Coalition Asks Wildlife Board to Support Anti-Horse Agenda

The Douglas County Advisory Board to Manage Wildlife took no action at its February 27 meeting regarding a letter prepared by the Coalition for Healthy Nevada Lands, Wildlife and Free-Roaming Horses, according to a story dated March 1 by The Record-Courier of Minden, NV.

A copy of the letter, seeking a reduction of wild horses on public lands. was not included in the report.

Advocates attending the meeting came not as spokesmen for the horses but as defenders of humane management.

They noted that the Coalition pushes for the removal of wild horses to the point they would no longer be genetically viable, yet that’s exactly what they’ve done with their ruinous darting program.

Although there are around 80 wild horses in the Fish Springs herd, Western Horse Watchers suspects the breeding population is now in the single digits.

The sex ratio is likely skewed in favor of females.

The number of viable mares is unknown.

The Pine Nut advocates receive material support from the Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, leader of the blind and recognized expert in nonmotorized removal.

Mustang Monday

In Cold Creek, NV with matt heitzman.

FREES Abstracts Due March 15

They must contain 250 words or less according to an undated notice.

Presenters will be notified of acceptance by April 1.

The conference provides an opportunity for advocates to stop pretending that they care about wild horses and declare their fealty to the public-lands ranchers.

Advocates Bawling About Removal of McCullough Filly

They say she’s too young to be separated from her mom, according to a story dated March 2 by Cowboy State Daily.

Are they upset because the government is getting rid of the horses and not them?

Getting Rid of Wild Horses Is Our Job 10-14-23

The article said the youngster was taken on February 22 but the report for that day shows no foals captured or removed.

Most folks in the horse world would not refer to a six-month-old female as a mare.

The Allotments Tell the Story: They’re Lying, All of Them

Public lands in the western U.S. can only support one wild horse per thousand acres according to the bureaucrats, ranchers and advocates (27,000 animals on 27 million acres).

A corollary is that public lands in the western U.S. can only produce 12 AUMs per year per thousand acres.

But in case after case, the latest being the base properties offered by Harry Ranch, the data show otherwise.

The allotments tied to those parcels produce enough forage to sustain from five to seven times as many wild horses.

This is the dirty little secret of rangeland management.

The roundups, darting programs and outplacement services are not necessary.

They were contrived to protect the ranchers.

Consider the undated infographic for the WHB program in FY23, especially the list of new partners at the bottom of page one.

They are defeatists, pesticide pushers and ranching sympathizers.

How do you oppose the juggernaut?

Use their own data against them.

That means having a basic understanding of the National Data Viewer, the Allotment Master Report and some simple arithmetic.

The other option is to throw in with the Love Triangle and kiss the herds goodbye.

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

Voices of Defeat

This result appeared today in a Google search for “wild mustangs.”

Voices of Defeat 03-01-24

Are you surprised that it was posted to a site controlled by the Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses?

The underlying assumption is that wild horses and burros need to be removed from their lawful homes (in favor of privately owned livestock).

This is the sound of defeat, a defining characteristic of wild horse advocacy.

Western Horse Watchers would rather see the WHB Act restored to its original form, the ranchers confined to their base properties and the advocates banned from areas identified for wild horses and burros.

Socialist Media Update for February 2024

Looks like Western Horse Watchers is still in the doghouse on socialist media.

Traffic from Facebook and Twitter accounted for 6.7% of the total during the month, down considerably from the same period two years ago.

A contributing factor might be the designation of your host as a right-wing extremist or domestic terrorist.

Traffic from Socialist Media February 2024 03-01-24

Foal-Free Friday, Scribes and Pharisees Edition

They love to be greeted with respect in the marketplace and to be called “Teacher.”

They love the best places at festivals and the reserved seats at conferences and seminars.

They do everything for show.

On the outside they appear to be good but on the inside they’re full of hypocrisy and lies.

They boast about their conservation and rescue efforts but when you’re not looking, they’re poisoning the mares with ovary-killing pesticides.

They’ll do anything to win the approval of the bureaucrats and ranchers, including the sterilization of entire herds, such as those at the Salt River and Virginia Range.

Protect Wild Horses from Advocates 08-29-21

They want the ranchers to win.

They are the wild horse advocates, the old guard, leaders of the blind.

Stop the Helicopters But Not the Poisons!

The Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses may have shed its skin, like the serpent it is, but its message is the same: Replace motorized removal with nonmotorized removal.

Totally self-serving.

Tomorrow, on National Horse Protection Day, these charlatans want you to tell your elected representatives to support the Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act, according to their news release, which would ban the use of helicopters and expand their pest control business.

The right thing to do is kick these buffoons to the curb and tell your representatives that you want the WHB Act restored to its original form so areas identified for wild horses and burros will be managed principally for them, not privately owned cattle and sheep.

RELATED: CAAWH Rebranding.

Calling it a Vaccine 05-01-23

Nevada Lands Council Seeks Answer to Wild Horse Problem?

The group hosted a panel discussion in Reno last week according to a story posted today by The Nevada Independent.

The theme was “Keeping the search for a solution alive.”

The aim of NLC is unknown.

The nonprofit is based in Elko and has a presence on socialist media.

CAAWH Rebranding

The Campaign Against America’s Wild Horses, leader of the blind and recognized expert in nonmotorized removal, now refers to itself as American Wild Horse Conservation.

CAAWH Rebranding 02-29-24

Apparently, they think that beating the numbers down with Zonastat-H is preservation, a fine example of doublethink.

Pesticide Pushers 07-17-23

McCullough Roundup, Day 37

The incident started on January 22. Results through February 27:

Scope: McCullough Peaks HMA
Target: Horses
Method: Bait
Type: Planned
Goals: Gather 80, remove 35
Captured: 48, up from 37 on Day 34
Shipped: 9, no change from Day 34
Released: 35, up from 27 on Day 34
Deaths: 1, no change from Day 34
Average daily take: 1.3
Unaccounted-for animals: 3

The figures above are based on the daily reports.

The Day 37 report said three more horses were removed, bringing the total to 13.

To check this value, subtract the horses released from the horses captured:

Removed = Captured – Released = 48 – 35 = 13

The roundup continues to have a high churn rate. The capture-to-remove ratio is 3.7:1, compared to a target of 2.3:1.

Some animals may have been caught more than once.

The death rate is 2.1%.

The location of the trap site was not disclosed.

The HMA is subject to permitted grazing.

Forage liberated to date: 156 AUMs per year
Water liberated to date: 130 gallons per day

The National Data Viewer shows habitat loss and overlapping allotments. Click on map to open in new tab.

An estimated 535 wild horses have been displaced from their lawful home by permitted grazing, making the True AML almost five times higher than the current AML.

The roundup supports three tenets of rangeland management.

RELATED: McCullough Roundup, Day 34.

Harry Ranch Selling Oregon Base Properties

Originally part of the Lucky 7 Ranch, two other ranches in the same area have been split off and are now on the market.

Ten Mile – 2,512 deeded acres, $7 million
Vance – 2,662 deeded acres, $9 million

That puts the grazing preference on the Sherburn and Fifteen Mile Community allotments in play.

The Operator Information and Allotment Information reports at RAS associate two grazing authorizations and four allotments with Harry Ranch LLC in Oregon.

3600203 – FIFTEEN MILE COMMUNITY, SHERBURN
3603721 – TRAILING PERMIT, CAMPBELL

Campbell is tied to Lucky 7, discussed yesterday.

Vance grazes Fifteen Mile and Ten Mile uses Sherburn.

The Allotment Master Report puts Fifteen Mile in the Improve category, with 20,960 active AUMs on 309,316 public acres.

That works out to 67.8 AUMs per year per thousand public acres, equivalent to 5.6 wild horses per thousand public acres.

BLM staff claim that public lands in the western U.S. can only support one wild horse per thousand acres (27,000 animals on 27 million acres).

Vance shares the allotment with four other permittees and receives 26.7% of the total forage.

Sherburn is in the Maintain category with 3,771 active AUMs on 46,983 public acres, equivalent to 6.7 wild horses per thousand public acres.

Ten Mile receives all of the authorized forage.

The trailing permit covers movement of livestock from one area to another.

As an alternative to cattle grazing, the new owners could ask the BLM for a change in livestock type and season of use so horses could roam the land, as American Prairie did for bison in Montana.

Yellow Creek Grazing Permit Up for Renewal

The allotment covers about a third of the Piceance HMA in western Colorado, where the advocates are poisoning the mares with Gonacon Equine.

The Allotment Master Report puts it in the Improve category, with 2,157 active AUMs on 63,191 public acres.

The Draft EA identifies three alternatives for consideration.

The management plan authorizes 85 wild horses in this part of the HMA according to Section 5.1.2, equivalent to 1,020 AUMs per year, while livestock receive twice as much.

The project folder contains no other documents.

Comments will be accepted through February 29.

Lake Pleasant Roundup, Day 22

The incident started on February 5. Results through February 26:

Scope: Lake Pleasant HMA
Target: Burros
Type: Planned
Method: Bait trap
Goals: Gather 400, remove 400
Captured: 144, up from 101 on Day 16
Shipped: 93, no change from Day 16
Released: None
Deaths: 3, down from 4 on Day 16
Average daily take: 6.5
Unaccounted-for animals: 48

The figures above are based on the daily reports.

The two deaths reported on Day 16 have been zeroed out.

A jack was dispatched on Day 22 for a broken leg.

The death rate is 2.1%.

The capture total includes 66 jacks, 61 jennies and 17 foals.

Youngsters represented 11.8% of the animals gathered.

Of the adults, 52.0% were male and 48.0% were female.

The HA and HMA are the same size. The area is subject to permitted grazing.

Forage liberated to date: 864 AUMs per year
Water liberated to date: 720 gallons per day

There are no plans to treat any of the jennies with fertility control pesticides and return them to the HMA.

The roundup will remove animals that are damaging private property and creating a public safety hazard, purposes for which PZP was not authorized.

The incident supports three tenets of rangeland management.

RELATED: Lake Pleasant Roundup, Day 16.

McDermitt Base Property Available for $20 Million

Lucky 7 Ranch covers approximately 6,700 deeded acres in Oregon and Nevada, with grazing preference the Campbell Allotment. according to the listing.

Most of the private land is on the west side of Highway 95 near McDermitt, NV.

A smaller parcel is at the south end of the allotment and another is at the north end.

The map shows the private acreage with black borders.

The allotment is shaded yellow.

The Allotment Master Report puts it in the Maintain category, with 14,160 active AUMs on 158,957 public acres.

That works out to 89.1 AUMs per year per thousand public acres, equivalent to 7.4 wild horses per thousand public acres.

This brings more distress to the bureaucrats and ranchers, who claim 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 new owner could ask the BLM for a change in livestock type and season of use so wild horses could roam the area, as American Prairie did for bison in Montana.

How Many Wild Horses Can the Riddle Mountain HMA Support?

The HMA covers 32,666 total acres in eastern Oregon, including 28,331 public acres, according to the 2023 HA/HMA Report.

The 56 horses allowed by plan receive 672 AUMs per year.

The stocking rate allowed by plan is two wild horses per thousand public acres.

The land must be able to produce at least 23.7 AUMs per year per year per thousand public acres to sustain the horses.

Can it produce more?

The HMA intersects one allotment.

Chapter IIIB in a 2011 EA for pest control and resource enforcement identifies it as Burnt Flat.

Table 2 says 99% of the allotment is inside the HMA, which seems reasonable based on the arrangement in the National Data Viewer.

The allotment boundary includes some private lands the HMA does not.

The Allotment Master Report provides management status, acreage and active AUMs.

Riddle Mountain Allotment Calcs 02-26-24

Although it’s in the Improve category, the allotment offers an estimated 3,824 AUMs per year to livestock inside the HMA, compared to 672 AUMs per year for wild horses.

How is that possible? It’s the same land!

A guiding principle in developing the land-use plan, apparently, was that the ranchers would prosper, not the horses, even though it’s the lawful home of wild horses.

The forage assigned to livestock would support 318 wild horses, on top of the 56 allowed by plan, for a True AML of 374.

This would be achieved by confining the permittee to his base property in a year-round off season.

The stocking rate at the new AML would be 13.2 wild horses per thousand public acres.

This brings more distress to the bureaucrats and ranchers, who 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).

As for costs, the BLM collects 3,824 × 1.35 = $5,162 per year from ranching activity inside the HMA while it spends 318 × 5 × 365 = $580,350 per year to care for the horses displaced thereby.

Would you say that’s a wise use of the public lands?