Owyhee Roundup, Day 5

The incident began on September 6. Results through September 10:

Scope: Black Mountain, Hardtrigger, Sands Basin HMAs
Purpose: Pest control, resource enforcement, rancher protection
Target: Horses
Type: Planned
Method: Helicopter
Category: Cruel and costly*
Better way: Poison mares with ovary-killing pesticides*
Captured: 215, up from 177 on Day 3
Average daily take: 43.0
Capture goal: 220
Removal goal: 142
Returned: None
Deaths: 1, no change from Day 3
Shipped: 214, up from 176 on Day 3

The figures above are based on the daily reports, not the totals posted by the BLM.

Gather results for Day 3 were changed from 25 stallions and 40 mares to 26 stallions and 39 mares. No change to foals.

Trapping occurred at Hardtrigger on Day 4 and Sands Basin on Day 5.

The death rate is 0.5%.

The capture total includes 71 stallions, 87 mares and 57 foals.

Youngsters represented 26.5% of the animals gathered.

Of the adults, 44.9% were male and 55.1% were female.

Body condition scores were not given.

The HMAs and surrounding lands are subject to permitted grazing.

*According to advocates.

Day 5 ended with no unaccounted-for animals.

Operations will likely conclude this week.

Up to 38 mares will be treated with GonaCon Equine, a fertility control pesticide, and be returned to the area with up to 40 stallions.

Other statistics:

Forage liberated to date: 2,580 AUMs per year
Water liberated to date: 2,150 gallons per day
Forage assigned to livestock: Undetermined
Horses displaced from area by permitted grazing: Undetermined
True AML: Undetermined
Stocking rate at new AML: Undetermined
Horses removed because of drilling and mining: Ask the advocates

Overpopulation means more horses than allowed by plan, not necessarily more horses than the land can support.

RELATED: Owyhee Roundup, Day 3.

Clan Alpine Pesticide Discussion Falls Short

In Section 2.2.2 of the Final EA, the BLM acknowledges that Zonastat-H is a pesticide, but not a restricted-use pesticide, meaning it can only be used by certified applicators for purposes identified on the label. Go to page 26 in the pdf.

Controlling wild horse populations that pose safety hazards to motorists and/or interfere with animal agriculture is not an approved use.

Application of the product in those circumstances is unlawful.

Regarding GonaCon Equine, the agency cites the 2013 and 2015 registrations, while ignoring the 2017 update.

GonaCon-Equine is approved for use by authorized federal, state, tribal, public and
private personnel, for application to wild and feral equids in the United States (EPA 2013, 2015).

The 2017 amendment dropped the RUP designation and extended the interval between primer and booster to 90 days, which the BLM routinely ignores.

The Reveille HMA is a recent example.

When will law enforcement hold the bureaucrats and nonprofits to account?

Mustang Monday

At the Pryor Mountain WHR with Lori’s Travels.

Comment Period Starts for Big Sandy Pest Control Plan?

The project description says the BLM has prepared an environmental assessment for burro control at the Big Sandy, Alamo and Lake Havasu HMAs, and comments can be submitted through October 11, but it has not been copied to the documents folder.

Devil’s Garden Roundup, Day 6

The Forest Service is not providing a running record of the incident, only the latest results, so a breakdown of the numbers is not possible.

Forty-two horses have been captured through September 9.

The goal is 500.

The number of horses shipped was not reported.

The total number of deaths is unknown.

The percentages of males, females and foals cannot be determined.

Body condition scores on Day 6 averaged 5.

Operations began on September 4.

RELATED: Devil’s Garden Roundup Begins.

Owyhee Roundup, Day 3

The incident began on September 6. Results through September 8:

Scope: Black Mountain, Hardtrigger, Sands Basin HMAs
Purpose: Pest control, resource enforcement, rancher protection
Target: Horses
Type: Planned
Method: Helicopter
Category: Cruel and costly*
Better way: Poison mares with ovary-killing pesticides*
Captured: 177, up 24 on Day 1
Average daily take: 59.0
Capture goal: 220
Removal goal: 142
Returned: None
Deaths: 1, no change from Day 1
Shipped: 176, up from 23 on Day 1

The figures above are based on the daily reports, not the totals posted by the BLM.

Trapping occurred at Black Mountain on Day 2 and Hardtrigger on Day 3.

The death rate is 0.6%.

The capture total includes 56 stallions, 74 mares and 47 foals.

Youngsters represented 26.6% of the animals gathered.

Of the adults, 43.1% were male and 56.9% were female.

Body condition scores were not given.

The HMAs and surrounding lands are subject to permitted grazing.

*According to advocates.

Day 3 ended with no unaccounted-for animals.

Up to 38 mares will be treated with GonaCon Equine, a fertility control pesticide, and be returned to the area with up to 40 stallions.

Other statistics:

Forage liberated to date: 2,124 AUMs per year
Water liberated to date: 1,770 gallons per day
Forage assigned to livestock: Undetermined
Horses displaced from area by permitted grazing: Undetermined
True AML: Undetermined
Stocking rate at new AML: Undetermined
Horses removed because of drilling and mining: Ask the advocates

Overpopulation means more horses than allowed by plan, not necessarily more horses than the land can support.

RELATED: Owyhee Roundups in Progress?

West Douglas Roundup Ends

The incident concluded today with 122 horses captured, 117 shipped, none released and four dead.

There was one unaccounted-for animal.

122 – 117 – 0 – 4 = 1

More foals were shipped than caught.

West Douglas Final Results 09-09-23

Youngsters represented 17.2% of the horses captured.

Of the adults, 56.4% were male and 43.6% were female.

A 17% birth rate corresponds to a 12% growth rate.

The HA is unfit for wild horses, supposedly, but well-suited for livestock.

BLM, MHF Part Ways, TIP Ending

The agency will not renew its partnership with the Mustang Heritage Foundation for FY 2024, according to a story dated September 8 by Horse Network.

All animals currently in the Trainer Incentive Program must be placed into private care no later than September 30 or be returned to the BLM by October 1.

The decision follows an announcement last month to spend more taxpayer money on fertility control pesticides, to the delight of the wild horse advocates.

If those efforts succeed, there won’t be any more mustangs to adopt.

Dust-Up in the Desert Reviewed

Was it truly a presentation of opposing viewpoints or simply a dispute about fine points between two factions of the same coalition?

Three reports have hit the wires in the last 24 hours:

Hansen wants the horses removed with helicopters and Beckstead wants them removed with ovary-killing pesticides.

Are wild horses overpopulated in Nevada? Yes, there are more animals than allowed by plan.

Are there more horses than the land can support? No, most of the resources in their lawful homes have been assigned to privately owned livestock. If you confine the ranchers to their (multi-million dollar) base properties in a year-round off season, and expect them to pay the going rate to feed their animals, there would be plenty of food and water for the horses.

As of this morning, video of the debate has not been posted to the AWA YouTube channel.

PSA 12-07-19

BLM Publishes Clan Alpine Final Planning Documents

The FONSI, DR and EA were copied to the project folder yesterday.

The Carson City District Manager selected Alternative 1 in the EA, the Proposed Action, authorizing forcible removal of excess animals to achieve low AML, sex ratio skewing in favor of males and treatment of mares with immunocontraceptive pesticides over a ten-year period.

The decision, effective immediately, does not mean a roundup is imminent.

Refer to Table 3 in the EA for a summary of the alternatives. Section 2.2.2 looks at the Proposed Action in detail.

The new plan aligns with three goals of rangeland management:

Pest control
Resource enforcement
Rancher protection

Forage allocations and management priorities are determined by the land-use plans, not wild horse gather decisions.

AML-1

Identity of High Desert Strategies Revealed

The group received almost half of the $1 million awarded by the BLM in August to manage and protect wild horses and burros.

The nonprofit is a collaboration between the BLM and ranchers, according to a story dated September 8 by the Malheur Enterprise.

These stewards of the public lands are poisoning mares with GonaCon Equine in four Oregon HMAs, indicated in the first part of the August 28 roundup schedule for nonmotorized removals.

West Douglas Roundup Over?

As of today, 122 horses have been captured, 85 have been shipped, none have been released and four have been euthanized.

That leaves 33 unaccounted-for animals.

The gather page says it’s over but that may correspond to aerial operations only.

RELATED: West Douglas Roundup, Day 7.

Virginia Range Darting Update for August 2023

The Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, a leader in nonmotorized removal, said in the August update that 116 mares received 116 doses of PZP during the month, 27 given as a primer and 89 as a booster. If you can’t access the document, click here.

Over the life of the program, 1,940 mares have received 8,027 doses of the pesticide.

The report will be submitted to the Nevada Department of Agriculture.

If it was written by a stockgrower’s association, farm bureau or cattlemen’s group, there’d be few if any changes.

Of the 158 foals born this year in the primary target zone, a record low, 74 have died.

The causes of death were not discussed but predation is likely a factor.

As usual, the advocates are silent about the long-term population goal and how many horses they intend to eradicate, as well as herd demographics. What does the sex ratio look like nowadays?

There is no mention of sterility and the growing risk thereof.

The current population is thought to be 3,559, including 395 listed as missing.

Pesticide Pushers 07-17-23

Clan Alpine Decision Published?

A BLM news release dated September 7 said the DR and Final EA had been posted to the project folder but, as of this morning, your host can’t find them.

Curiously, an HMAP from the early 1990s was copied to the folder, ratifying livestock use in the HMA and demonstrating compliance with the RMP. Go to page 7 in the pdf.

Some advocates believe HMAPs are the answer to wild horse problems.

Foal-Free Friday, Fundamental Transformation Edition

The Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, a leader in nonmotorized removal, said in a news flash posted by Lucky Three Ranch that the Cedar Mountain mustangs will never have to face the helicopters again, thanks to a new BLM grant.

This will be accomplished by turning the HMA into an HTA, a place where the mares are gradually poisoned with PZP, a restricted-use pesticide.

The project brings together diverse stakeholders, according to the announcement, including the Utah BLM, one of the permittees and CAAWH.

Except there’s no diversity in that group—it’s the Love Triangle!

With shared goals of humanely managing the Cedar Mountain horses, stewarding their habitat and eventually eliminating helicopter roundups, it’s “a model for collaboration in the wild horse conservation space.”

Working Together for a Horse-Free Future 12-21-22

West Douglas Roundup, Day 7

The incident started on September 1.

Eleven horses were taken on Day 6, followed by 12 on Day 5, bringing the total to 116.

The goal is 122.

A stallion with an infected abscess was put down on Day 6 and another stallion with lameness was euthanized on Day 7, boosting the total number of deaths to four and the death rate to 3.4%.

To date, 85 horses have been shipped and none have escaped, leaving 27 unaccounted-for animals.

Foals represented 18.1% of the horses captured.

Of the adults, 54.7% were male and 45.3% were female.

Operations will likely conclude this week.

RELATED: West Douglas Roundup, Day 5.

West Douglas HA with Allotments 08-28-23

What Is a Herd Treatment Area?

As envisioned by the Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, it’s a place where

Advocates poison cherished/beloved/innocent mares with ovary-killing pesticides
Ranchers receive most of the food and water
Donors pay for the destruction

Forget about HMAs and managing principally for wild horses, those ideas are as old and irrelevant as the Ten Commandments.

For Your Innocent Ants and Roaches 10-23-22

Owyhee Roundups in Progress?

A report by KIVI News says operations began today in the Black Mountain HTA* with one foal lost but, as of this evening, results have not been posted to the gather page.

In an effort to protect genetic viability, the BLM will reintroduce 38 mares treated with ovary-killing pesticides, according to the story.

Yep, you heard it here first.

*Herd Treatment Area.

RELATED: Owyhee Roundups Announced.

UPDATE: The gather page indicates 24 horses captured on Day 1, with 23 shipped, none released and one dead due to a broken neck.

Winners of 2023 Stewardship Awards Announced

The bureaucrats and ranchers will be slobbering over each other today in a luncheon hosted by the Public Lands Council.

The event is part of the 2023 PLC Annual Meeting.

The winners of the Rangeland Stewardship Award, Permittee Category, divided the Apex Slope Allotment into ten pastures and implemented grazing practices better adapted to changing conditions and pasture rotations based on rangeland health, according to a BLM news release dated September 5.

Although the work contributed to improved watershed function, wildlife habitat, forage diversity and habitat resilience, the Allotment Master Report puts it in the Improve category, failure to meet standards for rangeland health.

The allotment offers 622 active AUMs on 12,953 public acres, or 48 AUMs per year per thousand public acres, equivalent to four wild horses per thousand public acres.

These same individuals insist that public lands in the western U.S. can only support one wild horse per thousand acres (27,000 animals on 27 million acres).

The winners of the Rangeland Innovation Award, Permittee Category, have used holistic resource management for over thirty years, consistently adjusting livestock numbers to changes in climatic and vegetative conditions, and have implemented temporary non-renewable grazing suited for positive resource conditions, higher precipitation years and increased biomass.

The allotment, not named in the announcement but determined through RAS, is MT04903-HRM, managed by the Billings Field Office.

The Allotment Master Report puts it in the Maintain category, meeting standards for rangeland health.

The allotment offers a whopping 1,752 active AUMs on 6,734 public acres, or 260 AUMs per year per thousand public acres, equivalent to over 21 wild horses per thousand public acres!

It’s a gold mine.

And how much does the BLM collect in royalties? Five cents on the dollar or less.

Like Cinderella, some advocates, especially those affiliated with the Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, a leader in nonmotorized removal, yearn to attend an event like this and be respected and admired by the cattlemen and their allies.

Perhaps they will.

They might be invited guests.