RFP for Off-Range Pastures in the News

A syndicated report about wild horse overpopulation, originating in Cheyenne, WY, appeared today in national news outlets, many of them left-wing rags only too happy to repeat the lies of their precious government.

RFP for Off-Range Pastures in the News-1

A representative of The PZP Channel suggested that shooting wild mares in the ass with contraceptives was better than forcing them off their home range and shipping them to private pastures. Never mind that the land was set aside for them in the 1971 statute (as it exists today, amended by ranching interests).

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The original news release, posted by the BLM on 03/04/19, said the current wild horse and burro population in the western U.S. is “more than triple the number of animals the land can support in conjunction with other legally mandated land uses.”

Refer to the Lexicon if you don’t know the meaning of ‘other mandated uses.’

There is no wild horse overpopulation. It’s nothing more than a bullshit storyline to justify current land-use policies and give cover to the government serfs.

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Camping with the Wild Horses of Shackleford Banks

You’ll find many videos of the Banker Horses where vehicle access is possible but not many of this area due to its location. A real treat! The island appears to be in good condition post Florence. H/T Frecky Knucks.

RELATED: Update on Shackleford Horses.

Cleanup on Aisle Four

The first part of the job was to get the driveway reopened, which was accomplished by cutting the trunk and main branches, and dragging the logs out of the way.

It’s getting so bad out west that when the rain stops for a few hours in the afternoon, we call it a dry day.

RELATED: Bad Tree Day.

Country Kitchen

First Friday of Lent, no meat. Scrambled eggs are good, especially if they’re produced by your own flock (see this video). Other items of interest include meds for the horses, food for the cat and water samples from the well.

Don’t wash free-range eggs until you’re ready to use them.

RELATED: Backyard Chickens – Intro.

Feeling Their Oats

On the Virginia Range with Lauri Duke.

Inmate-Trained Horses and Burros in Arizona

New video about the wild horse and burro training program at the state prison in Florence, AZ, which is sponsored by Arizona Correctional Industries, Bureau of Land Management and the Arizona Department of Corrections.

Inmates are taught how to care for the animals and prepare them for adoption, a process known as ‘gentling.’

Programs like this one have been proven to reduce recidivism, a positive result for the inmates and taxpayers.

The Florence Off-Range Corrals, destination for wild horses and burros removed from public lands in the state, are also on prison grounds.

Nevada Board of Agriculture Meets Tomorrow

The meeting will be held at the Sparks office starting at 9:00 AM, with remote participation from the Elko and Las Vegas offices.

The Virginia Range mustangs are not on the agenda but are likely to be mentioned in the public comments.

These horses are managed at the state level, not subject to oversight by the BLM or Forest Service. They roam on the hills east of Reno.

Eat Your Greens

The mustangs remind you that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, no meat.

Wanted: More Off-Range Pastures for WHB

BLM requested bids today for long-term care of wild horses and burros removed from public lands in the western U.S. A similar request was posted last June.

Facilities must be located in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas (panhandle only), Utah, Washington or Wyoming. Contracts will be awarded for 200 to 5,000 animals, with four-year and nine-year renewal options.

Western rangelands can’t support the current number of wild horses and burros in conjunction with ‘other legally mandated uses,’ according to the news release, a euphemism for ‘privately owned livestock.’

What does this say about the 2019 roundup season? Ten thousand plus?

The forage currently allocated to livestock on public lands managed by the BLM would support 750,000 wild horses and burros, enough to empty all of the off-range corrals and long-term pastures fifteen times over.

UPDATE: See also this report posted today by Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Mustang Monday

Outside the boundaries of Sand Wash Basin HMA with HighStakesRanch.

Bad Tree Day

Too much rain out west. Pine tree appeared to be leaning on 03/02/19, a few hours later it was on the ground. Short video posted to WHW YouTube channel.

Bad Hair Day

Too much rain, too much humidity. Photo taken 03/03/19. BLM mustang adopted in 2015, mom and brother in background.

Barn Fire Kills Four Horses

A fire at Paint’d Horse Stables in Monroe, WA destroyed the main barn and arena on 02/28/19, claiming four horses, two tons of hay and some ranch equipment, according to a report posted today by KIRO-7 News in Seattle.

The facility rescues wild horses from the Yakama Indian Reservation that would otherwise go to slaughter.

The report did not indicate if the deceased animals were locked in stalls.

Sand Wash Stallions

On Sand Wash Basin HMA with Pam Rutherford, before the drought hit in 2018.

Back to the Badlands

On Theodore Roosevelt National Park with Badlands Gypsy. Photo exhibition set for 03/08/19 in Minneapolis.

RELATED: Horses of the Badlands.

UPDATE: See this story about the exhibit in the Hutchinson Leader.

IRRC Expands Propaganda

The remarks from 12:39 to 13:15 in this video demonstrate the arrogance of these people. Everybody bow to the public-lands ranchers, all hail the government serfs!

It’s not their land, it’s their birthright. Share it with anything but wild horses, notably absent in the film.

The aim of the Idaho Rangeland Resource Commission is not to inform and educate, but to brainwash and gloss over those parts of history they don’t want to remember, such as the rancher’s treatment of wild horses over the last hundred years.

Multiple Use Minute

To achieve a ‘thriving ecological balance’ with ‘other uses and values’ on this blog.

Sand Wash Mare Found Dead

The body was spotted near the edge of State Highway 318 in mid February, according to a report posted yesterday by the Craig Press. The cause of death is unknown.

The mare’s home range, in northwestern Colorado, was hit by drought last summer, but the horses survived on water hauled in by volunteers.

North Hills Gather Approved

Today the BLM authorized the removal of 213 wild horses from the North Hills JMA in southwestern Utah. The roundup would occur later this year.

The area, consisting of the North Hills HMA and North Hills WHT, is managed jointly by the BLM and Forest Service. It is northwest of Enterprise.

North Hilla JMA Map-1

The roundup would restore a balance between the horses and other public land resources, according to the news release. Given that livestock grazing occurs on the HMA (but not on the WHT), those resources are probably cattle or sheep.

The distribution of AUMs among the inhabitants of the JMA was not provided in the announcement but odds are that the lion’s share goes to livestock, with some crumbs going to horses and wildlife.

Never mind that the land was set aside for the horses.

UPDATE: Added chart from page 28 in the Decision Record.

North Hills JMA AMU Chart-1

Wild horse AUM consumption, pre-gather, is about 3,000 AUMs per year. Post-gather AUM consumption will be 500 AUMs annually, assuming forty horses remain on the HMA (which puts the herd in the ‘Not Genetically Viable’ category).

Alto Horses Get Warning Signs As SB158 Looms

Flashing beacons were installed along Highway 48 last month but legal protections for the horses could be severely eroded if the legislature allows the New Mexico Livestock Board to manage them. This story by Ruidoso News, posted today, has the details.