Wild Horses: Court Grants Intervenor Status in WY Lawsuit, Help WY Wild Horses
November 14, 2011White House Response to Wild Horse and Burro Petition
November 18, 2011
Helicopter drives a large group of wild horses toward the trap
“Ugly” is a good description for the Rock Springs Grazing Association’s plans for Wyoming’s wild horses. They brought a lawsuit against the BLM (on the BLM’s recommendation!) to have them remove all the wild horse from 4 of the largest herd areas in the country: Adobe Town, Salt Wells Creek, White Mountain and Great Divide Basin. They demand the removal of the wild horses not only from private lands but also from adjoining public lands, and these areas all together are over 3 million acres. The issue is the “checkerboard” a twenty mile strip that followed the railroad and was used to finance it by selling private lots in amongst public land. In the 80s there was an agreement made about numbers of wild horses allowed in these areas, but the Grazing Association claims the BLM has let wild horse numbers run out of control, so they want all of them gone. This is a matter of greed and special interest groups driving the use of public lands, which if unchecked, will result in the probable extinction of our wild horses.
Two stallions fight as they are pushed together
Great Divide Basin is the Herd Area under fire right now. The first 3 days the BLM was removing all of the horses that were rounded up because these horses were “outside the HMA” or nearly outside it. At this new trap site, some of the horses will be returned – all the mares returned will be treated with birth control, PZP-22 and the sex ratio of the herd will be skewed – 60% stallions to 40% mares. So although this herd will not be sterilized at this time, the fabric of the families will be fractured, and never be the same.
Two stallions run
Two stallions look at the trap
They run away
I was on a hill in the blowing wind. I saw the helicopter bringing in a large group horses, more than 30 all together. AS they are coming in the distance, I see two bachelor stallions run up to the wrong side of the trap. They are very surprised by this alien structure in their environment – they stop then run up a hill and out of sight.
The large group runs
The helicopter drives them toward the trap
The wild horses break though the wings of the trap, and run up the hill toward me
The horses run free for the moment
The helicopter tries to turn the horses
Then the large group comes closer, and as they approach the trap, the stallion in the lead heads right for the wings of the trap, and one of the wranglers leaps to the side as the whole group charges through the break in the fence. They run up the hill toward me, which is thrilling to see, but the helicopter dives down to turn the horses and head them back toward the trap. Finally they are driven in in a cloud of dust and steam coming off the horses who have been running hard.
The helicopter with the horses
The helicopter behind the horses
Dust and steam rise up around the horses
Horses steam from sweating and running hard in the cold
As the helicopter hunts for its next group to drive in, a small family band runs up the hill behind us – I hope they stay free!
The stallion comes up the hill
The colt comes next
The mare brings up the rear
The wind is blowing harder and as I huddle in my coat, I hear that this is the last group the helicopter will bring in today.
The last group of wild horses run toward the trap
The horses run
The helicopter drives them in
Trapped in the pens
I follow the BLM down to the temporary holding facility where the horses are sorted and held until their fate is decided – some few will be released, the rest shipped to Canon City or Rock Springs short term holding facilities. I wait for an hour as the wind howls so that I can see the horses before I leave. There were no injuries today. I see a palomino stallion peeking out and then I walk further and see the weanlings, now separated from their mothers. One of the colts has markings just like my adopted Adobe Town youngster, Mica.
The weanling pen
This little palomino weanling looks just like my colt Mica when he was rounded up
Here are the staggering statistics for this roundup which ended last week – 1132 horses were rounded up and only 137 of them were returned to their home, on over 700,000 acres.
This roundup started before the Red Desert Roundup was completed because of pressure from the lawsuit brought by the grazing association – the BLM decided they better round up and remove most of these horses before the winter weather deteriorated and prevented that from happening. Who is in charge here?
If the Rock Springs Grazing Association wins this lawsuit, all of these horses will be removed, and all of the horses from Adobe Town, Salt Wells and White Mountain as well. The intervention into the lawsuit of RSGA v. the BLM by the American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign, The Cloud Foundation and the International Society for the Protection of Wild Horses and Burros is the only hope for the wild horses of Wyoming.
Here is an announcement by The Cloud Foundation, which includes where you can donate to help pay for legal fees for the intervention:
Please pass this along and donate if you can.
7 Comments
i understand the fact that grazing is limited. I understand the worry of disease. But the fact that people are trying to take over nature by giving birth control, herd depletion, selection, is not appropriate.
Who is deciding which ones can return, which ones are not. By injecting with birth control and other substances they are changing the natural occurances and behaviors of these animals. what will we do years down the road when we no longer have the wild mustang?
by herding these animals with helecopters is wrong. You are stressign the animals, leaving them subject to injury, and have huge advantage. find another way to perserve our lands.
I wish there was more I could do. I would love to help finance fighting this crap, this nonsense, these atrocities against these magnificent animals!!!!! I’m afraid I’ve been unemployed for a year now and things aren’t any better for me than they are for these poor horses. I “click” every time I get one of these in support of stopping these ridiculous raids on the horses homelands. I also send on the letters to the legislators, etc.
Unfortunately, non of the atrocities toward animals or humans by the greedy and cruel are going to stop. Not until there’s nothing left. Human virus–greed!
Have you, or any of y9our fellow bloggers, read through this entire segment? If you would have read the entire work then you would have noticed that these wild horses also reside on privately owned rangelands owned by members of the RSGA. Just think how you would react if the Federal Government TOLD you that they were going to make it harder for you to make a living by TAKING some of your resources for a wild animal. While the methods employed in the gathering of the horses may not be the best, these are not “greedy and cruel” people who want the resources all for themselves, they are fighting for thier right to make a living off of the land that they own, and off of the land that the pay the BLM to graze on.
Dear Lance,
No one is suggesting that Rock Springs Grazing Association ranchers be deprived of a living. The RSGS entered into a contract with the BLM and wild horse groups in the 80s to set the guidelines to allow wild horses to be in the checkerboard areas of public and private lands. Last year RSGS sued the BLM in order to accomplish the complete removal of wild horses from all private and public lands, which would result in the complete destruction of 4 of the largest wild horse herds in the country. Public land is by definition “mixed use” meaning that no single interest group, no matter how powerful, should have complete control of our public lands.
Dear Lance,
No one is suggesting that Rock Springs Grazing Association ranchers be deprived of a living. The RSGS entered into a contract with the BLM and wild horse groups in the 80s to set the guidelines to allow wild horses to be in the checkerboard areas of public and private lands. Last year RSGS sued the BLM in order to accomplish the complete removal of wild horses from all private and public lands, which would result in the complete destruction of 4 of the largest wild horse herds in the country. Public land is by definition “mixed use” meaning that no single interest group, no matter how powerful, should have complete control of our public lands.
Wow, those picture really hit the nail on the head. Its not like the horses know what the helicopter is, so they just run, that is so sad. Your pictures are beautiful, so inspiring.
Neighgirl
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