Piceance Roundup, Day 27

The incident started on August 2.  Results through August 28:

• Scope: Piceance-East Douglas HMA, West Douglas HA
• Target: Horses
• AML: 235
• Pre-gather population: 1,145
• Type: Planned
• Method: Helicopter
• Category: Cruel and costly (according to advocates)
• Better way: Destroy the breeding population with PZP (according to advocates)
• Capture goal: 1,025
• Removal goal: 1,011
• Captured: 859, up from 844 on Day 25
• Shipped: 792, up from 791 on Day 25
• Released: None
• Deaths: 7, no change from Day 25
• Average daily take: 31.8
• Unaccounted-for animals: 60
• Snippet from statute: It is the policy of Congress that wild free-roaming horses and burros shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death
• Snippet from manual: To protect wild horses and burros from unauthorized capture, branding, harassment or death

The figures above are based on the daily reports.

The death rate is 0.8%.

Productivity hit a new low on Day 27 with no horses captured.

The capture total included 343 stallions, 353 mares and 163 foals.

Youngsters represented 19.0% of the animals gathered, enough to support a herd growth rate of 14% per year.

Of the adults, 49.3% were male and 50.7% were female, no indication of an abnormal sex ratio.

Body condition scores on Day 26 were 4.

The location of the trap site was not disclosed.

The contractor is CD Warner and the contract amount is $679,249 according to a report at USA Spending.

The area is subject to permitted grazing.  Resources liberated to date:

• Forage: 10,308 AUMs per year
• Water: 8,590 gallons per day

The West Douglas HA is unfit for wild horses, supposedly, and has no AML.

PREVIOUS: Piceance Roundup, Day 25.

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