California Senator Asks Salazar Tough Questions - Expects Answers

from Horseback Magazine

by Steven Long

 

WASHINGTON, DC, (Horseback) - California's Sen. Barbara Boxer released a letter 

demanding answers from Interior Secretary Ken Salazar regarding the embattled Bureau of Land Management. It's Wild Horse and Burro Program is under fire after the deaths of scores of horses in a mid-winter "gather" in Nevada's Calico Mountains.

The horses were stampeded into holding pens after a grueling chase by a roaring helicopter over rockey ground in freezing weather. Two foals died after losing their hooves in an excruciating lingering death.


Dear Secretary Salazar:

I am writing to thank you for your recent attention to the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM's) Wild Horse and Burro Program and to seek information that would help me evaluate your proposed refoms to this program.

Wild horses and burros are majestic symbols of the American west and are beloved by many people for their remarkable intelligence, grace, beauty, and power. Unfortunately, these charismatic animals have also been at the center of great controversy for many decades.

Commercial harvesting once threatened wild horses and burros until public outrage led to their protection under the 1971 Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. After working to recover these species for many years, the BLM has recently begun trying to reduce populations once more due to concerns that the animals are now overpopulated. The BLM contends that unchecked population growth has led to decimation of forage, starvation, competition with native animals, and land use conflicts. However, many animal rights advocates contend that the animals are healthy when left alone in the wild and that the BLM's efforts to control populations are jeopardizing the survival of these iconic species.

To better understand your recent proposal for reforming the BLM's Wild Horse and Burro Program and evaluate these different arguments, I would appreciate it if you could answer the following questions:

What techniques are used to estimate wild horse and burro populations, assess the genetic viability of herds, and determine appropriate management levels? Has there been any independent verification of the BLM's techniques or data to ensure that they are based in sound science?

What are the disadvantages of allowing wild horses and burros to remain unchecked in the wild? Has there been any independent documentation of the BLM's claims about the health of these animals, their impact on environmental conditions, and the need to remove them?

How does BLM ensure the humane treatment of wild horses and burros during roundups and retention in holding facilities? Has there been any independent confirmation of the humaneness of the BLM's treatment of these animals? Are there any alternative methods for rounding up the horses that might be less disruptive to these animals and possibly make them more suitable for adoption?

Do you have any specific sites in mind for the National Wild Horse Preserves that would be established under your new proposal? How many acres would be needed for these preserves? How many preserves would be federal and how many private?

How much would it cost to establish and manage these National Wild Horse Preserves? Can you provide me with a cost-benefit analysis comparing this proposal with the status quo and with leaving the horses where they are currently found?

This is a complex and emotional issue with important long-term ramifications for the future of our wild horse and burros. I appreciate your attention to this matter and your look forward to your timely response.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

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The Death of The Calico Colt

"reposted with permission, copyright Ginger Kathrens/The Cloud Foundation/Carol Walker"

The Death of the Calico Colt
An Essay by Ginger Kathrens
January 2010

He was wild and free, roaming the vast expanses of the rugged Calico Mountains with his mother and father and the other members of his family. This would be his first winter, a time when life slowed down for all the wild ones—the elegant pronghorn he watched on the distant horizon, the tiny pygmy rabbits that foraged in the sage brush undergrowth and darted into their dens when he tried to touch them, the fat sage grouse that were some of his favorites. When he was just days old, he heard their strange, booming sounds and saw the males strutting and displaying for a mate. When he wandered toward them, it was his father who gently guided him home. His mother softly nickered to him. She smelled of sweet sage and invited him to nurse.

Then, one day while his mother and father and the others in his family were quietly foraging, conserving their energy in the growing cold, he saw his father jerk his head up. Ears forward, the stallion watched and listened and the colt did too, mimicking his father. The colt could hear a rumbling drone. In the distance, he could see something flying toward them. It was even bigger than the majestic golden eagles that soared over his home. It came closer and closer, dropping low over the sage. The drone grew into an earshattering roar. His family began to run and he followed, galloping beside his mother where he would be safe. Mile after mile the menacing, giant bird chased them. His legs ached and he wanted to rest, but he could not leave his mother. He kept running, struggling to keep up. Fear gripped the Calico colt.

Then he saw a horse in front of his father and it too began to run. Safety must be ahead. His family followed the stranger and suddenly they were trapped inside walls of steel. His father tried to jump over the wall but it was too high. There were two legged animals running at them with long sticks and something white that fluttered madly. Suddenly, he was separated from his mother when a two-legged moved between them, striking out at him with the frightening stick and the fluttering bag. He was driven into another corral. When he whinnied for his mother, she answered. He raced around the corral calling for her, but found his feet were too sore to run anymore and he stopped. He could hear his father calling and he knew the proud stallion had been separated too. The colt answered him. He could see his mother through the bars of his cage and this gave him strength and hope.

Days passed. It was cold and there was no place to get out of the wind. In his home, his mother would have led the band below a rocky outcrop that blocked the wind. The colt began to fear he would never again smell the sweet sage of her breath or taste the warm milk she offered to him. His feet, so sore, became worse. Shooting pains darted through his whole body when he tried to walk so he moved as little as possible, hobbling a few steps to eat the plants the two-leggeds had thrown on the ground for them. One frigid morning, the two leggeds came and drove him into a truck with others that were his age. The pain was constant now and when the truck moved out, he stayed on his feet but the pain riveted him with every jolt and bump. He called for his mother, but there was no answer. Would he ever see his parents again?

Hours passed and the truck moved onto smoother ground and it turned into a place where he could hear the calls of his kind. He whinnied as loud as he could, but the answering voices were unfamiliar. The two-leggeds drove the colt from the truck into a bigger cage and he struggled to keep up with the other foals. Some of them were limping too. His eyes scanned the horizon, looking for something familiar but the flat horizon looked nothing like the land of his birth. Days went by and he spent hours laying in the dirt, the pain growing. He could feel something happening to his feet. His once strong, dark hooves were beginning to separate from the bone designed to hold them fast. He laid flat and closed his eyes, imagining the home and family he feared he would never see again. The two leggeds walked toward him. He wanted to jump up and dash away but he could not. Over the next few days he grew too tired to move at all. The wind howled and as it began to snow, he closed his eyes for the last time and dreamed of his family. Then two leggeds came again and killed the Calico Colt.

In death, the lively spirit of the Calico Colt was released to roam free once more. He has returned home to his family and the land of his dreams. He is not just a statistic. Neither he nor what he symbolizes will ever be forgotten. (Ginger Kathrens is a filmmaker, author, and founder of The Cloud Foundation, dedicated to preserving our mustangs on public lands. The Foundation is calling for a
stop to the roundups that are robbing public lands of our legendary, native wild equids—the very embodiment of freedom for many Americans. The Calico colt is only one of many who have died as a result of the ongoing roundups this year alone. Find out what you can do at www.thecloudfoundation.org

Photo: Living Images by Carol Walker

Obama Administration Assault On Wild Horses - Update

Obama Administration Assault On Wild Horses

Calico Complex Roundup, Dec. 28 thru Feb 2010
Secret BLM Roundup Continues
Calico Wild Horse Victims: 1,195+ (as per BLM on 1/21/2010)

  
BLM DENIES FULL PUBLIC ACCESS TO ROUNDUP &
SPOON FEEDS GLIMPSES OF DEATHS/SUFFERING
 
Jan 21, 2010 UPDATE:
COLT KILLED AFTER RUN SO HARD HOOVES DESTROYED;
DOWNED MARE DIES AFTER 4 HOUR RIDE TO HOLDING FACILITY  

It's hard to know what is really happening at the Calico roundup because the BLM refuses to allow public observation of all roundup operations. Despite repeated requests for complete observation access, the BLM continues to severely restrict observation to a couple of hours on three days a week. Based on the highly limited information that the BLM is providing ... we now know two more horses were killed yesterday at the Indian Lakes Road Fallon holding facility. 

After being run long and hard, the BLM reports that a colt's hooves were destroyed (hoof sloughing) during the roundup and he was killed on Jan 21. Based on the limited information provided by the government, it is likely this colt was shot to death as the BLM calls using a riffle to shot horses "euthanasia." The BLM claims this colt had been treated for two weeks yet, this colt's condition and treatment was never reported before his death yesterday.  

BLM states that yet another mare died at the Fallon facility after being downed in the trailer probably for hours. Upon arrival she was found down and subsequently died. She was likely trampled as the horses are packed tightly into transport trucks.

No members of the public were allowed to observe the Jan 21 roundup and public observation at the Fallon facility is severely restricted to specific hours on specific days. No one is allowed to go to Fallon Facility until Tuesday, Jan. 26th. Calls were placed to both Assistant Director of Renewable Resources & Planning Ed Roberson and BLM Director Abbey by the Cloud Foundation in regards to the situation at the new Fallon facility. Calls were not returned.

NOTE-BLM Spoon Feeds Select Information:

 On 1/21/2010 BLM posted: "One mare that was down on the transport truck arrived at the facility aliv, but subsequently died. One colt with multiple hoof sloughs from the capture was euthanized at the facility."

On 1/22/2010 BLM re-posted information: "One colt with multiple hoof sloughs from the capture was euthanized at the facility.  The colt was from the Black Rock East HMA and has been at the facility more than two weeks. When the colt arrived at the facility it was put in with the general population. A day or two later, the colt started showing acute lameness and was moved to a sick pen. The facility veterinarian noted the colt's two hind hoof soles were bruised, but there was no visible abscess or  infection. The colt was given antibiotic and anti-inflammatory medicine, was kept segregated and contined to be checked by the veterinarian. The colt's hind feet abscessed and the outer hoof wall did separate. The colt was euthanized by the facility veterinarian."

Jan 16, 2010: Today the BLM allowed public viewing of the roundup operation for a whole 1 hr 40 mins - this out of a 10-hour-day operation which, I'm told, starts at sunrise and ends at dusk weather permitting. We will post video of the roundup in the next day or so. Sue Cattoor indicated by day's end 122 horses had been captured.
 
For a BLM update of the Calico victims click here.

TAKE ACTION: STOP OBAMA/SALAZAR PLAN CLICK HERE.
 
Jan 13, 2010 UPDATE: ANOTHER DEATH REPORTED
BLM reports another death has resulted from the Calico roundup. This time a mare (age unknown) was found dead over this past weekend at the Fallon "Indian Lakes" holding facility. The only information provided by the BLM on this latest death follows: "The veterinarian diagnosis is the mare died as the result of dietary feed change." BLM states that bad weather stopped roundup actions on Thu (1/7), Sat-Mon (1/9-1/11).  Sadly, on Tue BLM took 99 horses from their homes on the range and separated them forever from their families. Latest victims include 43 stallions, 34 mares & 21 "weanlings/foals."

Jan 10, 2010 UPDATE:
Sue Cattoor, owner of the roundup company, has notified us that the mare who was killed by BLM on Jan 28, 2010 was not related to the orphaned foal shown below. This does not negate the tragedy that the BLM has inflicted on these two individuals. There is no way to verify any of this information due to the lack of transparency of the BLM . This confusion is the direct result of the BLM's refusal to allow daily public observation of all aspects of the gov't roundup operation.

Jan 8, 2010 UPDATE:
Yesterday the BLM killed another mare claiming "poor body condition." It is unknown if this mare's condition was documented with video and/or photos.  Despite the controversy surrounding the Calico roundup, the BLM did not photo-document the foal or mare who were killed last week.

For updated number of BLM victims click here.

  

UPDATE ON ORPHANED FOAL (Jan. 7, 2010):
 
First the BLM traumatizes this foal by chasing him with helicopters to remove him from his home on the range. Then after the BLM kills his mother by shooting her, they leave this baby by himself overnight at the capture trap site. The next day he is trucked for hours, with other captured horses, to a holding facility where he is put in a pen with two mare/foal pairs. After he bonded with one of the mares - standing near her for comfort and security - the BLM then pulls him away from this mare and puts him by himself in a pen. Once again the BLM claims to be doing this for the "benefit" of the horses. What a sad and tragic story.
  
Photos and text below from www.aowha.org

1/2/10 on-site observation of the new contract horse holding facility in Fallon, NV:  Our horse observations started at the mare and foal pen. Two of the youngsters were still nursing and were in with their dams. The orphan foal appeared to have socially bonded with one of the nursing mares and her foal. The first two photos show the orphan foal on the left and the third shows interesting markings on one of the nursing foals.

www.aowha.org; W./S. Lamm, Jan. 2, 2010

Update from Willis Lamm, January 7, 2010:
 
John Neill promised to provide an update on the "Calico orphan."   I received the following report this morning.
 
Willis, just a quick update on the orphan.  He has been gaining strength each day.  We did relocate him to an adjacent holding pen next to the pairs in order to provide him more nutrition than he would consume through oat hay.  He presently has both oat hay and alfalfa along with BLM formulated pellets for foals. Dr. Sanford and I continue to monitor the health of the animals each day.

TAKE ACTION: STOP OBAMA/SALAZAR PLAN CLICK HERE.

For updated number of BLM victims click here.

APHIS necropsy of foal run to death on Jan. 1, 2010 available click here. On New Year's Day, the BLM rounded up 10 wild horses but only captured 9 because a 6-month old foal died en route. APHIS vet at the scene, Dr. Al Kane, reported that after being chased by the helicopter for "1/2 mile" the little foal was behaving strangely, falling down periodically. It is reported that the pilot radioed Dr. Kane that this foal was having problems; Dr. Kane went out to see the foal who was found dead. Dr. Kane said that he did a necropsy in the field (available below) and indicated he thought the colt has a congenital heart defect.  They left the body in the field and refused to allow the public observers to witness the body. This foal lived his last moments in utter terror, forced to run, falling repeatedly and his family being stampeded away by government-contracted helicopters.

Jan. 5, 2010 UPDATE: The BLM reports that as of yesterday they rounded up 299 wild horses in Calico Complex, Nevada. BLM claims there were two mortalities to date - the 20+ year old mare who was shot to death due to "poor body condition" and the 6-month-old foal who was run to death (see details below). Photos and/or video of the animals killed have been requested; to date the BLM has indicated it is unknown whether any photogenic documentation was taken.

BLM has moved the capture operation from private land in Paiute Meadows Ranch to private land in Soldier Meadows where they will remain for the next two weeks. Daily access for public observation of the roundup activities is being denied and the BLM has selected 3 days each week (for the next 3 weeks) to allow orchestrated public observation. BLM claims staffing constraints as the reason to limiting public observation of this multi-million-dollar government operation.

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