The BLM will gather 1,175 wild horses from HMAs affected by the Martin Fire in July of this year, starting on or about September 21, according to a news release issued today.

Of this amount, 875 horses, classified as ‘excess,’ will be permanently removed from the area.  Some mares, no more than 150, will be treated with contraceptives and returned to the range, along with an equal number of stallions.

Helicopters will be used to push the horses into the traps and the operation will be open to public observation.

The fire started near Paradise Valley, NV on 07/04/18 and spread eastward, consuming over 435,000 acres (BLM announcement says 07/09/18).

The Owyhee Complex includes the Little Owyhee, Owyhee, Snowstorm Mountains, Little Humboldt and Rock Creek HMAs.  The complex covers about 1.06 million acres and has a combined AML of 999, for an aimed-at population density of 0.94 animals per thousand acres.

The average population density across all HMAs is one animal per thousand acres.

The announcement did not acknowledge the presence of livestock on these HMAs, nor did it indicate if AUMs would be curtailed as a result of the fire.  Don’t worry though, it’s the oil and mining companies behind this madness.  Those industries require thousands of tons of forage every year to keep their machinery running, and they’re not going to let some stupid horses steal it from them.

Captured animals will be taken the Palomino Valley Corrals north of Reno, NV (already flooded with horses from other roundups), where they will be checked by a veterinarian and prepared for adoption (already saturated with horses from other roundups).

Gather stats and daily reports can be found on this page.

RELATED: BLM Seeks Information on Martin Fire.

About 200 acres have burned, according to a story posted today by The Denver Post, but it has not harmed any horses and they are still able to access water normally.  However, volunteers are concerned that the fire has consumed forage in an area already suffering from drought.

Personnel from Wild Horse Warriors have been hauling water to the Sand Wash horses since July, avoiding an emergency gather.  The HMA covers 157,730 acres in northwest Colorado.

The Tahoe Reno Industrial Center is home to some well known companies, such as Tesla and Walmart.  It’s also home to some Virginia Range mustangs, and TRIC wants to keep it that way.  Refer to this article posted today by The Nevada Independent to see what these and other companies are doing to keep the horses on the range.

Unlike most of the wild horses in Nevada, the Virginia Range mustangs are managed at the state level by the Department of Agriculture.  Like most of the wild horses in the western U.S., they are despised by certain individuals and agencies who believe their numbers should be permanently reduced.

Refer also to the Youtube audio of the Board of Agriculture meeting on 09/05/18 for a discussion of their status and future.

RELATED: Virginia Range Mustangs Back on BOA Agenda.

On Theodore Roosevelt National Park.  H/T Karen King.

Turbidity and pH on target, fit for equine consumption.  They don’t call it Clean Water Way for nothing!  H/T Dr. Jennifer Jewell PhD.

Somewhere along Geiger Grade (road to Virginia City, NV).  H/T April Thompson.

See this story in The Coastland Times, posted today.  Volunteers have not been able to reach the horses at Cape Lookout due to hazardous conditions.

RELATED: Corolla Horses Survive Florence.

At Hidden Valley Regional Park, east of Reno, NV.  H/T Dr. Jennifer Jewell PhD.

See this story in The News & Observer, posted 09/14/18.  No word yet on the condition of herds farther south, such as Rachel Carson Reserve and Shackleford Banks.

RELATED: Banker Horses Shelter in Place.

Experts cannot explain the deaths of thirteen wild horses on the Big Island of Hawaii in June and July of this year, according to a news release posted today by the Department of Agriculture.

All of the sick horses were from one band on the west side of the Waipio Valley.  None of the other bands in the area or any of the trail riding horses were affected.

See also this story in West Hawaii Today.

RELATED: Illness Affecting Waipio Valley Horses Still Not Identified.

BLM announced yesterday that it will remove 652 excess wild horses from the Warm Springs HMA in southeastern Oregon, beginning in early October, to thin the herd and collect test subjects for sterilization research.  Refer to the news release issued by the Burns office.

Helicopters will be used to drive the horses into the traps and the operation will be open to public observation.

The HMA covers 475,460 acres and has an AML of 202, for an aimed-at population density of 0.42 animals per thousand acres.  The average density across all HMAs is one animal per thousand acres.  (The lower the density the higher the wild horse dispersion, which pleases the public-lands ranchers, their cheerleaders, and overlords in the livestock industry.)

The news release stated that the AML was 178, which differs from the figure at the HMA description.

The new AML means even greater wild horse dispersion (0.37 animals per thousand acres, almost nothing).  The announcement did not indicate if livestock were present on the HMA or surrounding lands but a reduction in AML, if true, would further pacify the government dependents and will probably be overlooked by the public.

Captured animals will be taken to the Wild Horse Corral Facility in Hines, OR, where they will be prepared for adoption, or in the case of some of the mares, placed into the hands of the on-site Mengeles, who have been tasked with removal of their ovaries.

Gather stats and daily reports can be found on this page.

This so-called research sets a low-water mark for the BLM, an unelected bureaucracy acting against the wishes of the American people.  They have their fanboys however, who see this effort as another step in the process of nullifying the WHB Act.

Dry conditions persist in some parts of the western U.S.  This is an example of wild horse advocacy, folks.  Shooting mares in the ass with PZP is capitulation.

H/T HighStakesRanch.

RELATED: Water for Sand Wash Horses.

A story posted today in the Craig Press shows how the horses of Sand Wash Basin HMA benefit the local economy.  In a nutshell, people spend money to watch horses: food, fuel, lodging and supplies.  If they have a good experience, they come back and tell a friend.  The informal study was conducted in August.

They survived abandonment and shipwrecks, they’ll survive Florence.  Officials are not overly concerned, according to a story posted today by The Greenville News.

RELATED: Wild Horses of the Outer Banks.

Rain bands are now dumping water on the Banker Horses, as the storm pushes the sea inland.  Conditions will deteriorate as the day progresses.

The track has straightened out a bit and the storm should move inland before drifting to the west.  Flooding and flying objects remain the greatest threat to persons (and horses) in the Outer Banks.  Escape routes will soon be cut off.

RELATED: Left Turn Ahead for Florence.

Ginger Kathrens of The Cloud Foundation hopes to expand the wild horse herd and the land available to them.

“We want to expand the range so we can have a bigger population.  One hundred fifty horses are the bare minimum, genetically.”

See the report posted today by KTVQ in Billings, MT.

RELATED: How Large Should HMAs Be?, Judge Orders Two Week Delay in Pryor Mountains Gather.

The Banker horses will probably be feeling the full effects of the storm Thursday evening, with high winds and major flooding.  Flying debris and falling trees may also be a problem.  Inland waterways probably started to rise today.  Tides will be a factor.

There may be a high pressure system to the north, impeding forward movement and steering the storm down the coast.  The map above, from the NHC, suggests it will retain hurricane strength until Saturday.

RELATED: Florence Landfall Moving South.

Many residents and visitors have evacuated the barrier islands, trying to avoid an uninvited guest named Florence, leaving the horses behind.  This story by WRAL-TV in Raleigh, NC, posted today, is typical of the reporting on these animals last 24 hours.

The storm has deviated slightly from the predicted track, taking it away from the Outer Banks, but it will still have a major impact on the area.

The track has shifted further southward, compared to last night, with landfall now approaching the North/South Carolina state line.  The Banker Horses will still be in the northeast quadrant of the storm, subject to flooding and flying debris, although perhaps with a bit less severity, due to the greater distance from the eye.

Wild horses on the southern end of the Outer Banks, near Cape Lookout (Rachel Carson Reserve and Shackleford Banks), are at greatest risk.

RELATED: Florence Still a Threat to Banker Horses.

Bait trapping ended 09/09/18, with 371 wild horses removed from the Spruce-Pequop HMA in western Nevada, according to a news release issued yesterday.  Nine deaths were reported (2.4%) and no animals were returned to the range.

A foal was born at the temporary holding facility (trap site) on 09/04/18.

Five horses were euthanized due to blindness.

A mare died in the trap after hitting a panel, apparently breaking her neck.

Five geldings were gathered and shipped to Fallon, to be handed over to the State of Nevada as estray animals (which means they will probably be taken to auction and picked up by kill buyers, after attempting to find their owners).

No cattle were harmed in the process?

Gather stats and daily reports can be found at this page.

These actions are not being done out of concern for the horses but for loyalty to the public-lands ranchers and their overlords in the livestock industry.

Links are never provided for applicable grazing allotments and other documentation showing allocation of resources, so interested parties could determine which species is consuming more than its fair share of the available forage, on lands set aside for wild horses and burros.

RELATED: BLM Starts Emergency Gather at Spruce-Pequop.