Imagine being run so far

[miniwhinny]

I'm not one for starting trouble but as a horse lover I can't let this one go. I do know first hand how round ups are conducted and have abhorred them for many years. A long time horse lover friend from Germany...big time show jumper...was invited to a round up a few years ago and had to leave half way though in tears. First hand knowledge - YES horses are maimed. Families are destroyed. Mares DO abort. I'm more than happy to give details of how things are done if anyone wants to know more.

Please watch this, it's not bloodthirsty...compared to what these horses have to go through - this is cotton candy viewing. I know statistically for every 100 people who watch only one or two will bother to follow through...but that's okay...at least I'll sleep knowing I've at least posted this.

http://wild-horse-burro.org/

 

[luv2ridesaddleseat]

miniwhinny, I'm with you 100%! I read about this a couple of weeks ago and I'm totally up on what the BLM does! They should be shot! I can't believe they get away with the suffering they are causing. Absolutely horrifying!

 

[Miniv]

I agree. It's sickening. Other than calling the number provided, what else can the public do?

I will, however, share the link, Danna. Thank you for that.

 

[Katiean]

They also refuse to provide shelter for these horses. Not even in the form of wind brakes or overhead shelter. The vet overseeing it said they didn't need it. IMO, lets give him a nice big coat and then "let" him stand in the wind and driving snow or rain with the temps in the low teens to single digits for the past what is it, month and a half since they did this thing? I am sure he would change his opinion about what these horses "NEED". One of the propaganda things they did to justify this round up was go out and take pictures of a small handful of older thin horses. Half the time they were just showing the same horse over and over saying they were sick and dying. That they had to remove them before they all died. They make me sick. The Palomino Valley holding pens is about 10 miles from me. I would like to know how they keep from feeding moldy hay and how they feed them in the rain and snow any way.? There is no cover over the hay feeders and I have never seen the hay stacks tarped EVER! I think the government just needs to but out of what isn't broke. And quit trying to make a buck on what is all of ours. and not just a few cattle companies.

 

[miniwhinny]

Our pens here in Burns are the same. We get COLD here in the winter way below freezing for weeks and we get blazing hot in the summer. Our pens have no shelter at all.

I'm a practical person. I realize that many of the HMA's are over grazed, they are mostly High Desert areas with little rainfall so reductions do need to take place once in a while. I don't think unless you've been to the HMA's that people realize just how rocky they are. You really have to keep your eyes down just to go for a walk there. The entire round up process is so unbelievably violent. These horses are mercilessly ran across this terrain for miles and miles, chased by helicopters. They're terrified. It's based on convenience for the workers not care for the animals.

Helicopters come in and clear the entire range as mush as possible. The horses are corralled, penned, loaded into massive trailers and shipped for miles to the BLM holding pens. Here they are sorted into age and sex pens. Then those going back out to the range are sorted out to be shipped back. What people don't realize is that this completely destroys their family units. If the sorting pens were out on the range in a dozen areas they could sort them on the spot and keep them fairly intact but when they remove them all and then pick stallion A and Mare B to go back...they have no idea if they are releasing a stallion with a "new" herd of half a dozen of his daughters. They don't do DNA testing. They just randomly decide who should go back (based on looks). All of us who own horses know that they do form bonds and have preferences. It's heartbreaking to think that every few years complete family units are torn apart and recreated at the will of some BLM employee who just says "your cute..you can go with so and so'.

 

[Little Wolf Ranch]

That is soo very sad. I've always wanted to adopt a Mustang - not to fund their program (we all know it's BS) but to give a horse a loving home. I don't want to break him/her to ride - only to let me handle them on the ground. I want them to be able to be out in my pasture living the good life free of worries and care, like all horses should be.

 

[miniwhinny]

I don't think people realize just what awesome mounts mustangs make. They're healthy, have rock hard feet, level heads and you won't find a better trail horse. This is a pic of some of my really good friends. The horse to the left is a Kiger mustang stallion that I adopted as a 6 month old. The three mares to the right of him are three of his daughters.

...and here's a cool story...at that adoption this stallion was the high selling stallion that day - I got him for just $2500 (as a 6 month old weanling...though I think he was more like 3 months). The top selling filly that day was a 6 month old Kiger filly and she sold for $19,000 (not a typo...that does say NINETEEN THOUSAND dollars) off the range, no pedigree at all. Bidding started going in $10 increments as she started at $125...it soon went up at $100 increments and before we knew it it was going up $1000 at a time. I wouldn't have missed that day for anything.