Earlier this week, BLM released a fact sheet for public lands in Oregon and Washington during FY 2019.

Key management indicators can be computed for the wild horse and burro program in Oregon, using data on page 29 of the pdf.  (There are no HMAs in Washington.)

Animals allowed by plan = 2,697 (some burros present but assumed to be 100% horses)

Authorized land = 2,698,902 acres

Current population = 5,878 (assumed to be 100% horses)

Required forage allocation = 2,697 × 12 = 32,364 AUMs per year

Current herd size  = 5,878 ÷ 2,697 = 2.2X AML

Stocking rate allowed by plan = 2,697 ÷ 2,698,902 × 1,000 = 1 horse per thousand acres

What about livestock?  Unfortunately, the data provided on page 30 don’t include the acreage designated for grazing and the average grazing season.

The number of cow/calf pairs can be estimated if you guess the grazing season but the stocking rate can’t be determined.

Authorized forage = 659,201 + 69,141 = 728,342 AUMs per year

Grazing season = 6 months (assumed)

Authorized herd size = 728,342 ÷ 6 = 121,390 cow/calf pairs

Stocking rate allowed by plan = ?

Livestock receive 22 times more forage than horses.  But a more detailed comparison of management practices in Oregon is not possible, thanks to the missing numbers.

“The answer is … PZP for humane fertility control,” according to the writer of a letter to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

That’s right.  Minimize the horses so their land can be managed primarily for livestock.

You go, girl.

RELATED: Future of Wild Horses in Hands of U.S. Senate?

We know that cattle and sheep are intelligent, hard working and dedicated to the improvement of western rangelands, so they should be recognized for their efforts.

Unlike wild horses and burros, who are destroying their habitat.

What’s the difference?  Human involvement.

Are local advocacy groups allowed to participate?

No!  You only need to look at the Sinbad roundup to see what happens when volunteers try to help wild horses and burros.

Every year, 50% of grazing receipts or $10 million, whichever is greater, goes back into the program for rangeland improvements.  Wells, tanks and water lines, road, fence and gate repairs, etc.  Other funds go to predator management and vegetation control.

In exchange, the ranchers pay the government almost nothing.

What’s invested in the WHB program?

The news release sounds like a mutual admiration society.  The president of the Public Lands Council, a cheerleader group for the public-lands ranchers, said “Grazing on federal lands is a critical part of our country’s food supply…,” which it isn’t.

You could end the program tomorrow and nobody would notice.

Only a few seconds earlier she had been digging it into his gums, spurring him on to victory.  Then the bit broke—allowing him to give her some feedback on her riding style.

He bolted from the arena, with her on top, down the driveway and over to a busy highway, according to a story posted this morning by the Nashville Tennessean.

He ran wild for 15 minutes but does not appear to be a wild horse.  The incident stopped with the help of a firefighter and nobody was hurt.

But what will happen to the horse?

The following remarks were delivered at the October 2019 WHBAB meeting by a representative of the Society for Range Management, an organization that believes rangelands should be used for livestock grazing and not much else.

Although the group accepts wild horses and burros on those lands, they insist that their numbers be limited to those that existed when the WHB Act became law (0:23 to 0:36).

This is where they’re going with the ‘Path Forward.’

We know from President Nixon’s remarks that only 9,500 wild horses and 11,000 wild burros remained on western rangelands in 1971.  That’s equivalent to 15,000 wild horses today on 27 million acres, for a stocking rate of 0.6 horses per thousand acres.

A number that low means only one thing: Large amounts of forage diverted to privately owned livestock.

No new laws are required.  Just enforce the plans that are already on the books.

RELATED: ‘Path Forward’ Extinction Target.

So says the writer of an opinion piece published this morning by the Las Vegas Sun.

Written by the director of field operations for AWHC, it’s just another attempt to push the PZP Amendment through Congress, an idea so good that even the Rolling Stones would support it.

This is the same guy who’s coordinating the Virginia Range darting program.  A former BLM employee, he’s 100% on board with the overpopulation narrative.

Never let the facts get in the way of a good story, especially if you’re a big-name ‘advocacy’ group with a hidden agenda.

Truth is, the helicopters are flying because most of the resources in wild horse areas have been diverted to privately owned livestock.  And, apparently, AWHC doesn’t give a damn about that.  Just keep the PZP supply chain moving.

Would you be surprised if they take money from ranching interests?  The organization needs a thorough house cleaning, starting at the top.