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Last Stronghold Of Wild Horse Herds Under Attack
2,500 Wild Horses to be Rounded Up in Dead of Winter
Dear Supporters,
Despite a significant public outcry, BLM plans a helicopter round up to remove thousands of wild horses in northwestern Nevada, an area called the Calico Complex in a remote and starkly beautiful landscape of volcanic outcrops, steep canyons and wide valleys.
It is home to over 3,000 wild horses and represents the last stronghold of the once large herds of American mustangs that roamed the west by the millions.
The attack on Calico is scheduled to begin in December and continue through the dead of winter. Calico is a challenging environment in winter when bitter winds howl and blizzards are common. If BLM were truly interested in preserving wild horses they would not run them over treacherous terrain in winter when all wildlife are simply trying to survive by expending the least amount of energy possible.
Regardless, BLM intends to round up from 2486 to 2747 mustangs, taking away from them what they value most… their freedom and the families.
They plan to release only 264 horses (80 mares, all treated with infertility drugs, and 184 stallions) back onto 1.5 million acres of our public lands, and incarcerate the rest in holding facilities already bursting at the seams.
Taxpayers pay over $100,000 a day to feed these captives who were removed to make room for more welfare cattle on public lands.
Because only 264 wild horses will be turned back into four herd areas, each herd will be genetically non-viable and left vulnerable to inbreeding.
A spokesman for BLM denies that the agency is managing our wild herds to extinction, but actions speak louder than this hollow promise.
Only token, remnant herds will remain in this, the last stronghold of the wild horses. The onslaught is scheduled to begin December 1 and continue through the end of February 2010.
The Cloud Foundation is asking you to stand up for these horse and demand that the round up be halted. It is nothing more than government sponsored cruelty.
Call (202) 456-1111 and email President Obama?Call (202) 224-3121 and email your Congressional Representatives Call (202) 208-7351 and e-mail Interior Secretary Salazar Do it today.
Happy trails,
Ginger Kathrens, Volunteer Executive Director
Our mailing address is:
The Cloud Foundation 107 South 7th St Colorado Springs, CO 80905
Our telephone:719-633-3842
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November 23rd, 2009 at 11:33 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Mark Mottershead, Elaine Tasker. Elaine Tasker said: RT @markmotts: BORN FREE http://ow.ly/EW9c as the last stronghold of wild horse herds coms under attack, what does this say about our … [...]
November 24th, 2009 at 10:48 am
since this report, the BLM has declared that it will not release ANY of the horses captured in the 3-month calico complex roundup. this abuse, harassment, & removal of our national treasures cannot continue1
please, folks, write to your representatives, your senators, the president, the media, the department of the interior. tell them that this is wrong! demand a stop to the roundups & abuse & torture of these magnificent animals! demand that the 20 million acres of land taken from them be returned & their rights & freedoms be restored. call for an investigation into the managment practices of the blm, which has been operating in clear defiance of the wild free roaming horse & burro law of 1971. get others on board & let’s fight for the wild horses & burros!
December 14th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Since writing the letter above, many wild horse advocates attended and spoke out against this round up and all round ups at the December 10th National BLM Advisory Board Meeting in Reno. While we were sitting in a Casino meeting room with the BLM, the agency was conducting a stealth round up of horses in the Buckhorn Herd Management Area near the Calico area in sub-zero temperatures. The horses were being trucked to Palomino Valley outside Reno where there is no cover for the animals. All flights were cancelled that day in and out of Reno due to the horrible weather. This is only one example of the cruelty of an Agency out of control and turning a deaf ear to the American public. Tell our President to stop the round ups before we lose all our wild horses in their legally designated homes on the range. And Willie, thanks for putting out our call. Please consider joining the 200 organizations and celebrities who are calling for a Moratorium on round ups.
Happy Trails!
Ginger Kathrens
Volunteer Executive Director
The Cloud Foundation
http://www.thecloudfoundation.org