February 28, 2010 – CHICAGO, (EWA) – The funding testimony for the planned sanctuaries dubbed by wild horse supporters as “Salazoos” outlined last October by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, will be heard by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Energy and Natural resources on March 3, at 10am.
The outcome of the testimony will decide if our wild horses belong on their western public lands or in “zoos” in the East and Midwest and whether the BLM will commit millions upon millions of future dollars to warehouse wild horses and burros that would otherwise live without cost to the taxpayers in their natural habitat where they have lived for centuries.
The requested funding would increase the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) budget by $42M to purchase one of the seven planned “Salazoos.” The Equine Welfare Alliance (EWA) and its over 100 member organizations, Animal Law Coalition, The Cloud Foundation and numerous Mustang advocate and welfare organizations are vehemently opposed to increased funding for the BLM for this incredible financial sinkhole. Read more> http://www.horsesinthesouth.com/article/article_detail.aspx?id=10398
2,700 Wild Horses to be Rounded Up in Dead of Winter
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 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 on December 28th following a delay after In Defense of Animals filed a lawsuit in late November. This case will be heard in mid-December but in the meantime BLM plans to 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 .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.
I found this information from R.T Fitch’s blog at http://rtfitch.wordpress.com when I was trying to find what the outcome was from the protest discussion with the BLM on Monday. I still haven’t run across all of the details, but I will post as soon as I do. The below are excerpts from the post written by SABINA DANA PLASSE:
The American West’s wild horse saga will not end without a good fight from lovers of the land and the animals.
Emmy Award-winning filmmaker James Kleinert has been documenting the struggle of the wild horse and its disappearance from the West for the last six years. Kleinert has been gathering footage and commentary from wild horse lovers and at roundups.
“The wild horse will be annihilated as an American symbol,” Kleinert said. “The Bureau of Land Management is pitting horse advocates against ranchers, but there is a greater issue.”
Watch YouTube video: Disappointment Valley… A Modern Day Western – Trailer
America’s wild horses are in jeopardy! Disappointment Valley exposes mismanagement and corruption within the Bureau of Land Management.
From the YouTube video: Here’s how you can help:
1) Call President Obama (202-456-1111) and Secretary of the InteriorKen Salazar (202-208-3100). Demand a Congressional investigation into the Bureau of Land Management. Ask for independent studies on statistics of the wild horses and do NOT rely on the BLM statistics. They are flawed and misrepresent the truth.
3) Share this video and information with friends and family. Most people don’t know wild horses still roam the west, let alone they are being rounded up and slaughtered. The public has fought to support these horses in the past. We can do it again! The more people who become aware of the issue, the better chance they have for survival. www.theamericanwildhorse.com
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