American Herds Special Features

CHAMBERS OF CARNAGE

2010-04-15T04:14:00.000-07:00

HORSE SLAUGHTER'S NEWEST UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATION

The Canadian Horse Defence Coalition (CHDC) has revealed a sweeping undercover investigation of Canada's leading equine slaughterhouses.

In late February 2010, the CHDC received hidden camera footage of brutal horse slaughter practices at Viande Richelieu in Quebec and Bourvry Exports in Alberta - the later known as the largest exporter of horsemeat in North America.

CHDC posted six videos on YouTube titled, "The Chambers of Carnage, which showed the very real, extremely graphic, and very disturbing footage of what horses are being forced to endure as they are slaughtered and bled for foreign consumers.

On April 9, 2010, YouTube pulled the videos citing the content was "inappropriate".

In response, Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) posed the question, "If it is inappropriate to view what is happening to our horses, why is Congress allowing the practice to continue?"

While YouTube and other media cave into industry pressures and continue to try and hide America's "dirty little secret", if you have ever loved a horse or an animal at all, you owe them the time to witness what is being done to American horses across our nation's borders.

"So horrific are the conditions depicted at both plants that they have prompted Bill desBarres, Chairman of the Horse Welfare Alliance of Canada (HWAC) and a long time proponent of horse slaughter, to declare he believes the footage was fabricated by groups opposed to “any animal agriculture”, states a recent EWA press release titled, "Leading Horse Slaughter Proponent Calls Undercover Video a Fabrication".

While industy leaders scramble to try and cover up the truth yet again, there is no question this footage is the real deal!

TO VIEW ALL SIX VIDEOS, CLICK HERE!

More on the truth of horseslaughter...

"Sally had an e-mail from a person in Canada who wants 10,000 [wild] horses that he would slaughter the horses and send them to a third world country. Don is going to send the email. Jim said he has a demand for horses going to Denmark, but they are having a problem getting titled [wild] horses." -Excerpts from Animal Law Coalition's “BLM’s Final Solution For Wild Horses and Burros” by Laura Allen, 12/21/09.

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Contaminated Horse Meat a Health Risk, According to Study

CHICAGO, (EWA) 4/02/10 – A peer reviewed scientific study tracing race horses sent to slaughter for human consumption has found that 100% of the horses in the study group had been administered phenylbutazone, a banned carcinogen that can also fatally damage the bone marrow of humans. The findings appear to validate the European Union’s recent tightening of traceability requirements on horse meat from third countries.

The paper, titled Association of phenylbutazone usage with horses bought for slaughter: A public health risk, appeared in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology and calls into question the reliability of the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) and CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) testing programs which have consistently failed to detect the substance.

The manuscript(1), which was authored by Drs. Nicholas Dodman(2), Nicolas Blondeau(3) and Ann M. Marini(4) , followed eighteen Thoroughbred (TB) race horses that were identified by matching their registered name to their race track drug record over a five year period and were given phenylbutazone (PBZ, Bute) on race day and were subsequently sent to slaughter for human consumption.

The study also traced records on sixteen TB race horses that were given PBZ on race day and would have also entered the food chain had they not been rescued. The study was limited to race horses because of the availability of drug records, but phenylbutazone is one of the most common drugs used in the treatment of musculoskeletal injuries in horses.

Because of the bone marrow toxicity caused by PBZ in humans, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set no safe levels of PBZ and bans its use food producing animals, including horses. While PBZ is but one of the numerous banned substances that are routinely given to US horses, it is one of the most dangerous.

Defenders of horse slaughter have long pointed to USDA testing records, which consistently showed no positive results for PBZ. The new study shows that the USDA testing could not have been accurate. Indeed, the study uncovered a pilot test performed by the USDA in 2004 and 2005 that used a different testing technique and found 8.3% of the meat to be contaminated with PBZ. The pilot program had been subsequently discontinued.

The study estimates that sixty seven million pounds of horse meat derived from US horses were sent overseas for human consumption in 2008. If 8.3% of this meat contained phenylbutazone residues, it would translate to over 5 million pounds of contaminated meat.

Opponents of horse slaughter have long warned that US horses are not raised as food animals and mechanisms to ensure the removal of horses treated with banned substances from the food chain are inadequate at best.

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Equine Welfare Alliance recently issued a discussion paper with their partners, Canadian Horse Defence Coalition on the serious drug issue concerning North American horses. The comprehensive paper covers concerns over the ability to meet compliance with European Commission regulations on food safety.

(1) Article is cited as, Dodman, N., Blondeau, N., Marini, A.M., Association of phenylbutazone usage with horses bought for slaughter: A public health risk, Food and Chemical Toxicology (2010), doi: 10.1016/j.fct. 2010.02.021
(2) Tufts University, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, North Grafton, MA
(3) Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire - I.P.M.C, UMR 6097,
C.N.R.S/Université de Nice Sophia Antipolis, 660 route des Lucioles, Sophia Antipolis
06560 Valbonne, FRANCE
(4) Department of Neurology and Program in Neuroscience, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD.

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CLICK HERE TO VIEW VIDEO
WARNING! EXTREMELY GRAPHIC!

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WHO'S ON FIRST?
by Vicki Tobin
Published 4/04/10 on RT Fitch's
Straight from the Horse's Heart

The slaughter proponent’s arguments bring to mind the old Abbott and Costello routine because you never really know what they are saying. They talk back and forth to each other with neither, understanding the other or making sense.

Each new year brings new arguments and scare tactics from our opponents. When each talking point is disproved, they move on to the next. Every once in a while, they throw a curve ball and resurrect an old argument thinking it just might stick this time around.

We, on the other hand, have been consistent in our message. Humanely euthanize your horse. End your horse’s life by humane euthanasia as we do with all non-food animals in the United States. It is the preferred method by all major veterinarian associations. Any competent veterinarian will tell you that. Veterinarians don’t carry captive bolts in their medical bags or advise their clients to send their horses to slaughter. Veterinarians for Equine Welfare has an excellent updated white paper on this subject.

Dr. Lester Friedlander, DVM & former Chief USDA Inspector stated, "The captive bolt is not a proper instrument for the slaughter of equids, these animals regain consciousness 30 seconds after being struck, they are fully aware they are being vivisected."

When the slaughter debate started heating up in the late 2000s, the argument of choice was; what are we going to do with old, lame, sick horses? Jeez, any responsible horse owner knows the answer to that. Pick up the phone and call the vet.

Next was the argument that horses are livestock. While many categorize horses as livestock, that’s not the issue. The issue is that of a food animal vs. a non-food animal. US horses are not raised as food animals but for other purposes. Mounted police are not riding food animals. Therapy horses are not food animals. Race horses are not food animals. The country does not use food animals in military and presidential funerals. Have you ever seen a riderless cow? Dressage, cutting and reining horses are not food animals. Livestock (food animals) do not perform any of the functions that horses perform in our society.

US horses must have maintenance medications that are prohibited in food animals to keep them at peak performance and healthy. There is no tracking of horses as there is with livestock. Unlike horses, you can trace livestock back to the original farm. It is obvious by the opposition to NAIS last year that owners don’t want horses tracked. This brings me to the “abandoned” horses. If you can’t find the owners to charge them for the crime they have committed, how are you going to certify the horses are free of prohibited substances? A horse that has received a prohibited substance can never enter the food chain. There is no withdrawal period. Those are the EU rules and the FDA rules.

We have been warning of the drug issue for years. We were made the brunt of many a joke and constantly laughed at. We were so ridiculously funny, the EU took notice. It is important to note that all current anti-horse propaganda never addresses the drug issue.

There have been many scare tactics such as the AQHA release in 2008 warning owners that if the federal legislation passes they won’t be able to transport their horse across the street. Senator Landrieu promptly responded with a release stating the intent of the law and we never again saw that argument.

One of the most often used arguments is property rights. Nobody can tell slaughter proponents what they can or cannot do with their property. This is one of the more laughable arguments since there are many laws on the books telling property owners exactly how to dispose of property such as appliances, batteries, toxic substances, cars, etc. There are even laws in certain areas on horse disposal. Owning property does not give the owner the right to abuse the property, especially when the “property” is a living, sentient being.

Now we are hearing how inhumane slaughter is in Mexico and Canada. Slaughter proponents conveniently forget that they never uttered a peep when thousands of horses were sent over the borders when the US plants were open. Why was it okay then but not now? They never mention the inhumane slaughter that took place in the US and dismiss government FOIAs. The truth is that no matter where horses are slaughtered it will never be humane.

They complain of the long distances in travel now but didn’t have any concerns when horses were being trucked across the US to slaughter plants and also to plants in Mexico, Canada and Japan. All documented humane violations in shipping have taken place within US borders and yet, they oppose the slightest change to improve conditions such as a ban on double deckers. It is quite obvious; they have no concern for horse welfare, only lining their pockets. There were years and years of investigations and FOIAs of the domestic plants and never was an attempt made to correct anything.

The latest comments we are seeing is that they will start raising horses for slaughter. I’m not sure what type of business model will survive paying thousands on feed for pasture ornaments to bring in revenue of $300-$600 per horse from a kill buyer.

This is yet another shining example of their refusal to address the issue of excess horses. Instead of addressing the mess they have created, they’re going to start a new population of horses.

Slaughter at all costs! One only needs to follow the rules of engagement to be a diehard anti-horse person.

Rule #1: Never admit responsibility for producing the excess horses going to slaughter.

Rule #2: Call horses “unwanted” so you can blame the horse. Call slaughter harvesting or processing so that it is more palatable.

Rule #3: Never take responsibility for horses you choose to buy or breed and transfer all blame to the “radical vegan tree huggers” that oppose slaughter.

Rule #4: Blame the rescues.

Rule #5: Blame the legislators.

Rule #6: Exploit Native Americans for the few that have chosen to go against their teachings and spiritual beliefs that revere and respect the horse.

Rule #7: Blame anyone that dares to speak up publicly for the horses, make sure you publish a list of these terrible people and call for a boycott. Even include celebrities that have raised millions of dollars for farmers. All people that want horses treated humanely must be exposed. Wait a minute. Doesn’t that sound like the organization that they so vehemently oppose? They blast them but when they do the same, it’s okay.

Rule #8: Be sure to present all propaganda to legislators with nothing to back the statements but emphasize it as fact.

Rule #9: Create bogus polls and surveys that slant questions and circulate only to those sharing your view. Then, present the results to Congress as the view of horse owners across the country.

Rule #10: State that all rescues are full and become combative when asked for the data to back the claims.

Rule #11: Ignore that slaughter is still very much available and blame all horse woes on the closure of the plants. To fully utilize this rule, under no circumstance, mention or blame the economy. The impact of the economy does not play a role in the horse industry. That is the only industry in America that would not have been impacted by the economy if the slaughter plants had remained opened.

Rule #12: Ignore the horrific investigations and FOIAs and always state that slaughter is a good thing. After all, it allows irresponsible breeders to breed and dump so they can breed more. It allows owners that are abusing and neglecting their horses to hide their crimes by having the horse slaughtered. Then, chuckle and whisper under your breath, America’s Dirty Little Secret.

Rule #13: Never discuss present society and culture. Always refer to 70 or more years ago when some people were forced to eat horse meat but make it sound like present day and thus, you may be able to create a false market in the US.

Rule #14: Always state, with emotion, that slaughter opponents are trying to change other country’s cultures. With even more emotion, state that the horse meat is feeding the hungry in foreign countries even though the hungry cannot afford the gourmet priced horse meat.

Rule#15: Never mention the largest case of neglect in the US occurred in 2005 when all three plants were operating.

Rule #16: Ignore all studies and data on abuse and neglect.

Rule #17: Be sure to always interject the slippery slope. It is your greatest weapon to scare farmers and ranchers into believing that ending the slaughter of a non-food animal will bring down livestock slaughter.

Rule #18: Never mention that slaughter is a predatory, demand driven business and especially don’t mention that US plants imported horses to fill the demand when demand increased. In years when the demand was down and fewer horses were slaughtered, just state that there were fewer “unwanted” horses in those years. Don’t ever admit that slaughter houses only slaughter the number of horses needed to fill the demand. Let everyone think they are performing a service to rid the US of “unwanted” horses.

Rule #19: Lobby against any legislation for animal welfare, even if it’s something you feel you should support. At all costs, even good legislation from any animal “rights” organization for the humane treatment of any animal must be prevented. and the two most important rules…

Rule #20: Never directly answer a question, especially when facts are requested. Doubletalk and then change the subject. It is imperative this rule be invoked when asked to discuss the drug issue and how unsafe US horses are for human consumption.

Rule #21: Learn the art of spinning. Always accuse the pro-horse advocates of being emotional, attack their credibility and spin the facts. This is especially important when undisputable facts are provided. When footage or photos are provided, be sure to state with authority they are fake or have been altered. Always state that because they are against slaughter that they are responsible for the horses suffering.

Slaughter proponents don’t stop at domestic horses. They must target all horses, including our wild horses. Perhaps they haven’t read the EU regulations that state that the only wild equidae meat that will be accepted is zebra meat – or did they?

Rule #1: Ignore mitochondrial DNA studies and start calling all wild horses and burros feral so they can be shipped to slaughter.

Rule #2: Be sure to send and publish propaganda on how the wild horses and burros are overpopulated and ruining the ranges.

Rule #3: Never, never mention the millions of privately owned livestock that have turned our public lands into a giant feedlot.

Rule #4: Never mention the hundreds of millions of dollars the taxpayers shell out for the private livestock grazing on public lands.

Rule #5: Dismiss and never mention the GAO studies that prove the livestock, not the horses, are ruining the ranges.

Rule #6: Never mention the pictures of the horses that died of thirst laying alongside the fences that cattle ranchers erected to block the wild horses from using the water sources.

Rule #7: Ignore all footage and photos of the healthy, thriving horses being removed from public lands. At all times, state the horses are starving and removing them is for their own good.

Rule #8: Provide your own wild horse and burro population counts. Make up a staggering number and state with authority and conviction the data source is Google Earth and begin circulating and publishing the number as fact in all communications.

The best argument, by far, is that because of the “ban” on horse slaughter, horses are being starved, neglected and abandoned. This is quite amusing since there is nothing stopping anyone from sending their horse to slaughter. 2008 saw the second highest slaughter count since 1995. Shouldn’t they wait until slaughter isn’t available to make such a statement? In one swooping statement, they disprove their own argument and prove our point that slaughter does not prevent suffering.

Why are owners allowing their horses to suffer instead of sending them to the killers? Did it ever occur to the slaughter proponents that owners are holding on to their horses because they fear the horse may end up on a slaughter truck if they sell or donate the horse?

The bottom line is that slaughter proponents don’t have a platform. They have no facts or data to back their statements and as a consequence, they continually have to invent new arguments and scare tactics.

It is time to call the ball game. Call your legislators to stop this insanity and ask that they pass the legislation to protect our horses. Pick up the phone and do it now.

RULES ADDED BY ADVOCATES AFTER PUBLICATION-

Domestic Horses:

Rule #22: Lie with conviction and tell the public that plants will provide jobs and will be good for the state economy. Ignore the $42M loss by Natural Valley Meats in Canada. Never mention that between the three plants, 85% of the workers were not legal citizens. Under no circumstance ever mention the amount of jobs and income provided by a live horse such as veterinarians, farriers, blacksmiths, supply and feed stores, trainers and pharmaceutical companies. And let’s not forget the loss of business to rendering providers. (topic suggested by savethewildhorses)

Rule #23: Never mention the environmental disasters such as the foaming tank at Cavel, improper disposal of waste and contaminated groundwater caused by horse slaughter plants. Completely ignore the $180k in fines still owed to the city of Kaufman TX for violations. (topic suggested by Lisa L)

Rule#24: State with conviction that you have support to defeat the federal legislation when in reality, “donations or promises” were made to legislators to stall, block and stop the bill from going to the floor for a vote. (topic suggested by Lin)

Rule #25: Keep referring to and posting false stories of abandoned horses even after they have been proven false by the local authorities.

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The BLM Slaughter Conspiracy
By John Holland and Valerie James-Patton
December 20, 2009

“Pure propaganda” was Bureau of Land Management (BLM) spokesperson Tom Gorey’s reaction in a recent AP interview when asked about the growing accusations that his agency is in the process of virtually exterminating the very herds of wild horses and burros that it is supposed to protect.

However, Gorey’s denial of the BLM’s intentions rings false in the light of recently uncovered documents from the BLM itself and of its own published plans and estimates. It is not possible to interpret these in any way other than a plan to virtually eradicate the wild herds.

Two internal-use BLM reports were obtained earlier this year through the Freedom of Information Act; Alternative Management Options Plans from October 2008 and the Team Conference Calls Report from July - September 2008. In these documents, BLM members presented, analyzed and discussed several management plans aimed at reducing the population of the wild horses on the range as well as those in holding facilities.

Proposals for reducing the populations included adjusting herd sex ratios with some of the horses returned being gelded, and an increased use of the contraceptive PZP, the use of other unauthorized fertility drugs called Gonacon and SpayVac and even surgical sterilization of mares (a process that has resulted in 10% mortality).

Also found in the Team Conference Calls report were these notes submitted by Don Glenn:

"Sally had an e-mail from a person in Canada who wants 10,000 horses that he would slaughter the horses and send them to a third world country. Don is going to send the email. Jim said he has a demand for horses going to Denmark, but they are having a problem getting titled horses."

Adding further to the plan for sending wild horses to foreign countries, the following recommendations were submitted to BLM from BLM's advisory board members at the June 15th, 2009, Advisory Board Meeting held in Sacramento, Ca:

"that BLM advertise and market sale eligible animals (with the intent clause) in foreign countries with known good homes by offering "select sales" for sale eligible animals 11 years of age and over, and for younger animals that have been offered for adoption three times during a 90 day period and that BLM continue to explore opportunities to foster foreign aid by providing sale eligible animals (with the intent clause) to foreign countries for agricultural (nonfood) use."

The BLM's response to these recommendations was that it is considering these plans as part of a 5 year strategy plan.

Clearly, the BLM has already been corresponding with foreign countries to market the wild horses with the intent to send the horses to slaughter. The board recommendation that the sales include the “intent clause” was clearly a fig leaf. The BLM is well aware that it would be impossible to enforce the intent clause in foreign countries.

But if that were not an obvious enough fig leaf, then the reference to “countries with known good homes” is a laughable one. It comes as no surprise that the notes from Don Glenn, who is also a member of the advisory board, were not mentioned at the advisory board meeting.

While Tom Gorey may continue to claim that it's pure propaganda that the BLM is in the process of eliminating the wild horses, the notes regarding the slaughter of our wild horses in foreign countries, combined with the advisory board recommendation to sell the horses to foreign countries proves otherwise.

The BLM’s plan is now clear. They will first ignore the 1971 Wild Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act and gather virtually all the wild herds, working year-round until only a few small, sterile bands remain free. If delayed in one place, they will simply shift their schedule and gather at another as they did with Buckhorn when Calico was delayed.

The cost of feeding these captured horses, along with the 37,000 already in holding, will then precipitate an enormous financial crisis. This will leave the BLM with no option but to euthanize or ship to slaughter most of the horses in holding.

Contact:
John Holland
540.268.5693
john@equinewelfarealliance.org

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-ADDTIONAL LINKS-

ANIMALS' ANGELS

EQUINE WELFARE ALLIANCE

KAUFMAN ZONING:
MARY NASH'S HORSE MEAT

I-Team: Stampede To Oblivion

2010-04-15T03:03:00.000-07:00

STAMPEDE TO OBLIVION WINS
REGIONAL EDWARD R. MURROW AWARD!

I have a tremendous amount of respect for Edward R. Murrow. His story of dedication to quality journalism and truth telling was recently resurrected by writer, director and actor George C. Clooney in the historical enactment of Murrow’s journalistic challenge to tell the truth about Senator McCarthy in this brilliant and gripping drama nominated for six Academy Awards titled, “Good Night and Good Luck”.

In reading historical accounts of Mr. Murrow’s contributions to journalistic integrity, it is very clear that his work changed the face of journalism and set the bar for journalistic standards. He is often considered the living embodiment of the highest ideals of what the public should expect from news and media sources; a staunch refusal to allow political and economic influences to exert such pressures that conflicts of interest becomes the norm and truth becomes the casualty – or worse still – used instead as a vehicle to manipulate public opinion and support for flat out lies.

Famous for his speech in 1958 that was harshly critical of the newly emerging television industry’s drive to spin entertainment based webs of enchantment versus reality based news, in 1971, the Radio-Television News Director’s Association (RTNDA) began annually awarding the Edward R. Murrow Award for “excellence in electronic journalism” to honor those who exemplified Mr. Murrow’s standards and integrity.

This award represents the highest honor a journalist can receive, as it acknowledges those who dare to tell the truth against the corporate and political machines that have now overrun our Nation.

And so, it was with great pride and humble gratitude that American Herds is profoundly pleased to congratulate our own Las Vegas based veteran investigative reporter George Knapp and the I-Team’s Ian Russell and Matt Adams for being the recent recipients of the regional Edward R. Murrow award for their hard hitting documentary, Stampede To Oblivion, and the truths this investigative report reveal about what has been happening behind the American scene and BLM’s “management” of the Wild Horse & Burro Program.

Mr. Knapp has followed the tragedies and travesty’s that have been heaped upon America’s wild horses and burros for many years now, being one of the few who has refused to buckle and allow their progressive extermination to quietly fade into oblivion in favor of more shiny, blond stories - now the general media standard slopped in the public’s trough.

Traveling around the Nevada landscape to get real, honest footage that peels back the layers of spin spun for “the sake of the horses”, Stamped To Oblivion is chock full of real wild horses, real people fighting to save these majestic animals and real interviews with the officials in charge of their demise.

For the timely and critical release of this investigative report, for the untold hours of work, perseverance, dedication, courage and most of all - for making the choice to be their voice for all these long years – Mr. Knapp, Mr. Russell, Mr. Adams and everyone at the I-Team and KLAS Channel 8 news station, the RTNDA and the American public salute you!

STAMPEDE TO OBLIVION
Full Length Version
Segmented Version

To order a DVD copy of Stampede to Oblivion, contact Mary Mercada at mmercado@klastv.com

Additional I-Team Wild Horse and Burro Investigative Reports

I-Team: Wild Horse BLM Budget Preview

I-Team: No Straight Answers on Wild Horse Budget

I-Team: Nevada's Wild Horses Face Desperate Future

I-Team: Web Extra: BLMs Susie Stokke On Nevada's Wild Horses

I-Team: Wild Horses Face Extermination

I-Team: Wild Horse Report Raises Questions

I-Team: Headway Made at Wild Horse Summit

These investigative reports as well as an entire section devoted to wild horse and burro stories over the years can be conveniently accessed by Clicking Here.

Brought to you by
www.lasvegasnow.com

Additional Links by American Herds

Hero of the Herds

Hero of the Herds II

Special Feature: George Answers Willis

Disappointment Valley: A Modern Day Western

2010-02-04T13:40:00.000-08:00

Disappointment Valley documents the struggle of an animal that has long symbolized freedom, individualism and unbridled passion in America. Kleinert examines the origins and effects of the recent "Burns Bill" which gutted the Free Roaming Wild Horse and Burro Act of 1971 and cleared the way for the removal and slaughter of wild horses in America. Greed and corruption take center stage, exposing deceit within the Department of the Interior. The film also explores the current impacts on western public lands by oil, gas, mining and corporate cattle grazing. The once free-roaming horses now face euthanasia, or worse, being shipped to Mexico for brutal slaughter. I hope this film will not only educate viewers about the disturbing, massive removal of our horses but inspire change to the future of these precious animals.

James Kleinert, international award-winning filmmaker, showcases his newest film, Disappointment Valley...A Modern Day Western at the upcoming Santa Barbara International Film Festival. This feature-length documentary examines the politics behind the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) controversial policies on public lands and questions the fate of America's wild horses and burros, whose very existence is in jeopardy.

The film includes interviews with Jim Baca, (former Director of the Bureau of Land Management under the Clinton Administration), Michael Blake, (Writer, Dances With Wolves and Wild Horse Advocate), Sheryl Crow, Viggo Mortensen, Daryl Hannah, scientific experts, animal rights activists and environmentalists as well as examines the effects of the 2004 legislation that cleared the way for the removal and slaughter of America’s wild horses.

Disappointment Valley: A Modern Day Western,
will debut in Santa Barbara, CA on:

Monday, February 8th 4:45pm Metro 4, Theatre IV

Thursday, February 11th 6:30pm Victoria Hall

For tickets: Call 805-963-0023 before February 4th and arrive at theatre an hour before screening time. For further details visit: http://www.sbiff.org/

There will also be a 20 minute Q & A after the screenings with Director James Kleinert and Dr. Elliot Katz (Founder, In Defense of Animals to participate in Q & A on Thursday, February 11th).

With over ten years of filmmaking and six documentaries, James Kleinert continues to release film projects dealing with American Indian stories as well as environmental and action sports themes from his company, Moving Cloud Productions. His short film, Wild Horse Spirit, was part of the Emmy award winning show Natural Heroes which aired on PBS. Kleinert’s driving force is to empower the human spirit, mind and body in a harmonious nature.

For press inquiries please contact Weil Public Relations, (818) 341-3646 or (818) 378-8995, rachel@weilpr.com

LIVE! WH&B ADVISORY BOARD

2009-11-21T13:46:00.000-08:00

HORSE POWER TO STREAM
NATIONAL WILDHORSE AND BURRO
MEETING LIVE ON THE WEB

HORSE POWER a non-profit 501(c)3, and their Educational Partner, Sierra Nevada Community Access Television., is proudly Bringing the Public the complete National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory meeting, Monday, December 7th, from 8 am - 5 pm.

Starting 8 am pacific standard time. The National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board meeting will be web-streamed live from John Ascuaga’s Nugget, 1100 Nugget Avenue, Sparks, Nevada 89431 (hotel phone: 1-800-648-1177) by HORSE POWER at nvhorsepower.org through their public information and educational partner Sierra Nevada Community Access Television (SNCAT).

This meeting will cover issues relating to the management, protection, and control of wild horses and burros on Western public rangelands. The Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board advises the Secretary ofthe Interior, the Director of the BLM, theSecretary of Agriculture, and the Chiefof the Forest Service, including the recommendations and input from the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board , Wild Horse and Burro Advocates along with Public Comments.　

Public Comment Deadline
Wednesday ~ December 2, 2009
4:30 p.m. PST

Written comments pertaining to the Advisory Board meeting should be sent to:

Bureau of Land Management
National Wild Horse & Burro Program W0-260
Attention: Ramona DeLorme/WH&B Administrative Assistant
1340 Financial Boulevard
Reno, Nevada 89502-7147
Phone: 775.861.6583
Fax: 775.861.6711
Email: Ramona_DeLorme@blm.gov

The agenda of the meeting can be found in the November 10, 2009, Federal Register on page 58044. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management [LLWO2600000 L106000000 XQ0000] Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board.

NVHORSEPOWER.ORG

Folks, if these live streams have allowed you to be at the meetings you could not attend in person, please contribute for this service with the Pay Pal button on the front page. The service is not free to us. For a $25.00 donation, Horse Power only received $20.00.

Please help us help you and our wild ones.

Dontate today.

Thank you and God Bless You!
　
Sally Summers
Executive Director
HORSE POWER
Washoe Valley,NV 89704
775-849-3879
nvhorsepower.org
WildHorsePower@twitter.com

Sheryl Crow Asks Obama: Stop The Assault

2009-11-21T12:21:00.000-08:00

The following is a Press Release sent out from The Cloud Foundation on November 20, 2009.

Sheryl Crow Asks President Obama & Secretary Salazar to Stop the Assault on America’s Wild Horses and Burros

Actors Ed Harris, Wendie Malick, and Over 100 Organizations Demand Roundup Moratorium, Protesting Nevada’s Calico Complex Roundup to begin December 1

COLORADO SPRINGS, Co. (November 20, 2009)—Sheryl Crow speaks out for the wild horses and burros on America’s public lands in the west. The multi-GRAMMY®-winning singer-songwriter and mustang owner joins The Cloud Foundation, over 130 organizations, scientists, authors and celebrity supporters calling on President Obama, Members of Congress and the Department of Interior to place an immediate moratorium on all wild horse and burro roundups until a long-term and humane policy to manage the animals is developed.

“With one voice we are insisting that our government stop managing these beautiful and important animals to extinction” —Sheryl Crow

The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) removal plan for Nevada’s Calico Complex wild mustangs is fueling outrage across the country and internationally. In a unified sign-on letter, wild horse supporters outline their opposition to the Obama Administration's October 7, 2009 Announcement regarding the management of wild horses and burros. Groups oppose moving 26,000 wild horses to purchased lands in the east and the current government practice of removing entire wild horse and burros herds from public lands specifically designated for the animals by Congress in 1971.

“We ask that President Obama or Secretary Salazar cease all BLM roundups as of this date to prevent further suffering. We request that the government and BLM begin to work in good faith with wild horse advocates for a sustainable solution. The Calico Roundup, scheduled to begin in December and continue through the dead of winter, is inhumane and must be stopped!” —Sheryl Crow

Upon hearing about the BLM’s plans for the large-scale removal of 2,500 horses in northwest Nevada near the Black Rock Desert, more than seven thousand citizens submitted public comments to the BLM opposing the Calico Mountain Complex Round Up, scheduled to begin on December 1, 2009. Public comment has been extended through November 22, 2009 according to the BLM.

Currently more than 33,000 wild horses are stockpiled in government holding facilities at a cost to taxpayers of $100,000 a day. The scheduled removal of 2,500 from Nevada will bring that total to more than 35,000.

“We already have enough wild horses in pens. Adding more horses to those already held in confinement, when they are much safer on the range is shortsighted, inhumane and fiscally irresponsible.”—Ginger Kathrens, Emmy Award Filmmaker & Volunteer Executive Director of the Cloud Foundation.

The BLM will pay the private contractor $610 per horse rounded up for an estimated total of nearly $2 million for the Calico roundup alone according to BLM spokesperson, Tom Gorey. Branding, vaccinating, sterilizing and processing of horses to be placed in government holding will cost several million more. The BLM hired the same contractor for the controversial roundup of the famous stallion, Cloud, and his Pryor Mountain herd in September, 2009. Bands including two-month-old foals were chased down off the mountaintop by helicopter for 10-15 miles in more than 90 degree heat resulting in trauma and lameness.

"The government is acting in defiance of the spirit and intent of the 1971 Free Roaming Wild Horses and Burros Act which Congress passed unanimously" —Julianne French, wild horse advocate.

The 1971 Act preserves wild horses and burros in over 300 areas of publicly owned rangeland in the west, forbidding their exploitation, harassment and removal. Regardless, only 30 million acres remain of the 54 million acres designated primarily for wild horse use in 1971. Over 100 herds have been completely removed by the BLM and most remaining herds are too small to insure their long-term survival. The BLM's current policy of eradicating these herds is a betrayal of the wishes of the American public.

Sheryl Crow, with wild mustang and burro supporters, calls the public to action urging all to write, e-mail, fax and phone Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, their congressional representatives and President Obama. The list of contact phones, e-mails, faxes and mailing addresses is online HERE.

“Its time for all of us to speak up for our Wild Horses and Burros so we do not lose these living legends and inspiring symbols of our freedom in America.” —Sheryl Crow

Sheryl Crow Joins In Wild Horse Fight
Youtube Video

Photos and video available from:
The Cloud Foundation
news@thecloudfoundation.org
719-633-3842 or 719-351-8187

Spokesperson:
The Cloud Foundation:
Ginger Kathrens
719-633-3842
ginger@thecloudfoundation.org

For Dates, Directions & Information on Attending a Roundup
please contact:

The Cloud Foundation
or
Don Glenn
Chief, BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program
don_glenn@blm.gov
202-452- 5082

Congressional WH&B Postcard Campaign

2009-09-21T17:42:00.000-07:00

WILL HER FAMILY SOON BE GONE?

In 1971, an unprecedented letter-writing campaign moved Congress to pass the Free-Roaming Wild Horse and Burro Act, declaring “wild free-roaming horses and burros are living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West; that they contribute to the diversity of life forms within the Nation and enrich the lives of the American people; and that these horses and burros are fast disappearing from the American scene. It is the policy of Congress that wild free-roaming horses and burros shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death; and to accomplish this they are to be considered in the area where presently found, as an integral part of the natural system of the public lands.”

Over the past thirty-eight years, the intent of the Act has been consistently ignored. The Department of the Interior continues to waste tax dollars on eradicating America’s wild horses and burros with aggressive removal policies favoring private interests over both law and the will of the people. Today, almost 19 million acres that the Act granted the Wild Horses & Burros have been taken away. There are more wild horses and burros now in government pens than in the wild. Recently, BLM began asking Congress for the right to kill them by the thousands or sell them openly for slaughter.

Please help tell our U. S. Senators we, the American people, want our few remaining Wild Horses and Burros to remain free on the land that was granted them in 1971, and on which they, and their ancestors have lived for centuries.

Four-color postcards have been purchased for a National writing campaign using a photo courtesy of Carol Walker – Living Images. It also has Wild Horse Annie’s quote printed across the bottom (front). "These horses belong to all the people of America and they exist on lands that belong to all the people of America." - Velma "Wild Horse Annie" Johnston

These cards & applicable pre-addressed Senator labels will be provided FREE to all Host Organizations willing to get them written. NOTE: every U.S. citizen has 2 Senators -- i.e. every person needs to write 2 cards.

We need citizens of every state to send these cards urging their Senators to co-sponsor the current S.1579 bill. This is the Senate version of the recently passed House’s HR 1018 (R.O.A.M Act). We urge you to have all your friends, families (including children) and club members write cards to their Senators telling them how they feel about America’s Wild Horses and Burros.

The host organization, in each area, will be responsible for postage to DC (a postage donation jar on a table is recommended). Any monies collected, above the DC postage costs, belongs to the local participating host organization. Key to the success of this campaign is: the General Public must be asked to write their thoughts There & Then – No “take-home and do later” of postcards.

Contact: whbpostcards3@yahoo.com and request the Senate cards be mailed to you.

Please include: your name, postal mailing address, e- mail address, how many (x 2) and for what State(s) you want them labeled for.

Thank you for taking time to help
“The Wild Ones”

Hearing on Amending The WH&B Act

2009-02-28T14:47:00.000-08:00

The House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands will hold a legislative hearing for H.R. 1018, To Amend the Wild Free-Roaming Horse & Burro Act. Click Here to view the full text.

-The hearing will be broadcast LIVE via web cast on-
TUESDAY - MARCH 3, 2009
10 a.m. EST or 7 a.m. PST

Go to http://resourcescommittee.house.gov

Witnesses during the hearing include:

Panel 1
1. Ed Robererson, BLM Assistant Director for Renewable Resources and Planning
2. Stephen P. Whitesell, Associate Director, Park Planning, Facilities, and Lands, National Park Service

Panel 2
1. Madeleine Pickens
2. Wayne Pacelle, President & CEO, The Humane Society
3. D.J. Schubert, Wildlife Biologist, Animal Welfare Institute
4. Kevin Dahl, National Parks Conservation Association
5. Larry D. Voyles, Director, Arizona Fish & Game Department

NATIONAL WH&B ADVISORY MEETING

2009-02-26T12:19:00.001-08:00

LIVE STREAMING VIDEO

GET INVOLVED!

TAKE ACTION!

DONATE TO HORSE POWER & BECOME
PART OF SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOURSELF

A MESSAGE FROM NEVADA HORSE POWER'S
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SALLY SUMMERS

As a result of a recent educational partnership with Sierra Nevada Community Access Television, the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board Meetng scheduled to meet in Reno, Nevada on March 2nd, 2009 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. will be broadcast LIVE through streaming video at the HORSE POWER WEBSITE...http:www.nvhorsepower.org

The November 2008 National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board Meeting was the first time this meeting was available to the general public everywhere through this historic partnership in order to connect concerned citizens, wild horse and burro advocates and people all over the world for this most controversial of meetings!

HORSE POWER asked for DONATIONS to help defray the cost, only a few folks and organizations donated. To them HORSE POWER would like to say THANK YOU! Less than 10% of the costs were covered. Sadly, unless those that use this service (never available before) jump in with gusto, this could be the last. All donations are tax deductible and can be donated through Pay Pal on HORSE POWER'S front page.

Don't miss another historic and exciting opportunity to be there!

CLICK HERE TO ACCESS NEVADA HORSE POWER'S WEBSITE

FOR LIVE STREAMING VIDEO

THE COYOTE CANYON WILD HORSES

2009-02-16T13:08:00.000-08:00

"Through mutliple agency management plans, the Coyote Canyon horses were removed from their federally designated herd area. With the assistance of California Senator Bill Morrow and BLM, Coyote Canyon Caballos d'Anza rescued four of the Wild Stallions with the BLM promise that the herd could be restored pending acquisition of permanent range. The currently vacant Beauty Mountain grazing allotment is a viable option...Restoration of the Coyote Canyon horses and the the Trail would maintain historic icons NOW, and into the future."

Learn More & How You Can Help By Clicking Here

Also see American Herds post, "Good To Be King" by Clicking Here.

For Our Children

2009-01-27T15:22:00.000-08:00

The following was originally posted on 12/08/08 by famous author Terri Farley of the Phantom Stallion Series on her popular blog, which often attracts younger readers. Terri has done a beautiful job trying to address the concerns America’s children have and are trying to get us to hear regarding BLMs recent proposal to kill or slaughter America’s wild horses and burros. Terri encourages anyone moved by this to share it everywhere they can!

There’s also a link at the bottom to “Save America’s Wild Horses & Burros!” Petition and Talking Points prepared by wild horse activist Kate MacDonald to help educate and get younger folks involved in the very process that makes America great!

WHAT GOOD ARE AMERICA's WILD HORSES?

WHO: The federal Bureau of Land Management
WHAT: Is considering killing thousands of wild horses
WHEN: About the time fiscal mismanagement comes home to roost
WHERE: Across the Western United States
WHY: The Bureau was assigned to protect America’s wild horses in 1971.

Thousands of children worldwide have asked me, in letters, emails and in person, to point something out to the government and other adults: killing is not protection. As the author of "The Phantom Stallion" a series of books about wild horses, I've taken these young readers' requests to heart and tried to sum up their five best reasons that wild horses are good for kids.

1. We identify with mustangs-- We know how it feels to be innocent and free. Though we don't want to give up food, parents and a warm home to be free, we admire them for it. Wild horses are part of our hearth language. Since humans first sat around campfires telling stories, they've told of wild horses' defiance in the face of capture. Do you want us to forget those stories?

2. Show us that MIGHT doesn't always make RIGHT -- BLM keeps saying it has the right to slaughter wild horses, but it hasn't felt like it yet. But now they might, because of money, and the horses don't deserve it, especially when the federal government, BLM's boss, is giving tons of money to the people who make our parents fight over money every single night.

It is so cool that Madeleine Pickens is rescuing thousands of horses by using her might FOR right.

3. Wild horses are good for keeping a "home on the range" -- Mustangs eat brush, which could otherwise be fuel for wild fires. After eating those plants, wild horses spread the seeds in their poop. Anyone who sees or dreams about a herd of wild horses running free knows learns that not all land should be covered with houses, malls and highways.

4. Where mustang herds have to be smaller, use smart solutions -- Don't let BLM bury its "mistakes." BLM knows contraception works on horses. There's a catch and release program for trout, so why not wild horses? Catch them, give them the contraception shot, and then turn them loose. Where the range is damaged by mining and sloppy recreational users, make them clean up their mess, just like we have to do.

5. Teach us that there's a good side to payback -- Horses carried us on explorations. They gave us wings, taking us places we could never have gone on our own two feet. They pulled our plows to help us eat. They fought our wars, running into swords and gunfire just because we asked them to, and we even used their bodies as barricades against our enemies.

When you ask us to be loyal to our families and friends, then tell us not to get emotional when they’re killing horses, remember that.

Sincerely,
Terri Farley ~ On Behalf Of Her Readers

Phantomstallion Website - Click Here
Terri Farley's Blog - Click Here

SAVE OUR WILD HORSES & BURROS!

PETITION

TALKING POINTS

About PZP....

2009-01-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

Wild Horse Birth Control Effective But Not Panacea
Powell Tribune 12/30/08

PZP (Porcine Zona Pellucida) is a fertility control drug administered to female horses (mares) for the purpose of slowing population growth. Still classified as experimental, its development and progress has been well documented in a variety of scientific journals and studies.

In response to the Powell Tribune article, Dr. Jay Kirkpatrick, Director of The Science and Conservation Center as well as a prominent leader and authority on PZP for the last few decades, has provided a variety of articles related to PZP to increase understanding and provide clarification to many of the points posted in the article linked above.

Dr. Kirkpatrick also added these personal comments pertaining to the article.

"The idea that the genetic makeup of a western horse is sufficiently different from ASIS horses to make a difference in the response to the vaccine is absolutely in error. The vaccine has worked the same way, with the same efficacy in close to 40 different herds throughout the United States. On the Return to freedom herd, which is composed of horses from all over the west, efficacy is no different than anywhere else. Finally, the idea of horses from different genetic backgrounds responding differently flies in the face of conventional immunological wisdom. That aside, current data refutes that idea."

"The issue of 16 of the 34 treated mares not yet foaling is actually good news but must be put into context. The first consideration is that these are long-acting forms of the vaccine that were put into the McCullough Peaks horses and we are still learning how effective they are. BLM wants a four-year vaccine anyway. Second, the only alternative is to remove horses and that removes the genes permanently, without any chance of recovery. One cannot look at contraceptive effects in horses fairly or in any meaningful way without looking at the effects of all alternative management options."

"Finally, if those horses that have not returned to fertility have already produced foals, there is no need for them to produce more. I have attached a second paper that should also be distributed to all parties. It illuminates the idea of measuring effects of all management options rather than focusing on one. It is interesting that the genetic issue arises here, because contraception is about a light year ahead of gather/removal in protecting the genetic integrity of the horses."

"One last note. If humane management is a concern, I suggest everyone read carefully the third attached paper, on increased longevity in treated horses."

Dr. Patricia M. Fazio, Statewide Coordinator for the Wyoming Wild Horse Coalition, who has worked with Dr. Kirkpatrick on several issues pertaining to horses and wild horse management added,

"Some information contained in this piece is outdated, erroneous, and appears to be unanalyzed raw data. Please note that porcine zona pellucida is PZP not “PZB.” Perhaps immunocontraception now looks better to the BLM than long-term holding, after all. Let us hope for humane, scientific management of federal wild horses in the new Administration."

"Please post your comments about wild horses and BLM management on the Obama-Biden Transition Team Website: www.change.gov. Praise the Transition Team for their proposed ban on earmarks within federal legislation… at least those that do not receive public review, such as the Burns Amendment."

Here are the links to the articles Dr. Kirkpatrick referenced above.

Achieving Population Goals in a Long-Lived Wildlife Species (Equus caballus) with Contraception: Jay F.Kirkpatrick, Wildlife Research, 2008, 35, 513-519 CSIRO Publishing www.publish.csiro.au/journals/wr

Measuring The Effects of Wildlife Contraception: The Argument for Comparing Apples with Oranges:
Jay F. Kirkpatrick, Viewpoint, Reproduction, Fertility and Development 2007, 19, 548-552, CSIRO Publishing, www.publish.csiro.au/journals/rfd

Immunocontraception and Increased Longevity in Equids:
Jay F. Kirkpatrick (1*) and Allison Turner (2); (1*)The Science and Conservation Center, Billings, Montana, (2) Assateague Island National Seashore, Berlin, Maryland, Research Article, Zoo Biology 26:237-244 (2007), Wiley InterScience.

PZP Q&A Final (Short Form) July 7,2006

PZP Q&A Final (Long Form) July 7, 2006

Fact Sheet on BLM's Wild Horse and Burro Fertility Control Program
U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Managment,
Annotations by Patricia M. Fazio, Ph.D., July 2008

Photo taken from Annual Report for 2004 Wild Horse Research and Field Activities, United States Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the BLM, By Jason Ransom, Francis J. Singer, and Linda Zeigenfuss, Open-File Report 2005-2005-1316, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Mestengo

2008-12-09T14:04:00.000-08:00

"Mestengo", a newly released documentary on the current plight of the American Mustang is now available on DVD. The producers, Rein Free Inc., are encouraging everyone to view this work during this critical time for America's wild horses and burros.

There is also the Mestengo website, which includes links, a petition and a host of ideas about what each of us can do to let the horses voice be heard before its too late!

To order "Mestengo"
Click Here

What's New At The Rescue!

2008-12-05T13:10:00.000-08:00

As Whispering Winds Equine Rescue has stepped up to the plate time and time again to give horses the gift of life, please consider taking a few moments out to give something back.

There are 10 days left in the Animal Rescue Site $100k Shelter + Challenge where you can vote for your favorite Rescue, Sanctuary or Shelter and Whispering Winds could use your votes!

Just Click Here and type in Whispering Winds Equine Rescue and click the Search button, then click the Vote button!. The site will ask you to confirm your vote by typing in the name of the animal photo shown and then your done!

You can vote every day through December 14, 2008 with the Grand Prize of $25,000 dollars for the Rescue with the most votes. This could go a long way in helping settle the Virginia Range study group and all the other wonderful equines who call Whispering Winds their home!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FOR THE VIRGINIA RANGE STUDY GROUP!

In 2002, twenty-eight wild horses from the historic Virginia Range, home of the original herds that inspired Velma Johnson (aka “Wild Horse Annie”) to initiate protection for all of America’s free-roaming equines, were rounded up and held for what turned into a six-year birth control study being conducted by the University of Reno and Nevada Department of Agriculture.

Recently, the grant funding for the project ran out and by law, Nevada Department of Agriculture had to initiate actions to begin processing the horses under Nevada Estray laws, a process that can make them potentially available for purchase at local livestock auctions as a strange twist of fate failed to protect the Virginia Range herds under the 1971 Wild-Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act.

However, on October 23, 2008, the Nevada Department of Agriculture issued a press release stating they were partnering with the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association (VRWPA) and were committed to insuring the horses would find good homes. Dr. Phil LaRussa, State Veterinarian commented, “The VRWPA has always been an excellent group to work with regarding the strays on the Virginia Range”. (Click Here to read the NDA Press Release)

Known for their high quality commitment and standards, the VRWPA reached out to Whispering Winds Equine Rescue in Roseburg, Oregon as their first choice to assist them in securing permanent sanctuary for these Living Legends and Whispering Winds has delivered!

Dedicated to providing homes and humane treatment for those who might otherwise suffer separation, abuse or slaughter and supported exclusively by donations and a staff of 100% volunteers, on November 28, 2008, Whispering Winds sent out a press release of their own announcing the arrival of the Virginia Range study group and welcoming them to their growing family. (Click Here to learn more).

Welcoming The Herd!

To All The Dedicated Staff At Whispering Winds Equine Rescue

THANK YOU!

Deanne Stillman

2008-10-15T03:02:00.000-07:00

To order your copy of
Mustang:

The Saga of the Wild Horse

in the American West
Click Here

“Deanne Stillman’s writing, research and inspiration in the creation of Mustang is stunning. When finished, readers will fret over how the U.S. government can continue to allow the destruction of those who have been our brothers and sisters for centuries: America’s wild horses”-Michael Blake, author of Dances with Wolves and The Holy Road

“In Mustang, Deanne Stillman has written a classic in equine literature, an exhaustively reported and beautifully told tale of the American mustang viewed in the full sweep of his cultural and evolutionary development. The mustang is a national symbol and treasure. And, from beginning to end, now so is Stillman’s book – a riveting, compelling testimonial on why this free-roaming animal must be saved.” -William Nack, author of Secretariat: The Making of a Champion

"Mustang: The Saga of the Wild Horse" is well versed in history, science, and politics and point unflinchingly towards the impending doom headed the mustangs way if there isn’t a serious turn around from the path they are quietly being herded down through officially sanctioned government actions.

Ms. Stillman states, “Now is the time for an immediate moratorium on wild horse removals, at least until population studies are brought up to date” and there is compelling evidence that the wild horses and burros actually still roaming free may be dramatically lower than the “officially posted populations”.

Ms. Stillman’s call for a moratorium on wild horse removals should be fully supported by anyone who cares for these magnificent animals as they deserve a place to live, both as a species in their own right as well as through their deep connection to our history, our culture and our Nation.

Until current population counts are done (and NOT by government agencies that have an agenda to remove them), the round ups should stop NOW!

Deanne Stillman's Mustang Website

Other articles by Deanne Stillman include:

Memorial Day Prayer for Charlie and Buffalo Bill

LA Observed, 5/23/09

Mustang-The Saga of the Wild Horse in the American West - REVIEW
Orion Magazine, Melissa Holbrook Pierson,

January-February 2009

Horse Latitudes - Terrain.Org

The Luckiest Horse In Reno: A Christmas Story - Huffington Post

Last Stand for the Wild Horse - Plenty Magazine

Wild Horses Heading to the Gallows as Cowboy Prez Exits! - Huffington Post

Equus on Broadway - And In Nevada - LA Observed

Wild Horses Aren't Free - LA Times

No Longer Home On The Range - Newsweek

Mustangs: The Killing Fields - The Economist

Let's Head Off The Horse Thieves At The Pass - Opinion L.A.

How The West Was Won, Forget The Cowboys:

America Was Won On Horse Power -Las Vegas Weekly

Mustang: The Saga of the Wild Horse - The History of Our Horse - Seattle Times

Billings Ties Abound In Mustang - Billings Gazette

Wild Horse Global Project Relief Fund

2008-09-24T15:43:00.000-07:00

Today, the "Give A Dollar" Wild Horse Global Relief Project, launched by Karen Mayfield of Wild Mustang Coalition and one of the Projects supporters and coordinators, Director of Whispering Winds Mustang Ranch, Susan Pohlman, announced a change in direction for the Project.

Extensive research into some of the Projects original goals resulted in the need to reorganize though “still continuing in a direction that will benefit” America’s wild horses and burros.

Due to this restructuring, Director Pohlman has issued a notice to those who have previously donated stating they may request a complete refund, may continue to allow prior donations to be held in a money market fund held in trust by Whispering Winds reserved exclusively for wild horse and burro restoration on public lands and/or legal fees to prevent mass euthanasia’s or may request their donations be transferred from the trust fund now overseen by Whispering Winds to a BLM arranged trust fund overseen exclusively by Karen Mayfield of Wild Mustang Coalition.

Both Wild Mustang Coaliation and Whispering Winds Mustang Ranch will continue to pursue efforts to return wild horses and burros to the range and have expressed their shared vision and common goals towards helping America's imperiled wild horses and burros but Director Pohlman would like it known Whispering Winds Mustang Ranch will no longer be associated in any manner with the specific efforts of the "Give A Dollar" Wild Horse Global Fund Relief Project while Ms. Mayfield wants the public to understand it is has and will continue to be her Project now in partnership with BLM.

However, due to the "Give A Dollar" Wild Horse Global Fund Relief Project using Whispering Winds 501 (c) status to coordinate donation efforts, interested individuals must contact Director Pohlman if they wish to make arrangements regarding previous donations.

~Contact~

Susan Pohlman, Director
Whispering Winds Equine Rescue
Living Legends Wild Horse Sanctuary
Roseburg, Oregon
A 501(c)(3) Non Profit Organization
(541) 679-9022
whisperingwindsequinerescue@msn.com

All future proposals and plans of the Wild Horse Global Project Relief Fund will now be exclusively coordinated and overseen by Karen Mayfield/Wild Mustang Coalition, who was and continues to be the originator of the Project, as she works closely with the BLM and a new organization yet to be announced.

For questions or more information regarding the
"Give A Dollar" Wild Horse Global Fund Relief Project, go to:

http://www.wildmustangcoalition.org/

Or contact Karen Mayfield directly at:

Karen Mayfield
Wild Mustang Coalition
(775) 220-8556
KarenMayfield@U2audio.com

Serious Concerns

2008-08-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

On August 17th, 2008, an Anonymous reader posted the comment pasted below in its entirety, which reports some very serious allegations regarding both BLMs Nevada Wild Horse & Burro Lead Susie Stokke, as well as how Silent Auctions for wild horse and burro adoptions are being run in Nevada, contrary to BLMs posted rules at the events.

Mr. Pierce has followed through on the promises he made on August 17th and has now filed criminal charges against Ms. Stokke as well as calling for her resignation.

The I-Team in Las Vegas has also released a news report on the incident titled, "Accusations Made Against Top Official At BLM". Click Here to view the newscast as well as a link to the full list of complaints levied against Ms. Stokke.

American Herds wishes to offer Mr. Pierce both acknowledgement and sympathy for having to endure such a level of hostility by a government employee that he felt compelled to pursue this course of action; both to stand up for his rights as an American citizen as well as now feeling afraid for himself and his family merely for asking BLM to abide by their own posted rules regarding wild horse and burro adoptions.

While reading Mr. Pierce's accounting and as his story unfolds, also keep in mind that in addition to what he and his family had to go through as they merely tried to adopt one of the thousands of mustangs and burros now at risk of death because BLM has "too many", also consider the larger implications of BLM not following their own posted rules.

Volunteers going around attempting to push potential adopters into bidding higher after the deadline had clearly passed also raises serious questions about what is going on during BLM adoptions besides Mr. Pierces allegations of intimidation and personal threats.

Some of these include:

*Could this sort of action be legally defined as government extortion?

*Is Ms. Stokke acting independently or just upholding an "unwritten" policy of BLMs in the Wild Horse & Burro Program?

*Is this incident just a microcosm of the same sort of actions being levied against the American public through BLMs recent announcement of needing "more money" or they are going to euthanize thousands of wild horses and burros?

Mr. Pierce has granted permission for his email address to be publicly posted. If anyone else has witnessed BLM pushing adopters to bid higher after the bidding deadline has passed during BLMs Silent Auctions and you are not afraid to come forward with this information, please consider contacting Mr. Pierce with your information as perhaps this sort of inappropriate behavior may have caused or will continue to cause potential adopters to back out of giving a wild horse and burro a good home!

This is Mr. Pierce's accounting of his experience with trying to adopt a wild horse at the Mustang and Burro Expo on August 16, 2008.

From: Loren Pierce [mailto:lorenpierce@rtci.net]
Sent: Sunday, August 17, 2008 10:59 AM

I want to address this very serious concern with you concerning the actions and inappropriate behavior of a member of the Bureau of Land Management in Carson City, Nevada.

Yesterday, August 16, 2008 my wife, three year old daughter and I went to the Reno Wild Horse and Burro Show. While attending the show we decided to register with the BLM so that we could adopt if we found that special horse. At the registration desk inside the livestock event center, on the desk of the BLM was a sign that clearly stated “Silent Auction, Bids close at 12:00”. This rule was not adhered too and created a very nasty situation due to rules being broken and re-written by Ms. Susie Stokke and she deemed fit.

During the actual reading of the bids, the woman from the Mustang Heritage Foundation would ask others if they wanted to make a higher bid on a horse. While some horses did not have bidders at all, I agree that asking for a bid at that time for those horses was appropriate, however; it was well after the 12:00 P.M. cutoff and they (Susie Stokke and The Mustang Heritage Foundation) were asking people for higher bids, even on the horses that bidders had already bid on prior to the 12:00 p.m. deadline. When the horse came up that I had placed a bid on, again, they asked for a higher bid. Another bidder had attempted to out bid me and I objected, referring them to the rules posted on the desk. Susie Stokke spoke up and said “Sir, We make the rules here you don’t”. Susie Stokke and I got into an argument over the situation and the other bidder withdrew her bid. I went into the event center and double checked the sign on the desk that confirmed that Ms. Stokke and the Foundation was not abiding by the rules of bidding as they were posted. I returned to the bidding area to get my horse and to correct Ms. Stokke on the rules that were clearly posted at the BLM exhibit inside the Reno Livestock and Events Center.

Susie Stokke then realized who I was “Past Vice-President of the NWHA” and became very rude. During our paperwork process I was standing in line like everyone else waiting my turn, when I got to Susie Stokie at her spot at the processing desk she completely ignored me. As I stood in front of her for nearly 5 minutes with my three year old daughter by my side waiting for her to get my paperwork; people standing behind me in line were offered helped first and Susie never offered me any assistance. I then asked her “Am I just standing breathing the air for my health” at that time she stated “You need to go to the back of the line sir, I can’t find your paperwork” (sarcastically). I argued with her and told her that “I was not going anywhere and that she didn’t even look for my paperwork”. (Ms. Stokke didn’t even know the number of the horse I was bidding on so how could she not find my paperwork)? Ms. Stokke then stood up and told me again to go to the back of the line in a threatening manner (standing up, puffing out her chest, and telling everyone that I was causing a disturbance) when in fact it was her that was creating the hostile situation.

I asked her “and if I don’t” and she then stated: “I will have my guys take care of you”. I asked her “is that a threat?” at which point a very tall man (Boddie) sitting at the table approached me and told me to leave. I felt very threatened. I then got out of line and demanded a refund of my money for the horse. Susie refused to give me my money back and was very rude, loud and threatening. I got back in line and told my wife that I have been humiliated by Susie Stokke and that we were going to see our lawyer and sue. Susie then demanded that I leave and take my family with me. Again I refused. Susie then got up from the table and left.

Once Susie was out of the mix everything went smooth and the other people who were involved offered their apologies for the situation. I am filing a police report on Monday morning with the Reno PD for assault. As Susie threatened me and then had a much larger man approach me. At that point I felt harm would come to either me or my family. My family was completely humiliated and embarrassed by this situation and the behavior of Susie Stokie and the Bureau of Land Management at this event. If my conduct was so disturbing why didn’t she call security? Why didn’t she just move me through the process to get me out of there? Was she simply grandstanding and purposely trying to embarrass and humiliate me and my family as Wild Horse Advocates and former members of the NWHA?

I have obtained witness contact information, including some that may be a shock to Ms. Stokke and the BLM. These witnesses heard firsthand the conversations in their entirety and who did not believe she acted appropriately.

I am demanding Ms. Stokke’s resignation. A police report will be filed against Ms. Stokke for assault, and terroristic threatening. Due to our address and it’s very close proximity to BLM lands, we must now fear for our safety every time we see a BLM vehicle near our property because of the threat made by Ms. Susie Stokke. I will pursue this matter civilly due to Ms. Stokke’s infliction of emotional distress, humiliation, and threats on my three year old daughter, my wife and myself.

A copy of this letter has been delivered to George Knapp of KLAS TV in Las Vegas and a copy will be sent to your office via Certified Mail and to the office of the Secretary of the Interior and US Senator Harry Reid.

Private Citizens should not have to be intimidated, humiliated, threatened, coerced, and embarrassed by members of your department or any other member of the United States Government or agents acting on its behalf.

Loren “Jay” Pierce
Past Vice President,

NWHACc:
Department of Interior Dirk Kempthorne
Senator Harry Reid
Senator John Ensign
George Knapp
Reno Police Department (as attachment)

THEY NEED YOUR HELP!

2008-08-24T12:10:00.001-07:00

KILLING AMERICA'S
WILD HORSES & BURROS?

Demand A Halt To BLMs
Wholesale Slaughter Plans!

Over 33,000 Wild Horses & Burros
Need Your Voice!!!

Click Here To Tell BLM "NO"
This Is Not An Option!

Or Call 1-800-710-7597

BLM PROPOSES MASS KILLING OF
AMERICA'S WILD HORSES & BURROS

In 2001, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) launched one the most aggressive wild horse and burro removal campaigns every initiated and has removed over 75,000 wild horses and burros from public lands.

At the turn of the century, an estimated 2-3 million wild horses roamed free in America but through horse hunting and the easy money of capturing them for slaughter, populations had dwindled to about 17,000.

Due to the second largest public outcry and letter campaign ever received by the United States Congress, wild horses and burros became federally protected in 1971 through the passage of the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act. Yet, over the years, protections have continued to be stripped away as both land and populations have disappeared by the very officials that were charged with protecting and preserving them.

In 2004, Montana's Senator Conrad Burns shattered over 30 years of protection by slipping in a secret amendment in an appropriations bill that was 1,000’s of pages long and nobody bothered to read before signing it the day before the Congressional Thanksgiving break ~ President Bush then signed it into law.

The Burns Amendment, as it is now called, authorized the government to begin selling captured wild horses and burros again for slaughter “without limitation” until all “excess” wild horses and burros had been disposed of. These same government officials that have been reducing and removing our wild horses, burros and their protected habitat are the ones who decide what constitutes “excess”.

Public opposition to sending our wild horses and burros to slaughter caused Congress to require BLM to change their adoption contracts to include a non-legally binding promise that the new owner would not ship them to slaughter ~ though Congress has yet to repeal the actual law.

On June 30, 2008, with BLM reporting 33,000 wild horses are now being warehoused in government holding facilities, more than currently roam free, they announced they can no longer afford to feed the horses so aggressively removed at their discretion and have proposed either allowing our wild horses and burros be sent to slaughterhouses or BLM wants the authority to kill them outright in their pens.

The BLMs management of the Wild Horse and Burro Program has been under investigation by the Government Accountability Office for the last year with the final report due out in September 2008. A few key Congressman have demanded BLM halt any progress on mass killings until the results of the GAO’s report has been released.

While BLM continues to report 33,000 wild horses and burros still roam free, based on BLMs own population and removal numbers since 2000, an independent analysis of their statistics revealed only about 13,500 were really left when BLM issued their population figures in February 2008. Click Here to learn more.

Depending on the results of the GAO’s report and Congress’s response to it, the killing of tens of thousands of warehoused wild horses and burros may begin as early as November of this year.

Currently, BLM is accepting public comments regarding their new slaughter plans and the American public must speak up! The next month is absolutely crucial in deciding whether America’s wild horses and burros will continue to be protected and remain a part of our American heritage or if they will begin their final march to disappear forever.

Their protection has already been stripped to the bone on every level and if BLM isn’t stopped from killing thousands of horses now – nothing will stop them again.

Tell BLM “NO! THIS IS NOT AN OPTION!” by clicking the link above if our remaining wild horses and burros are to have even the slightest chance at life at all.

Please take a moment out to speak for those who can’t, to be counted as someone who wants to see wild horses and burros remain a part of the American scene and who opposes BLMs management and recent proposed killing policies.

Also please consider passing this along to everyone you know, as the more voices that are heard, the more the odds increase that our wild horses and burros will not be killed or slaughtered. Perhaps even write a letter to your local news station, newspaper or government representatives voicing your opposition to a long-standing history of malfeasance in the Wild Horse and Burro Program.

AMERICA'S WILD HORSES & BURROS
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Photo #1: Wild Horse captured by BLM in September 2006.
Photo # 2: Wild Horses being driven to BLM capture pens by helicopters.
Photo # 3: Wild Horses being warehoused by the BLM.
Photo # 4: Historical photo of wild horse bodies after being driven off cliffs, a method used to eradicate them to reserve all food and water for cattle and sheep ranchers before wild horses and burros became federally protected from such abuses.
Photo #5: Historical photo of mass wild horse grave.
Photo # 6: Recent photo of horses being slaughtered in a Mexican horse slaughter plant, a wild horses or burros fate under BLMs deceptive "Instant Title" option they want Congress to finally approve.

Garbage In/Garbage Out

2008-08-21T14:00:00.001-07:00

Recenty, USA Today published an Opinion piece by Mary Zeiss Stange titled “Homeless on the Range” that has those familiar with actual statistics regarding horse slaughter, abuse, neglect and abandonment deeply disturbed.

In yet another example of the American mainstream media presenting articles that contain serious flaws and unsubstantiated allegations, at least in this instance USA Today covered their butts by refusing to cite this as a “news article” because obviously, even they couldn’t swallow trying to pass this piece off with any credibility, despite its very deceptive official “news” format.

Though clearly labeled in the Opinion section, “Homeless on the Range” presents ethical media questions just as disturbing as official “news” stories, which too often these days are little more than fronts for lobbyists who have entrenched themselves in every facet of American culture and nowhere has this fact been more glaringly apparent than the media’s coverage of horse slaughter and abandoned horses over the last few years!

Though the extent of published propaganda on these issues is profound, attempting to address the sheer volume of misinformation would require more than just a superficial story, it would require entire reports, which coincidentally was the purpose of publishing “Deleting the Fiction: Abandoned Horses Parts I & II”. (There’s also a whole bunch more! Click Here)

While others continue to fight the corporate giants stranglehold on distributing honest information, the big question is now aimed at USA Today’s journalistic integrity and ethical responsibilities for allowing and approving of such a distorted “opinion” dressed up to look like it was steeped in facts.

How far can or should an official news source of this magnitude be allowed to go regarding the “Opinions” they print?

Our Constitutional rights certainly guarantees each and every one of us an opinion and the right to express it. How do we as a Nation, balance the absolute necessity of preserving our rights of free speech and the exchange of free ideas in context with abuse, distortions, extremism, fanaticism and zealotry?

Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf – Book I” was a stunning piece of well-articulated literature that extolled the “reasonable virtues” of natural selection and helped fuel his spectacular ascent to power, as the distorted principles of the white race and specifically, the German peoples absolute superiority, became the creed of their Nation. Historical perspective allows us to clearly see the ocean of blood this abomination was responsible for, yet how easily it was embraced by the German people at the time.

Sadly, opinions like these still continue today, backed by the American motto, “I may not agree with what you have to say but I’d die for your right to say it.”

One of the checks and balances Americans depend on for allowing both freedom of speech while simultaneously regulating the fanatical fringe is a dependence on our media to exercise some measure of journalistic integrity in what they print, even in their “Opinion” sections.

Would USA Today have printed Hitler’s “Nation and Race”, extolling its “reasonable virtues” as well, if those in charge today found themselves in charge back then?

Today, Iran’s official position is, “The Holocaust never happened” with its leaders teaching the Iranian people this “fact”, despite unprecedented volumes of documentation that unquestionably prove - to mankind’s shame – indeed, it did. Would USA Today print their “opinion” as well?

Can we expect Neo-Nazi opinions, gay bashing, promotion of the “virtues” of child molestation and God knows what else to also be allowed in an American newspaper distributed coast to coast and representing us to the world at large?

Is this the state of the USA Today?

While I cannot morally support a boycott on someone expressing an opinion as Ms. Stange has done, I can support a boycott of the editors in charge, who have lost their way as to what constitutes journalistic integrity, responsible oversight and with whom no other reasonable explanation can be found for their support of an opinion piece such as this besides seeking to appease their Corporate Lords.

There is also another popular American motto that is particularly well suited to addressing what USA Today has done and its called “Garbage In – Garbage Out” and this article has shown us where this “newspaper” needs to go from now on – in the garbage!

Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range

2008-03-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

AN URGENT MESSAGE FROM THE CLOUD FOUNDATION!

The Cloud Foundation
A non-profit foundation dedicated to the Pryor Mountain Wild Horses and Cloud~a pale stallion made famous by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Ginger Kathrens of the Cloud Stallion series. Click Here to learn more and stay abreast of the latest developments.

Pryor Wild
A blog dedicated to following and reporting on the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range herds, Montana's last wild horses. Click Here to read their latest news.

NEWS & ALERTS

September 22, 2008
"Cloud's Herd Removal Postponed Again"
The Cloud Foundation announced Jim Sparks, BLM Billings Field Manager, has stated this morning that the removals of the Pryor Mountain wild horses has been indefinitely postponed. The Cloud Foundation thanks all the supporters for continuing to work and fight for the preservation of Cloud, his herd, the Pryor Mountain wild horses and all of America's wild horses and burros. To continue to stay abreast of the latest developments, sign up for The Cloud Foundations email alerts at the address above.

September 18, 2008
"BLM To Remove Horses"
The BLM has decided to proceed with removals of the Pryor Mountain wild horses through a bait trapping method. Click Here to view the Cloud Foundations recent announcement and BLMs Record of Decision.

August 22, 2008
"BLM PUSHING TO REMOVE CLOUD'S HERD"!
The Cloud Foundation has issued an URGENT press release today calling for the public to speak up and out in any way possible against BLMs unrelenting drive to remove wild horses from the Pryor Mountain Range.

Over the months, BLM continues to speak out of both sides of their mouths all the while continuing their march against these celebrated animals. Fabricating stories of range degradation, BLMs claims of "thin" horses flies in the face of lush range conditions and fat, shiny, healthy wild horses. Despite claiming no money to remove them, no money to feed them and no money to adopt them with the wheels in motion to kill tens of thousands of already captured wild horses and burros, BLMs actions speak louder than their words as they are poised YET AGAIN to take our wild horses anyway as they continue to issue press releases of how they "can't afford too".

Click Here to read The Cloud Foundations full press release, which includes photos of these "thin" wild horses and their vibrant home ranges and then speak out, LOUD AND CLEAR, as we are tired of being lied too while America's wild horse and burros continue to pay the price for their lies!

April 3, 2008

The Cloud Foundation has issued a press release announcing some good news finally for Cloud and the Pryor Mountain Wild Horses. Steve Williams, Supervisor of the Custer National Forest has announced US Forest Service will not be re-building the fence to cut off the herds from their "unofficial" historic herd area nor demanding that BLM remove the herds from Forest Service lands. The Cloud update reported Williams said "he received a lot of mail, hearing from people from Canada to New Zealand"!

March 25, 2008
Ginger Kathrens, Volunteer Executive Director of the Cloud Foundation, has recently issued an update on Cloud and the Pryor Mountain herds including recent discussions with BLM and USFS and promises BLM has issued regarding wild horse removals from the range. Also included is a link that outlines Gingers recent trip to Tuscon, AZ for the National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Meeting. Plans in the works include Instant Titling of our wild horses and Gelding Herds plus more! Well worth a look. Click Here to link to the latest update on Cloud and the Pryor Mountain wild horses from the Cloud Foundation.

February 2008
PRYOR WILD HORSE HERD TARGETED AGAIN
Montana's Last Wild Horse Herds Still At Risk!
In a continuation of BLMs unrelenting attack on America's wild horse and burro herds, BLM announced an almost instant decision to carry forward with plans to cut the Pryor Wild Horse Herds by almost fifty percent! The Cloud Foundation has recently sent out an Alert on the quickly degenerating situation with contacts to protest BLMs continued mismanagment of the "thriving ecological balance".

Click Here to read The Cloud Foundation's call for support to preserve Cloud, his family and the Pryor Wild Horse Herds!

MORE VIDEOS FROM GINGER KATHRENS
& THE CLOUD FOUNDATION

NATURE: Cloud's Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns ~ Flint

NATURE: Cloud's Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns

NATURE: Cloud's Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns~ Round Up

NATURE: Cloud's Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns ~ Boulder

NATURE: Cloud's Legacy: The Wild Stallion Returns ~ PBS

Wild Burro Rescue Update

2008-02-25T02:14:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to take a moment out and let everyone know how great things are going at Wild Burro Rescue.

A well has now been drilled and pipe is being laid throughout the Rescue in anticipation of water flowing by summer and the burros are happy, full and frolicking due to all the improvements and love.

Diana Chontose reports that things are "going better than ever" as dedicated volunteers and compassionate hearts have allowed WBR to flourish and she invites anyone and everyone to come on over and take a tour of the Rescue to see for themselves. The burros would love to meet ya in their sanctuary under the stars and whisper a few desert secrets in your ears - or at least bray a few!

-TO EVERYONE -
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT

Because of you and your generosity, this dream continues to be a reality by providing these very special wild burros a safe haven in their time of need. WBR continues to expand their care and facilities, to coordinate live-capture rescues if and when wild burros are located, and makes sure the burros already at the sanctuary are honored with the committed quality care they so rightly and always deserved!

Just thought people might want to know what a difference they can and have made to the burros and WBR! To learn more about Wild Burro Rescue, Diana Chontose's ongoing efforts to make a difference or how you can help, go to:

www.wildburrorescue.org

Click Here to watch a recent video and meet some of the wild burros of WBR.
!You're gonna love them!

Hearts For Horses

2008-02-23T03:10:00.000-08:00

Terri Farley, author of the Phantom Stallion books, has officially joined with the Humane Society of the United States to support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (S 311/HR 503).

On March 4 Terri will join the Humane Society in Washington DC to distribute letters to our legislators.

Letters should express how you feel about horse slaughter. Be logical, historical, persuasive or emotional. Just remember, respectful letters will get the best results! Children are encouraged to decorate their envelopes with drawings, stickers, or anything else that would make them colorful.

Educators are encouraged to share this project with their classes and parents. Need ideas? Click Here!

Please Mail No Later Than March 1

HEARTS FOR HORSES
316 California Avenue
#1265
Reno, Nevada 89509

Questions? FarleyTerri@aol.com PhantomStallion.com

2008-02-23T01:10:00.000-08:00

National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board
Public Comments

The National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board has recently reaffirmed that no public input or comments submitted to the Board will be published in their meeting minutes or made available as part of the public record.

Without making the publics concerns, comments or issues raised available for others to see, those interested in wild horse and burro management find their submissions disappear into a vacuum, never to be seen or heard from again. Because of this, the Board lacks any accountability towards meaningfully addressing those issues.

In efforts to provide a more even playing field, American Herds offers you the opportunity to publicly post your submissions to the Advisory Board. Just send your comments to american_herds@cox.net and specify which Advisory Board Meeting you submitted them to and American Herds will happily post them for you.

Public Comments

2/25/08 National WH&B Advisory Board Meeting

Julianne French

Barbara Warner

Cindy MacDonald

6/30/08 National WH&B Advisory Board Meeting

Brenda Hedges

2008-02-23T00:29:00.000-08:00

National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board

BLM Website

Board Members

Meeting Minutes

Public Comments

2008-01-27T01:38:00.000-08:00

Film Director James Kleinert has invited

New Mexico Legislators to a Free Screening of

"SAVING THE AMERICAN WILD HORSE"

Tuesday January 29 at 7:30 pm

~ The Jean Cocteau Theater~

418 Montezuma Ave. Santa Fe ~ New Mexico

Saving the American Wild Horse explores the plight of this pure symbol of American freedom. Viggo Mortensen, Sheryl Crow, Peter Coyote and a diverse array of wild horse experts cover the round-up, removal and in some cases, slaughter, of America's Wild Horses. Currently the 26-minute short version of the film serves as a strong call to action for America's Wild Horse's and Burro's.

~ James Kleinert ~

SUPPORT SAVING THE WILD HORSES IN NEW MEXICO!

For more information go to:

http://www.theamericanwildhorse.com/ or http://www.movingcloud.com/

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

!What The Burros Got For Christmas!

2007-12-25T00:41:00.000-08:00

"Save The Planet's" Gift

American Herds Gift

The Twelve Gifts

American Herds Gift To Wild Burro Rescue

2007-12-24T22:17:00.000-08:00

Click Here to View Auction Status

With the removal of over 70,000 wild horses and burros from public lands in the last six years, there are now more wild horses and burros in government holding pens than roaming free and unless they find a good home through BLMs Adoption Program, these holding pens is where they will spend the rest of their lives.

In efforts to raise public awareness of the desperate plight over 30,000 of our wild horses and burros now face, on November 6th, 2007, Jerry Reynoldson, founder of Wild Horses-4 Ever and Anderson Dairy, a local Southern Nevada dairy farm, teamed up to announce the release of a limited edition milk carton with this drawing of a majestic mustang on its side to help promote BLMs Living Legacy Adoption Program.

Getting on a milk carton isn't easy! There's a long waiting list and Anderson Dairy released these cartons for only one week before moving on to others still waiting - it may be a very long time before wild horses and burros are given this great promotional opportunity to find good homes again!

So, begining in January, once a month American Herds will offer one of these now empty, limited edition collectors milk cartons for auction on Ebay with all proceeds being donated to Wild Burro Rescue in order to help them in their ongoing efforts to preserve and protect America's Wild Burros.

Merry Christmas

!Wild Burro Rescue!

http://www.wildburrorescue.org/

Here is what the Anderson milk cartons look like and you will have your choice between the Regular and Reduced Fat carton, both with the same majestic mustang drawing and Living Legacy Adoption Program information on their side.

The Twelve Gifts

2007-12-24T21:56:00.000-08:00

-HERE ARE GIFTS YOU CAN GIVE-

In the recently posted story, Big Bending The Rules, 71 wild burros were shot, killed and left to suffer in Big Bend State Park, Texas with plans to totally eradicate them from the Park despite centuries of inhabiting the area.

The lethal disposals of the burros is due to new management plans that seek to turn the Park into exclusive bighorn sheep habitat and justified through a 1975 Sierra Club policy that advocates "humane removals via firearms.

Luis Armendariz, Big Bends Park Superintendent who was "transfered" and forced to resign for speaking out against the shootings said, “The burro carried the mother of the king of kings on their back. We should respect them for that.”

American Herds has put together The Twelve Gifts to the Big Bend Burros and wild burros everywhere that will help your voice be herd!

Click HERE to see what you can give to them

by simply taking the time to speak up!!!

AMERICA'S BURROS

!!!THANK YOU!!!

A BIG THANKS TO "SAVE THE PLANET"!!!

2007-12-24T21:24:00.000-08:00

A great big THANK YOU goes out to the Save The Planet Committee at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV for their donation and contribution to Wild Burro Rescue as they added their voice to the ongoing efforts to save America's wild burros from an otherwise doomed fate!!!

The Save The Planet's gift is much appreciated and we promise, good things will come from their assistance to Wild Burro Rescue as they continue to honor their commitment to preserve and protect what's left of America's Wild Burros!!!

!!!THANK YOU!!!

The Twelve Gifts To Big Bend Burros

2007-12-23T16:40:00.000-08:00

This Is What YOU Can Do!

To help speak out against the shooting, suffering and inhumane treatment of the wild burros in Big Bend Texas State Park, the Internal Investigation’s cover up of it, the punishment of Texas State Park employees who protested the burros inhumane treatment and voice your support for the preservation of the wild burros of Big Bend Park in Texas, here's a way to help.

Make a personal commitment that once a day for the next twelve days you will go down this list and write, email or call that days contact to show your support for both ethical standards and to help the burros live in honor and dignity.

Let Your Voice Be Herd!

Day One
The Big Bend Sentinel in Texas has had the courage to tell the story of the inhumane treatment and suffering high-ranking Park officials inflicted on the Big Bend wild burros. Take a moment out to thank the Sentinel and reporter Sterry Butcher for publishing this story and encourage them to continue to report the truth to the public about what is really happening!

Big Bend Sentinel
Drawer P
Marfa, TX 79843
Phone: (432) 729-4342
Fax: (432) 729-4601
http://www.marfatx.com/bb_editorial.asp

Sterry Butcher – Big Bend Sentinel
sterry@bigbendsentinel.com

Day Two

Contact Texas Parks & Wildlife expressing your outrage at the suffering inflicted on the Big Bend wild burros, the cover up of the high-ranking Park Officials, Mike Hill and Dan Sholly who secretly carried out these acts of cruelty, the retaliation against Park Superintendent Luis Armendariz who they forced to resign and the Parks plans to totally eliminate the wild burros after centuries of inhabiting of the Park to replace them with exclusive bighorn sheep herds - just so the Park can make more money!

Texas Parks & Wildlife
4200 Smith School Road
Austin, TX 78744
Phone: (512) 389-4800
Comments
https://www2.tpwd.state.tx.us/business/feedback/webcomment/?p=%252Findex.phtml

Day Three
Let Robert Cook, Executive Director of Texas Parks & Wildlife know that the inhumane killing of the wild burros under his command is unacceptable! Also, demand that Luis Armendariz and Robert Garcia deserve to get their jobs back!

Robert L. Cook, Executive Director

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

4200 Smith School Road

Austin, TX 78744

Phone: (512) 389-4802

Fax: (512) 389-4814

Day Four
Let the Big Bend Chamber of Commerce know of your disapproval of the corruption of Park Wildlife officials and that killing the Parks wild burros is an outrage! Ask that the Chamber do whatever is necessary to repair the now tarnished reputation of Big Bend State Park before it becomes a permanent stain in their local history.

Big Bend Chamber of Commerce
Hwy 180 @ Terlingua Creek
P.O. Box 607
Terlingua, Texas 79852
Phone: (432) 371- 2427
info@bigbendchamber.com

Day Five
Contact the Texas Attorney General and demand a Grand Jury Investigation be initiated into the cover up of high-ranking Park officials who were recently cleared of animal cruelty charges despite the Parks original investigative officer, Robert Garcia, providing testimony and photos of what Hill and Sholly really did! Don’t let the good guys be punished while the criminals get away!

Greg Abbot
Texas Attorney General
Office of the Attorney General
P.O. Box 12548
Austin, TX 78711-2548
Phone: (512) 463-2100
Greg.abbott@oag.state.tx.us

Day Six
Contact Texas House of Representatives, Pete Gallego and express your dissatisfaction at how this entire situation is being handled. Urge him to demand a Grand Jury Investigation into the cover up and ask that he initiate legislation that will protect the Big Bend burros by declaring them a cultural and historic species of Big Bend Park.

Pete Gallego
Texas House of Representatives
Capitol Office
Room CAP 4S.05
P.O. Box 2910
Austin, TX 78768
Phone: (512) 463-0566
Fax: (512) 236-9408
http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist74/gallego.htm

Day Seven
Contact Texas Governor Rick Perry and voice your opinion for the burros that can’t! Urge Governor Perry to refuse to allow the cover up of Park Officials and the retaliation levied against Luis Armendariz. Also request the initiation of management plans that will protect and honor the wild burros centuries old historic presence in the Park.

Rick Perry
Texas Governor
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 12428
Austin, TX 78711-2428
Phone: (512) 463-1782

Day Eight
Texas Park & Wildlife Officials excused their inexcusable behavior by citing a long-standing Sierra Club policy over federal law. The Sierra Club actively supports shooting wild burros as “humane removal methods” across our Nation despite our Congress declaring them a federally protected species. The Sierra Club also supports replacing wild burros with bighorn sheep and having them eradicated from any area not under the protection of the Bureau of Land Management. Let the Sierra Club know these policies are outdated and unacceptable – demand change and urge their financial support for humane treatment of wild burros in our Nation.

Sierra Club
408 C St., N.E.
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 547-1141
Fax: (202) 547-6009
information@sierraclub.org

Day Nine
Former President Al Gore is highly supportive of the Sierra Club and its “work”. Urge Mr. Gore to actively speak out against this policy of the Sierra Club and work to change their disrespectful and barbaric policies on our wild burros!

Honorable Al Gore
2100 West End Avenue
Suite 620
Nashville, TN 37203
Phone: (615) 327-2227

Day Ten
Contact the Fund For Animals, an organization with a long-standing track record of speaking up and protecting America’s wild burros. Urge them to get involved in helping preserve and protect Big Bends historic herds and their habitat!

Fund For Animals
200 West 57th Street
New York, NY 10019
(888) 405-Fund
info@fundforanimals.org

Day Eleven
Contact YOUR Congressional Representatives and let them know the current two-faced policy in America, which allows wild burros to be protected on one track of land and shot when they cross an “imaginary line” is NOT ACCEPTABLE! Urge them to initiate legislation to remedy this absurd situation and protect our wild burros everywhere.

Your Congressional Representatives
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/

Day Twelve
Contact the Secretary of the Interior, who was charged by Congress to protect and preserve America’s wild burros – period. Urge the Secretary to use his authority to demand accountability and initiate protection and preservation of the Big Bend wild burros as Congress and the American people mandated and were promised the Secretary would do!

The Honorable Dirk Kempthorne

Secretary of the Interior
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20240
Fax: (202) 208-5048

O WILLIS ~ GEORGE ANSWERS!

2007-12-14T01:27:00.000-08:00

George Knapp, Chief Investigative Reporter for the I-Team - KLAS-8 TV in Las Vegas, NV recently aired a hard hitting two part expose highlighting some of the serious issues facing the Bureau of Land Management's mismanagement of the Wild Horse & Burro Program.

Despite being THE Chief Investigative Reporter for the Las Vegas I-Team with a solid reputation earned over decades of in depth coverage and breaking news, apparently George is no match for the one, the only, the incredible, the invincible, the all knowing and all seeing Willis Lamm.

It appears Willis graciously took a few moments out to drop George a line and tell him where he went wrong, which from the sounds of it, was everywhere - at least in the World According To Willis!

The Knappster has answered back......

Dear Mr. Lamm,

First of all, please accept my apology for taking so long to respond to your lengthy and highly detailed email of Nov. 22. I hesitate to call it an email since it is more akin to a book or term paper on wild horse management. In light of the many issues you raised, I knew I would need to carve out some time to craft an appropriate response. That said, I won’t address every single point you made because I’d probably need to take a week of vacation time to get to all of it. I’ll try to respond to the most salient points you made, along with a few glaring omissions.

After my stories aired here in LV and arrangements were made to broadcast them in Reno as well, I was warned by several wild horse enthusiasts that I would be hearing from you. They basically told me about the role you’ve assumed in the wild horse debate up north and described the type of response I would likely receive. The predictions were amazingly accurate.

To begin, let me assure you that I welcome input from all sides, especially with a story as complicated and emotional as this one. I found your letter to be both cordial and condescending, informative in many places and overtly misleading in others. I’ve been a professional journalist in Nevada for more than a quarter century, and while I appreciate your admonitions and advice, I don’t really need to be lectured about the importance of accuracy in news reporting. This is a lesson that is basically encoded in my DNA. This isn’t a hobby for me. When someone accuses me of being inaccurate or unfair or misleading, I take it very seriously. I’m sure you feel the same way.

That’s why I was so surprised by some of the things you wrote. If your mission is to set the record straight, one would think you would be more careful about some of the assertions you made. Here’s an example. Toward the end of your letter, you informed me that BLM had recently staged an adoption event ‘near Las Vegas’ in which 100 horses were placed. Really? I’ve been reporting on wild horse issues for close to 20 years. To my knowledge, there has never been an adoption event in Las Vegas that placed 100 horses. I can tell you with absolute certainty that there has been no such event in recent memory. Your statement is absolutely false.

However, I agree with your subsequent conclusion that there is a viable market in Nevada for horse adoptions. The problem is, BLM has been unwilling or unable to tap into that market, a policy decision that has prompted many to question the competency and the agendas of those who have so profoundly mismanaged this program. My personal suspicion is that the animosity which has developed between certain BLM managers and the community of wild horse advocates has degenerated to the point that it affects policy decisions within the bureau. I suspect…but cannot prove…that a few BLM managers have become so hostile toward wild horse groups and individual advocates that they actively and purposefully work to thwart successful adoption efforts in the state that is home to half of the horses still in the wild.

This brings me to another issue that is central to our exchange. Your letter focused on issues of range science, a subject that was addressed in part two of my two-part report. Did you miss part one? There is nothing whatsoever in your letter about the most important questions I raised in this series. The impetus for the two reports was the adoption program, or, more accurately, the lack thereof. I wanted to know whether BLM Nevada is managing the program as prescribed by federal law. Based on what I found, the answer is no.

It took me 7 months to obtain basic budget information. The numbers don’t lie, but I can’t say the same for BLM managers. As you know, the law which created the wild horse program provides for a management strategy which includes adoption efforts. The budget figures show that BLM Nevada commits vast resources to roundups, and considerable funds to the warehousing of horses, but very little for adoption efforts. It’s pathetic. The result is that tens of thousands of wild horses are stuck in government pens. It costs millions of dollars each year just to feed them, a bad deal for horses and a bad deal for taxpayers. When I interviewed Susie Stokke about the disparity, she was less than forthcoming, to put it mildly. She made a bad situation worse by flat-out lying to me about adoption efforts and then engaged in blatant---and transparent---attempts to manipulate the budget numbers. This isn’t a he-said-she said situation or a gray area subject to interpretation. Not even close.

I’m told that you know Ms. Stokke pretty well. There are those who think you are an agent for her, perhaps because you hope to secure a contract when certain programs are green lighted. Based on my own experiences over the years, I’d say that BLM is generous with wild horse groups that toe the line, and openly hostile with those who dare to criticize the program. I don’t know enough about you to offer a guess, but there is no question that you are widely perceived as an apologist for BLM, the person who always makes himself available to the media when the wild horse program receives criticism. You certainly wasted no time in contacting me after my stories aired, but—as mentioned above—you completely ignored the central focus of my reports, namely, the pathetic, seemingly intentional failure of BLM adoption efforts in Nevada. You don’t seem to be shy about expressing your opinions, so please feel free to give me your appraisal of the current management regarding adoptions and the blatant budget disparities. Susie thinks the program is just peachy. Do you agree? In your letter, you objected to my characterization of Nevada’s ridiculously low adoption rate. Okay, let’s hear how you would characterize it? Is it a success? You criticized my statement about the ‘rate of adoption’ by asserting that Nevada ranks 14th in total numbers of adoptions. Comparing rates versus total numbers? Come on. Are you serious?

Several times in your letter, you disparage those wild horse advocates who disagree with you while bragging about your own lofty status as a wild horse authority. Can you please elaborate. Did you work for the program prior to moving here? Do you have a degree in animal husbandry or range science? What is your level of expertise? One reason for the questions is your claimed status as the voice of reason in the wild horse debate. You say ‘most of the mainstream media’ have low regard for ‘the lunatic fringe’, meaning, horse advocates who don’t agree with your view. You seem to be saying that you are credible and everyone else isn’t. If this is how the news people in Reno see things, shame on them. No one has a monopoly on the truth, and no one is the ultimate authority on these issues. There are many viewpoints which deserve to be heard. Just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t mean they are lunatics and it seems incredibly egotistical for anyone to assume the position as the supreme arbiter of all questions about wild horses. This is the U.S.A., after all. It’s our duty as citizens to get involved and to speak up. No offense meant, but you didn’t invent wild horses. You aren’t the arbiter of truth. You’re one guy, not THE guy. There are many honest and compassionate people who’ve been working with wild horses far longer than you, and they happen to see things differently. When you refer to them as lunatics or “The Hysteria Corps”, it says a lot more about you than it does about them.

I see from your letter that you filed the paperwork to create a non-profit group and then you helped to form another umbrella organization. That’s admirable, but the formation of a 501c3 doesn’t make you an expert. The IRS doesn’t require a competency exam when it approves non-profits. You say your volunteers are out in the field every day, studying the range conditions, gathering info. That’s awesome, but what happens to the data? Do you give it to the BLM? Honestly, in all the years of reading BLM documents and public filings, I’ve never seen any reference to you or your group. You mentioned that your daughter is a DVM, that she reviews your observations and concurs with your conclusions. No offense to your family, but there isn’t a scientific organization in the world that would ask a daughter to do a peer review of her dad’s research. What’s she going to say? Hey Pop, you’re a nitwit? More pointedly, what does she review? What happens to this information? Where does it go? If the primary purpose of this research effort is to buttress your position as the ultimate authority on all wild horse issues, then I have many other questions about your goals, plans, and motives. The inference might seem unfair, but if you look at this from my vantage point, I hope you can see why I would ask.

A couple of other items deserve a response. You objected to the title of one of my stories because it mentioned “the science behind BLM roundups.” You say the story itself isn’t based on science. Can I get an amen? This is what we in the journalism biz refer to as irony. The entire point of the report was that there is very little science involved in BLM decisions to gather horses. I interviewed Craig Downer, who not only grew up with wild horses in his backyard, but earned advanced degrees and was employed as a range scientist by BLM. He quit in disgust because he knows the decisions to round up the horses very often have nothing to do with science and little to do with the health of the range. If you have expert testimony from someone who is MORE qualified than Craig Downer, I’d like to see it. BLM is rounding up horses for reasons that have little, if anything, to do with science.

You stated that my information about the Jackson Mountains roundup is ‘misleading’. As noted, the exact line was that the roundup was authorized ‘supposedly because there wasn’t enough forage to support them.” You say the problem was lack of water, not forage and that your team saw ‘thousands of acres of grass’ in the area. That is very interesting information. I hope you will pass it along to your colleague Ms. Stokke because the information she has directly contradicts yours. In our on camera interview, Ms. Stokke told us the horses were starving, that they barely survived by ‘eating brush’, and that this is the reason BLM rounded them up. (A side issue--If the problem was lack of water, I’m curious to know what role BLM played in cutting the horses off from their water sources.) I also hope the two of you can resolve your differences over whether the horses were starving or dying of thirst…or maybe it was both. If you think my information was misleading, you might want to go to the source and tell her that she’s full of baloney. Let me know how that goes.

There’s another reason why the forage-or-water issue is relevant. I questioned Ms. Stokke about why all of the horses dropped dead at Palomino Valley. She told me---again, on camera---that the horses had been surviving by eating brush and that when they were fed rich hay at PV, it caused an inflammation of the salmonella already in their systems and they died. I reported it exactly as it was told to me by BLM, that the animals already had salmonella in their systems and they started dying because of the feed they received. In your letter, you said this was FALSE, in capital letters, ‘so patently false that it boggles the minds of those who understand these issues.’ By that, I guess you mean that Susie Stokke doesn’t understand these issues. I’m glad we agree on something.

You also expressed the opinion that the horses ‘were properly handled’ at PV, that they were fed grass hay because that’s what ‘any experienced veterinarian’ would recommend, and that the stories about horses dying because of their feed were ‘rumors.’ Well, maybe you’re right. Maybe everything was done by the book and, as Susie said, the horses got the best care possible. Then again, they’re dead. They keeled over dead, dozens at a time, but I’m sure they were grateful for the great care they received. Are you telling me there was no alternative to this, no other approach that could have been taken, no way to ease them into a different diet? Really? If, as you suggest, they were dying already, then why go to the trouble of rounding them up and bringing them in? On the open range, they were alive. In the corral, they were dead. I guess it’s just one of those things.

One final bone of contention. You went into considerable detail about the impact of cattle and sheep on the range versus the impact of horses. I’m not even going to try to hassle about all of the specifics except for this central point. If you are suggesting that the plight of wild horses is not directly related to the competition for resources posed by cows and sheep…and housing developers…and oil companies….and mining conglomerates, then I don’t see any reason to continue the dialogue. There’s always a reason to remove horses (and the ‘best’ reason is that it’s for their own good), but when it comes to competing uses for public lands, the horses always seem to rank at the bottom of the list. Always. Anyone who thinks the ambitious, revved up removal program is unrelated to the influence of cattle interests with the current administration is not being honest.

The program is a mess, an embarrassment. The people who are calling the shots in Nevada should be ashamed. Putting resources into adoption efforts makes even more sense now that the roundups are so relentless, but it isn’t happening for reasons that have little to do with logic or good public policy.

I don’t know you, but I know OF you. I don’t like some of the things you say, not because I disagree with your conclusions but because, by personal decree, you assume the mantle of authority on all things related to wild horses. You informed me that mainstream media in your neck of the woods consider you to be the go-to guy for wild horse questions. Well, I’m not them. If you want a dialogue, that’s fine with me. But I’m not someone who is particularly impressed by posturing or intimidation tactics. As for the invitation to join your team sometime out on the range, if you’re still willing, I might take you up on that.

George Knapp
KLAS TV

Here are the links to the Knappsters recent wild horse broadcasts.....

I-Team Wild Horse BLM Budget Preview

No Straight Answers on Wild Horses Budget

Nevada's Wild Horses Face Desperate Future

Extended Interview With Nevada Wild Horse & Burro Program Manager Susie Stokke

You can email George at gknapp@klastv.com

or check out what George is reporting on NOW at

www.lasvegasnow.com

BURRO HERDS OF THE WEST

2007-12-13T18:14:00.001-08:00

-ARIZONA-

BIG SANDY HMA

HMA Acres: 243,905
Change Since 1971: -148,512

AML: 139
Population as of 9/30/07: 165
Acres P/Burro: 1,754 Acres

Removed In:
September 2007, May 2006,
January 2005, June 2003

Photo of #3150
1 Year Old Jack
Captured 5/25/06

-CALIFORNIA-

CLARK MOUNTAIN HMA

ZEROED OUT

Change Since 1971:
-233,823
Population as of 9/07: 60

Removed In:
January 2007, September 2003

Photo of #0921
1 Year Old Jack
Captured 1/25/07

-NEVADA-

GOLD BUTTE HMA

HMA Acres: 178,463
Change Since 1971: -93,330

AML: 98
Population as of 9/07: 37
Acres P/Burro: 1,821 Acres

Removed In:
March 2007, March 2006,
January 2003

Photo of #3362
4 Year Old Jack
Captured 3/19/07

-NEVADA-

JOHNNIE HMA

HMA Acres: 179,380
Change Since 1971: +1,031

AML: 108
Population as of 9/07:
75-110
Acres P/Burro: 1,660

Removed In:
January 2007, 2005, June 2002

Photo of #0720
7 Year Old Jenny
Captured 1/13/07

-ARIZONA-
LAKE HAVASU HMA

HMA Acres: 386,692
Change Since 1971: +14,112

AML: 170
Population as of 9/07: 255
Acres P/Burro: 2,274 Acres

Removed In:
June 2006, 2005,
December 2002

Photo of #3168
2 Year Old Jack
Captured 6/14/06

-NEVADA-

MCGEE MOUNTAIN HMA

HMA Acres: 41,112
Change Since 1971: +14,569

AML: 41
Population as of 9/07: 34
Acres P/Burro: 1,002 Acres

Removed In:
March 2006, 2004,
November 1997

Photo of #5888
3 Year Old Jack
Captured March 3, 2006

-NEVADA-

MUDDY MOUNTAIN HMA

ZEROED OUT
2005

Habitat Loss: -187,868 Acres
Population as of 9/07: 0

Removed In:
January 2007, January 2001

Photo of #3382
7 Year Old Jack
Captured 3/21/07

-NEVADA

RED ROCK HMA

HMA Acres: 161,972
Change Since 1971: +587

AML: 49
Population as of 9/07: 29
Acres P/Burro: 3,305 Acres

Removed In:
February 2007, January 2007,
February 2006, July 2002

Photo of #9262
1 Year Old Jenny
Captured 1/22/07

-CALIFORNIA-

SLATE RANGE HA

Herd Area Only 512,962
Change Since 1971: +25,202

AML: 0
Population as of 9/07: 36

Removed In:
January 2007, January 2004

Photo of #0463
5 Year Old Jack
Captured 12/16/06

-NEVADA-
WHEELER PASS HMA

HMA Acres: 276,904
Change Since 1971:
-2,118

AML : 35
Population as of 9/07: 21
Acres P/Burro: 7,911

Removed In:
January 2007, 2004,
July 2002

Photo of #9088
4 Year Old Gelding
Captured 1/17/07

!YOU CAN HELP!

A Tribute To Jackie & Jasmine of Oatman, AZ

2007-12-09T14:29:00.000-08:00

In August, a little six-week year old baby burro named Jasmine was hit and killed by a drunk driver in the sleepy little town of Oatman, Arizona - while tragic in itself, it wasn’t the only tragedy that resulted.

Oatman residents placed flyers around the town as an expression of their grief and a tribute to those they lost.

Terry Watt of American Horse Defense Fund was kind enough to share this with us all to both honor and remember…….

-Tribute To Jackie-

We have lost our very best friend. She has been our champion for several years. She has loved us unconditionally for no profit or gain - just only for who we are. She has been here for our new births and our unfortunate deaths.

If we are sick she called the doctor, and took care of it, when we have a new baby she was here to make everything was ok, when one of us dies she has been here to bury us and send us on our way to a better place.

She always came to us with a special treat in her pocket. And all she asked in return was we sit on her and put our head on her shoulder and receive all of the love she had to give to us. And we gladly did.

Jackie was here in Oatman on Saturday to console one of us (her name sake, Jackie) who lost her 6 week old baby to a drunken driver who didn't even stop to see if the baby was ok, but just kept on going and left her for dead. While she was grieving with her, she herself died of a heart attack.

And while everyone tried the best that they could to save her, we think God must have needed her more.

We're not sure what we are going to do without her. There are not many people out there who can love and give themselves so unselfishly as she has done.

Until we meet again,
April, Jackie, JellyBean, Charlie, Lil'Belle, Harley, Libby, Peanut, Popcorn, Tornado, Windy, and Splotches
(the Oatman Burros)

Jasmine

7/16/07 to 8/29/07

SHE WAS RUN DOWN BY SOMEBODY WHO WAS DRIVING TOO FAST
WITH NO RESPECT FOR LIFE
PLEASE DRIVE SLOW!

Flyer distributed about Jasmine

Oatman, Arizona

The town of Oatman, Arizona has been made famous for the wild burros that come into the town in the morning, wander around greeting people (and looking for treats!) and then heading back out into the desert at sunset, giving residence and tourists the rare opportunity to get to personally know a burro and their families.

To learn more about Oatman, Home of the Gold Mine Wild Burros
and how to visit them, click HERE.

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O WILLIS ~ GEORGE ANSWERS!

BURRO HERDS OF THE WEST

A Tribute To Jackie & Jasmine of Oatman, AZ

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