Twin Peaks Roundup, Day 3

The incident began on July 23.  Gather stats through July 25:

• Target: Horses and burros
• Type: Planned
• Method: Helicopter
• Category: Cruel and costly
• Horses captured: 588, up from 231 on Day 1
• Burros captured: 2, up from zero on Day 1
• Average daily take: 196 horses, 0.7 burros
• Capture goal: 1,978 horses, 339 burros
• Removal goal: 1,868 horses, 339 burros
• Returned: None, no change from Day 1
• Horse deaths: 6, up from 2 on Day 1
• Burro deaths: None, no change from Day 1
• Horses shipped: 366, up from 104 on Day 1
• Burros shipped: 1, up from zero on Day 1

A foal died on Day 2 after collapsing in the pen due to pneumonia.  Three horses were put down on Day 3.  An incident in the trap resulted in the escape of ten horses.

The horse death rate is 1.0%.

The horse total includes 228 stallions, 266 mares and 94 foals.

Youngsters represented 16.0% of the horses captured.  Of the adults, 46.2% were male and 53.8% were female.

The herd can’t be growing at a rate of 20% per year, a figure used by land managers to predict herd sizes, with a birth rate of 16%.

Body condition scores on Day 3 ranged from 4 to 5.

Trapping continued at Bull Flat in Lassen County.

The HMA is subject to permitted grazing.

Day 3 ended with 216 unaccounted-for horses and 1 unaccounted-for burro.

Mares treated with fertility control will be returned to the area at a later date.

Other statistics:

• AML: 758 horses and 116 burros, equivalent to 816 horses
• Forage assigned to horses and burros: 9,792 AUMs per year
• Pre-gather population: 3,316 horses and 401 burros, equivalent to 3,516 horses
• Forage liberated to date: 7,068 AUMs per year
• Water liberated to date: 5,890 gallons per day
• Forage assigned to livestock: 27,178 AUMs per year (estimated)
• Animals displaced from HMA by permitted grazing: 2,264 horses
• True AML: 3,022 horses and 116 burros, equivalent to 3,080 horses
• Stocking rate at new AML: 4.1 horses per thousand acres
• Horses displaced from HMA by drilling and mining: Ask the advocates

RELATED: Twin Peaks Roundup in Progress.