Refer to page 8 in Division D for a discussion of the WHB program.

Regarding the ‘Path Forward,’ the bill obligates the BLM to develop a “an aggressive, non-lethal population control strategy” for wild horses and burros.

The plan must include:

• The number of additional personnel needed to implement the strategy
• The resources needed to substantially increase the number of animals gathered
• The additional facilities that will be needed to warehouse those animals
• The amount of fertility control needed to minimize future removals

The bill also includes the customary $10 million for range improvements, to be funded by grazing receipts.  Yep, approximately 80% of those fees are plowed back into the program every year, to make life better for the public-lands ranchers.

RELATED: Congress Proposes $21 Million for ‘Path Forward’ in FY 2020.

The omnibus spending bill, to be voted on later this week, includes $21 million for the wild horse management plan, according to a news release by Animal Wellness Action.

RELATED: ‘Path Forward’ Is Not a Trump Administration Proposal!

KIFI News of Idaho Falls reported today that nine mares and fifty two studs captured in last month’s gather have been returned to their home range.  The story did not indicate when they were released.  Mares were treated with PZP.

The large number of males returned to the HMA, relative to females, skews the sex ratio of the herd, slowing population growth.

RELATED: Challis Roundup Ends.

On the Virginia Range, origin of the WHB Act.

The roundup, which starts today, will reduce the herd by about 79%, according to figures supplied in the announcement.  The remaining horses will require 804 AUMs per year, to be provided by the HMA and WHT.

Assuming that 60% of the forage comes from the HMA, based on the relative sizes of the two parcels, then the horses will consume 482 AUMs per year while on the HMA (where livestock grazing is allowed), compared to 1,967 AUMs per year for cattle and sheep.

• 80% of forage to livestock
• 20% of forage to horses

That this is occurring on land on land set aside for the horses is a sure sign that the WHB Act, signed into law 48 years ago today, no longer functions as Velma intended.

RELATED: North Hills Roundup Starts Next Week.

Operations concluded on Thursday, according to the daily reports, with 456 wild horses gathered and 24 returned to the HMA.  One death was reported—a six year old stud was put down on the last day due to a club foot.

Of the horses returned to their home range, ten were treated with contraceptives.

Six horses ran through two fences near the trap site on December 6 but were captured and treated for minor injuries.

RELATED: Desatoya Herd to Be Rightsized Starting Next Week.

Refer to this story about wild horse ‘relocation,’ posted Thursday by the Craig Daily Press of Craig, CO.

The 25 wayward horses are not going back to their HMA.  They’re destined for an off-range corral, where they will be adopted, sold or shipped to long-term holding.

Look at the photo at the beginning of the article.  Is that what you’d expect to see in an area that has too many wild horses?

RELATED: Roundup Near Sand Wash Basin This Month.

This material will be on the final.

RELATED: Resolutions for the New Year.

BLM said today that approximately 250 excess horses will be removed from the North Hills JMA starting December 15.  The operation will be carried out with helicopters and will be open to public observation, according to the news release.

The JMA covers about 84,600 acres in southwestern Utah and includes the North Hills HMA and North Hills WHT.  BLM manages the area jointly with the Forest Service.

The combined AML is 60, accounting for 720 AUMs per year.  The AML for the HMA is 36, requiring 432 AUMs per year.

The HMA intersects five grazing allotments that provide 1,967 AUMs per year for cattle and sheep inside the HMA, per Section 3.2 of the final EA.

Livestock grazing does not occur in the WHT.

Captured animals will be taken to the off-range corrals in Axtell.

Gather stats and daily reports will be posted to this page.

RELATED: North Hills Gather Plan Inches Closer to Implementation.

Horses younger than ten years of age at the Double Devil Corrals are available for $25 each through January 9, according to a report by the Herald and News of Klamath Falls, OR, after which the price falls to $1 each.

These animals were offered unsuccessfully for adoption three times and have now been placed on the clearance rack, as stipulated in the Burns Amendment.

They were removed from the WHT in September and October.

RELATED: Devil’s Garden Horses Get Short End of Stick.

UPI said today that tomorrow is the last day for Washington-based employees to decide if they are moving west in the planned reorganization.

The Government Accounting Office will review the plan to see if it delivers the intended benefits, according to the report.

RELATED: BLM Relocation Moves Ahead.

Earlier this week County Commissioners authorized the removal of 300 to 500 stray horses from rangelands in eastern Utah, according to a report by Deseret News.

The decision was based on public safety concerns and the condition of the horses.

Unclaimed animals will be transferred to a sale barn in Ballard, where they could be picked up by kill buyers.

Public lands in the county were zeroed out for wild horses in 2001.

The story did not indicate if livestock grazing occurs in the area.

BLM said today that approximately 25 wild horses will be gathered and removed from private lands east of the Sand Wash Basin HMA, sometime this month.

The announcement did not indicate any public safety issues involving the horses and if the roundup was authorized on an emergency basis.

The HMA covers 157,730 acres in northwestern Colorado and has and AML of 363.

The operation will be carried out with bait traps and captured animals will be taken to the off-range corrals in Rock Springs, WY.  The news release did not say if it will be open to public observation (probably not).

A link to the gather stats and daily reports was not provided.

The horses are thought to have strayed from the HMA, where they are subject to humane management practices, according to the news release.

Prior to 1971, the ranchers would remove wild horses from the public lands, then graze their cattle.  The Wild Horse Act prevented them from continuing this practice, the wild horse populations burgeoned, and the horses consumed forage and water that had previously been available to cattle.

Source, page 7.

On the Salt River (Coon Bluff) with Allie Johns.