sand Wash Basin forever. Trueblood and other volunteers from the Sand Wash Basin Wild Horse Advocate Team — called SWAT — could save only 50 of the nearly 700 horses that were rounded up by helicopter in the high desert rangeland in far northwest Colorado.

“Third one back is a save! Pull it!” she shouted.

One at a time, as the wild horse advocates spotted a mustang on their “save list,” the animals were pulled by cowboys to a separate corral. And at the close of the roundup, the horses were released, trotting off into the landscape of sagebrush, juniper trees and red and tan cliffs...

Read more here:
https://coloradosun.com/2021/09/16/wild-horses-sand-wash-blm/

EQUUS Film Fest Mustang Discovery Ride – On the Trail!

 September 23 2021

Take two young women with a passion for the iconic American Mustang, looking for a grand  adventure, add 4 American Mustangs along with a curious wild born molly Mulestang and you have the ingredients for the “Mustang Discovery Ride”. Riders, Hannah Catalino and Lisanne Fear, will cover 12 states taking 12 months, with the assistance of their support crew. Starting in Delaware in September and ending their journey on the California coast next year.

 

Presented by the Mustang Heritage Foundation, the Mustang Discovery Ride will take us on a journey across the United States, coast to coast, on American Mustangs. Both girls are trainers who have taken part in the MHF Trainer Incentive Program (TIP). Hannah travels the world as a Mustang Ambassador and trainer doing “Wild Horse Workshops” & Liberty Training Clinics.

 

There will be a “Meet the Mustangs” event with Delaware Equine Council at their 8th Annual Member Appreciation Day ride in the Redden State Forest Headquarters , Sunday, September 26, 2021; 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM

 

Riding out from historic Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware on September 28, 2021. The pair will head West through Maryland in October. Helping celebrate Maryland “Horse Month” as proclaimed by Governor, Larry Hogan. Participating in the annual “Tuckahoe – Celebration of the Horse” horse fair October 2^nd. Working with Maryland Horse Industry Board, Ross Peddicord, and the Maryland Horse Council while in Maryland.

 

Heading West into the Washington DC area, October 12, 2021, the team will be helping to bring awareness to the American Discovery Trail and the HR4878 National Discovery Trail Act, before Congress now.

 

Meadowbrook Stables, the oldest urban riding school in the United States, will host a “Meet The Mustangs’ on October 12.

 

The team will be joined by Operation Wild Horse Veteran Program founder and director Jim Welch and Patti Gruber, following the American Discovery Trail, a cross country trail composed of many other existing trails and some unique connector routes between them. They will ride through Rock Creek Park, October 12, to the National Mall and riding back to Meadowbrook Stables.

 

Then onto Fredrick Maryland for a stop at the Hidden Hills Farm Vineyard on October 14th to host a super exciting “secret”  Mustang film premiere (opening Nationwide October 15th), with local Mustang eventer and SBF Mustang Eventing owner, Ann Hanlin. Completing their time in Maryland at a “Wild Horse Workshop: & Liberty Training Clinic hosted by, Patricia Milligan, founder of Fox Lea Mini Horse Rescue and host of the Tiny Horse Talk Podcast, in Dickerson.

 

Riding off into West Virginia at the end of October for the next month of their adventure. Their goal is to continue forward this fall  and early winter until the weather gets too extreme and the footing dangerous.

 

The team will then hold and conduct trainings and clinics when the weather puts them on hold. Completing the Western phase of the adventure in 2022. EQUUS Film Fest will be posting monthly AHP updates for locations and events in each state on the route.

 

EQUUS Film & Arts Fest is partnering with the team to bring this story to the world, as part of the EQUUS Equine Enrichment Program. Joining with Mustang Leadership Partners and Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy we will bring the journey into the classroom and beyond.

 

Creating an interactive experience for Social Media, inviting others to join the ride as they travel across the country. There will be a Docu-Series, weekly Podcast and Documentary created as the journey progresses. A team of photo journalist and videographers will be joining the trip, each giving their own creative perspective on the ride. Plans are underway to Zoom into classrooms in the US, India, and Mongolia. More locations to be added as the program expands.

 

The team will be working with EQUUS TV with coverage and updates of the ride. Field correspondent, Jacqueline Taylor, will be covering the coast-to-coast journey. Film Festival Flix founder Benjamin Oberman will assist with sponsorships and other logistics.

 

Mustang Discovery Ride presents unique Sponsorship opportunities for interested parties.

 

Please reach out to Mustang Discovery Foundation Executive Director, Lisa Diersen at lisa@equusfilmfestival.net or call 630-272-3077 for more information and to find out how you can become involved in this amazing cross-country adventure.

 

EQUUS Film Fest will provide home based support and management. J A Media Productions, Julianne Neal, will assist the team on the development of the documentary, podcast and docu-series.

 

The Mustang Discovery Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and a wild ride across America to inspire adoptions of living legends. We are working to help people discover how truly incredible these wild horses are, trekking with our favorite companions, 5,000 miles across America to inspire the adoption of 5,000 mustangs.

 

The Mustang Heritage Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to facilitating successful placements of America’s excess wild horses and burros through innovative programs, events, and education.

 

The EQUUS Film & Arts Fest highlights and rewards the diverse and creative efforts of those who pay artistic homage to the horse. Every horse has a story, it’s our mission at the EQUUS Film & Arts Fest to share those stories, through film, art and literature.

 

Save the dates! EQUUS Film & Arts Fest 2021 will take place both “Virtually” and “Live” November 12 – 21, 2021. With a Special “Thanksgiving” Weekend event. More info coming soon.

 

Visit our website at www.equusfilmfestival.net and like us on FaceBook and Twitter.

 

CONTACT: Lisa Diersen 630-272-3077

lisa@equusfilmfestival.net

 

US Senator Calls for Investigation into Wild Horses

Horse-Canada.com - Full Article

Dianne Feinstein wants to determine how many adopters of wild horses have violated regulations and sold them for slaughter.

By: Animal Wellness Action | August 18, 2021

Sen. Dianne Feinstein is calling on federal land managers to conduct an investigation to determine how many of the wild horses captured on public lands in the U.S. West end up at slaughterhouses.

The California Democrat also wants the federal Bureau of Land Management to reevaluate the $1,000 cash payments it offers those who adopt the mustangs.

Horse advocates say the money provides an unintended incentive to obtain the mustangs then illegally sell them for slaughter...

Read more here:
https://horse-canada.com/horse-news/senator-calls-investigation-into-wild-horses/

Mustang roundups fuel deepening debate as drought grips West

APNews.com - Full Article

August 18 2021
By LINDSAY WHITEHURST and JAMES ANDERSON

TOOELE, Utah (AP) — The sound of the helicopter propeller thundered across the horizon as it dipped down toward mustangs dotting the golden brown plain. The horses burst into a gallop at the machine’s approach, their high-pitched whinnies rising into the dry air.

That helicopter roundup in the mountains of western Utah removed hundreds of free-roaming wild horses, shortly before the Biden administration announced it would sharply increase the number of mustangs removed across the region. It’s an emergency step land managers say is essential to preserving the ecosystem and the horses as a megadrought worsened by climate change grips the region.

“What were seeing here in the West gives some insight into a new norm,” Terry Messmer, a professor at Utah State University who studies wild horse management.

The removals are adding fuel to longstanding conflicts with activists for the animals whose beauty and power make them an enduring emblem of the American West. They say the U.S. government is using the drought as an excuse to take out horses in favor of cattle grazing...

Read more here:
https://apnews.com/article/business-environment-and-nature-c04b8841a82dfc1adb86562c7e1092b3

Colorado: BLM to conduct emergency roundup of wild horse herd

GJSentinel.com - Full Article

By SENTINEL STAFF
Jul 25, 2021

The West Douglas Herd Area, which is about 20 miles south of Rangely in Rio Blanco County, has around 450 wild horses.

To protect the health of wild horses and rangelands, the Bureau of Land Management will start an emergency wild horse gather Monday on the West Douglas Herd Area about 20 miles south of Rangely in Rio Blanco County.

The BLM plans to remove the entire estimated population of 450 wild horses from the herd area, on state and private land.

The extreme drought conditions have limited forage production and water resources for wild horses, and the nearby Oil Springs Fire has also created problems for the herd since it’s burned critical summer habitat and limited access to water sources.

Read more at:
https://www.gjsentinel.com/news/western_colorado/blm-to-conduct-emergency-roundup-of-wild-horse-herd/article_a9203802-ec0e-11eb-acec-3f1705c94593.html

86,000 wild mustangs that roam the West are at the center of raging controversy

NationalGeographic.com - Full Article

Activists condemned the government’s recent capture of nearly 350 mustangs, but for those tasked with managing a booming wild horse population in a drought-stricken West, it’s complicated.

By Natasha Daly
Published July 29, 2021

Just off the historic Pony Express Road in western Utah lies a picture-perfect vista of the American West: miles of sagebrush grasslands set against the foothills of the Onaqui Mountains. And, until early July, nearly 500 mustangs grazed and galloped through it. It’s one of the most well-known populations of free-roaming horses in the United States—a draw for tourists, photographers, and horse lovers.

On July 13, the helicopters showed up. Operated by private contractors commissioned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the low-flying helicopters drove hundreds of startled horses off the public lands and into holding pens. On a hillside nearby, activists opposed to the roundup protested and documented the event.

From July 13 to July 18, BLM rounded up 435 stallions, mares, and foals from the Onaqui Mountain Herd Management Area, one of 19 it manages in Utah. One young mare suffered a broken ankle in the frenzy and had to be euthanized. The agency gave fertility control injections to just over a hundred mares and stallions before releasing them back to the wild. The rest—about 350 horses—were sent to holding facilities, to enter permanent captivity...

Read more here:
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/86000-wild-mustangs-that-roam-the-west-are-at-the-center-of-raging-controversy

Wild horse and burro populations decrease in past year

Wildlife.org - Full Article

Posted on July 14, 2021
by Laura Bies

The number of wild horses and burros on public lands has decreased for the first time in almost a decade, according to a new report from the Bureau of Land Management.

The reduction appears to indicate that the recent uptick in the removal of animals from public lands is having the desired effect.

The report estimates that 86,189 wild horses and burros currently range across 27 million acres of BLM-managed public lands in the western United States. Those numbers are down 9% from last year’s count. However, the current population of the ecologically feral animals is still far above the agency’s established appropriate management level of 26,785 animals — the maximum numbers that those public lands can sustain without damage to vegetation, soils and other resources...

Read more here:
https://wildlife.org/wild-horse-and-burro-populations-decrease-in-past-year/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=getresponse&utm_content=This+Week%27s+eWildlifer+%26+TWS+Talks&utm_campaign=

Can Wild Horses Help Prevent Wildfires in the West?

Horse-Canada.com - Full Article

California naturalist and mustang advocate William Simpson sees a solution in the Wild Horse Fire Brigade.

By: Kim Izzo | July 14, 2021

Many Canadians were shaken by recent wildfires in BC following a historic heat wave. The entire town of Lytton was turned to ash and lives and livelihoods tragically lost. The effect of climate change on our forests cannot be overstated. Year after year we watch south of the border as the catastrophic wildfires destroy millions of acres in California with substantial loss of life and property, as well as economic impacts on business and real estate values. Then there’s the human cost as smoke damages lungs, causing short- and long-term health issues for residents.

An out-of-the-box solution is gaining traction and it involves horses. Called the Wild Horse Fire Brigade Plan, it calls for wild horses (a.k.a. mustangs), to be reintroduced to American forest land to graze away the grass and brush that fuels much of the forest fires. Another benefit to the plan is the reduction of conflict between advocates of wild horses and ranchers, whose cattle compete with the horses for grassland...

Read more here:
https://horse-canada.com/magazine/equine-welfare/can-wild-horses-help-prevent-wildfires-west/

Can Horse Owners Absorb the Surplus of Wild Horses?

TheHorse.com - Full Article

Study: If 4-5% of horse-owning households adopted one animal, the current surplus of wild horses and burros could be eliminated.

Posted by Alexandra Beckstett, The Horse Managing Editor | Jun 24, 2021

As of March 1, 2020, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) estimated that approximately 95,000 wild horses and burros reside on federal lands in the Western United States, with nearly 50,000 more housed in holding facilities. This figure is more than triple the appropriate management level. The BLM says more private adoptions are key to combatting overpopulation, but is this tactic truly feasible? Are enough people willing and interested in taking these horses in to absorb the excess?

Jill Stowe, PhD, associate professor in agricultural economics at the University of Kentucky, in Lexington, and her student and co-author Hannah White surveyed horse owners via social media to find out. She presented their findings at the 2021 Equine Science Society’s virtual symposium...

Read more here:
https://thehorse.com/1101138/can-horse-owners-absorb-the-surplus-of-wild-horses/

Wild Beauty: Mustang Spirit of the West, New Documentary

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

Wild Beauty Foundation and Animal Wellness Action have teamed up to produce a feature film focusing on the issues facing America’s mustangs.

By: Kim Izzo | June 9, 2021

Last November, Horse-Canada wrote about the reboot of the classic story Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. In the latest Disney version, the setting was changed to the American west and Beauty was a Mustang mare.

Ashley Avis, the writer/director of Black Beauty, is also the president of the Wild Beauty Foundation, an organization dedicated to the protection of wild mustangs and burros. This week, Avis, alongside Marty Irby, the executive director at Animal Wellness Action who has been recognized by Queen Elizabeth II for his work to protect horses, announced a joint venture to produce Wild Beauty: Mustang Spirit of the West, a feature documentary that focuses on the issues facing America’s iconic wild mustangs that have long faced eradication by the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

The film is currently in production and promises to be a sweeping cinematic epic, while also not holding back on the controversial decisions made by the BLM such as paying $1,000 to people to adopt a mustang only to have them sold on to the slaughterhouse, as well the ongoing fight with ranchers over land use and grazing rights...

Read more and see promo video here:
https://horse-canada.com/horse-news/wild-beauty-mustang-spirit-west-documentary/

Calls to Terminate $1,000 Federal Adoption Program for Wild Horses

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

New York Times exposes the link between the BLM Adoption Incentive Program and the slaughter of federally-protected wild horses and burros.

By: Horse Canada staff | May 18, 2021

The American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) and its coalition partners have sent a letter to U.S. Interior Secretary Debra Haaland calling for the immediate termination of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Adoption Incentive Program (AIP) following a New York Times report which exposed the Trump administration initiative that has led to truckloads of horses being sold for slaughter.

The program pays individuals $1,000 apiece to adopt a wild horse or burro; according to the report, adopters are pocketing the $1,000 payment, then selling the horses to slaughter auctions. Although the adopters sign a contract agreeing not to sell horses or burros for slaughter, the agency is not attempting to enforce those contracts. Groups of related individuals are adopting four horses or burros each (the BLM’s per-adopter limit), then dumping them at kill pens, collecting $30,000 or more in incentive payments and sale fees. The investigation also found disturbing abuse and severe neglect of wild horses and burros by AIP adopters who were unwilling or unqualified to provide proper care...

Read more here:
https://horse-canada.com/horse-news/calls-to-terminate-1000-federal-adoption-program-for-wild-horses/

Oregon: Forest Service to reduce wild horse population in Ochocos

OPB.org - Full Article

By Bradley W. Parks (OPB)
Bend, Ore. May 7, 2021 2:25 p.m.

The agency plans to shrink the Big Summit wild horse herd by capturing horses and putting them up for adoption. Horse advocates worry this puts the herd at risk of collapse.

The U.S. Forest Service will reduce the wild horse population on a 27,000-acre range east of Prineville to a level horse advocates say could lead to the herd’s elimination.

The most recent count of wild horses on the Big Summit Wild Horse Territory of the Ochoco National Forest puts the population around 130, but the Forest Service estimates it closer to 150. (Counts for the past two years have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)

The management plan approved Friday will cut the herd down to 47-57 horses total over the next five years.

“We want to make sure that we manage this herd for its genetic viability,” said Kassidy Kern, public affairs officer for the Ochoco National Forest and Crooked River National Grassland. “We want to make sure it’s a healthy herd...”

Read more here:
https://www.opb.org/article/2021/05/07/wild-horse-herd-ochoco-big-summit/?fbclid=IwAR1uSy4L6Db5gSlTALO4iQikEp_xKGxJQCn_sVMxHZXiRqIyGsteJQIMvN4

Proposed Roundups Target 3,500 Wild Horses in Wyoming

USNews.com - Full Article

The U.S. Bureau of Management is accepting public comments through the end of April on plans to remove some 3,500 wild horses from public land in southwestern Wyoming.

By Associated Press, Wire Service Content April 1, 2021, at 2:43 p.m.

ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. (AP) — The U.S. Bureau of Management is accepting public comments through the end of April on plans to remove some 3,500 wild horses from public land in southwestern Wyoming.

The federal agency seeks to allow between 1,500 and 2,165 wild horses on five herd management areas in the Red Desert outside Rock Springs.

An estimated 5,105 wild horses currently live in those areas, according to the BLM...

Read more here:
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/wyoming/articles/2021-04-01/proposed-roundups-target-3-500-wild-horses-in-wyoming?utm_medium=40digest.7days3.20210402.home&utm_source=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=campaign

A few pretty horses: BLM, critics butt heads over Idaho mustang management

IdahoStatesman.com - Full Article

By Colin Tiernan (Twin Falls) Times-News
January 27, 2021 06:00 AM

This is some of the most desolate country in America.

It’s a land of brown-yellow grass, buttes and little else. This is a place where the few roads are gravel at best and often rugged two-tracks. There aren’t even any significant natural water sources out here.

But this unforgiving Idaho desert is home to one of the state’s six wild horse herds.

Last summer, the Bureau of Land Management gathered up most of the small Saylor Creek herd, and removed the horses from the range to trim down the population. On a cold, gray day in November, the BLM took 11 of the Saylor Creek mustangs out of Boise corrals and drove them back home.

The animals stood quiet and calm in their trailers right before their release onto the range. When the gates opened, they leaped out and huddled up. Then, almost in unison, they started running. They cut across the rolling desert in a short line of browns, grays and tans, shrinking into the distance.

Mustangs might inspire more passion and controversy than any other American animal. Many rural westerners, especially those connected to the livestock industry, want to see their numbers dramatically reduced and say they’re causing both ecological and economic harm. Wild horse advocates criticize the BLM’s management policies and argue any negative impacts caused by mustangs pale in comparison to those caused by cattle.

Read more and listen here:
https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/environment/article248735050.html?utm_medium=40digest.7days3.20210128.home&utm_source=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=campaign#storylink=cpy

Wild Horses, Part of Romantic West, Are Causing Havoc in Northeast California

KQED.org - Full Article

by KQED Science
Jan 19 2021

In the northeast corner of California, feral horses roam in an area of the Modoc National Forest known as Devil's Garden. The high desert plateau in the northeastern corner of the state is filled with juniper trees, sage brush, and not quite enough grass for all the grazing animals that live there. A fight over how to manage the horses shifted recently when Congress funded a plan to reduce herds on federal lands. KQED's Brian Watt recently spoke with Sacramento Bee reporter Ryan Sabalow, who covered the Devil's Garden horses in his series, "Nothing Wild."

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

How did these horses come to be living in the wild?

Ryan Sabalow: Some of these horses in the West can trace their ancestry back to the Spanish settlers in the 16th and 17th centuries. The difference with the Devil's Garden herd is these horses are much more newcomers. They've been around since about the Modoc War, which was in the 1800s.

The Devil's Garden herd is unique in that it's managed by the U.S. Forest Service instead of the Bureau of Land Management. The BLM manages about 100,000 wild horses on millions of acres.

The issue is that wild horses are not a native species. The federal government is trying to figure out a way to reduce their numbers to try to benefit all these other animals that are out there, while still allowing cattle ranchers to make a living...

Read more here:
https://www.kqed.org/science/1972204/wild-horses-part-of-romantic-west-are-causing-havoc-in-northeast-california?utm_medium=40digest.7days3.20210120.home&utm_source=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=campaign