The pony express made it!

FYI, the effort to get 20k letters for wildhorses has been exceeded:

Wow! What amazing supporters we have! On August 1st, we gave you a goal of 20,000 letters to take with us for our Pony Express Mustang Delivery to Washington. Our deadline was set for September 1st.

We just wanted to let you know that we have completely blown our goal out of the water with the overwhelming response from so many wild horse supporters! Just over this past weekend, we received 7,234 letters from so many of you, which brings our current count to 26, 995!!!!

Thanks to everyone who responded. You can still add your letter. Even people from outside the US can weigh in too:

We have had a couple of people from outside the US that wanted to write, but cannot do it from the Pony Express button, because it asks for a US zip code. Or if the link isn't working for you, please email directly to madeleinesponyexpress@gmail.com.

Mailed letters can be sent to:

Saving America's Mustangs
2683 Via De La Valle, G 313
Del Mar, CA 92014

You've got until September 10th. Fill those congressional mailboxes! Click here.

Details on the letter delivery will be coming soon.

Pony Express in Washington DC

If you haven't been keeping up with the news, nearly 600 horses were "gathered" today. An effort is underway to get 20,000 letters to DC to elected officials who have been deaf. But you can't ignore a woman on a horse.

Here's more info from the Madeleine Pickens website:

We have heard you voice your complaints about the roundups.

We have listened to you share so many of your personal stories about your own adopted mustangs.

We have all sent thousands of letters via fax, email, and mail to our Government. Even calling phone lines that have since been unplugged, because of the volume of calls.

We are doing all of these things daily, but there still has been NO change.

It’s time for the PONY EXPRESS!!!

I will personally hand deliver each and every letter that you write, via the Pony Express (one of our beautiful mustangs), to Washington DC. I am setting a goal of 20,000 individual letters to take with me. Americans, International supporters, animal activists, anyone who would like to tell President Obama, Secretary Salazar, and Bob Abbey that we aren’t going to sit by waiting until these roundups are over is encouraged to write. This is a very important issue to hundreds of thousands of people that have pleaded with our government to stop gathering our wild horses. This way they cannot unplug their phones, make their website impossible to send a comment to, or delete emails. These are GOING to get to Washington. I promise you that!

I've written my letter. Yours is just a click away.

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Had a nice ride on Smokey today, arena work (where someone really didn't want to ignore the horses at the other end a few times) and out on the trails alone. Just an hour, the heat was oppressive.

Bad news, I saw a dry spot on his back afterwards. Maybe this saddle doesn't fit. I'm goint to try my other saddle tomorrow.

As to my riding, I think I've corrected all I can on my own. Time for another riding lesson...

(we have computer issues, which will be resolved shortly, then we'll do some more horsey face analysis and have a brief "he said, she said" with Trail Rider. stay tuned!)

March for Mustangs

They are having a March for Mustangs on the 25th in DC. You can read more here at the Cloud Foundation. Remember, these horses are ours (we bought and paid for them through taxes and ongoing support of the BLM), only we can demand they be properly managed.

Powerful eye witness account of Cloud round up

You can read it here. Have a tissue ready.

The Judas horse was released, it bolted beside the band and charged past Cloud and instead of following the horse’s lead Cloud slowed down, peered forward and then came to a dead stop well away from the end of the gauntlet and waiting gate.  The chopper  pressed harder and forced the remaining members of Cloud’s family into the gauntlet only to stop and gather around their leader who obviously was aware that something was deadly wrong.  All of the observers gasped and stared as this had never happened before; no herd had just stopped and refused to near the gate.

They got Cloud

This is so sad. Thanks to Baba Yaga for the update.

I don't know if there's anything we can do, but maybe calls to media will have an impact. Here's a link to the blog.

The plan to kill off the mustangs

From the cloud foundation (keep calling. maybe we can still stop this insanity.):

Documents obtained from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) via the Freedom of Information Act by a Phoenix-based non-profit, The Conquistador Program, reveal shocking and detailed plans to destroy healthy wild horses in government holding facilities as well as those still remaining in the wild on public lands.

BLM employees as well as a USDA veterinarian held weekly “Implementation Team” meetings beginning in July of 2008 in which they discussed and developed strategies aimed at ridding BLM of thousands of mustangs. In October they completed a 68 page document entitled “Alternative Management Options”. Tactics included in this document are reminiscent of those used to wipe out Native American tribes in the 1800s.

The BLM team created scenarios for killing mustangs using barbiturates, gun shots, or captive bolts. Bodies would be disposed of through rendering, burial or incineration. They discussed killing 1200-2000 wild horses per year. The document states that “the general public would be prohibited from viewing euthanasia.” Additionally, the Team felt that “increased support from public relations and management staff would also be needed to insulate those doing the actual work from the public, media and Congressional scrutiny/criticism.”

“Minutes from these meetings as well as the Draft Plan reveal what amounts to ‘the final solution’ for the American mustang,” states Ginger Kathrens, filmmaker and Volunteer Executive Director of The Cloud Foundation. “Despite a huge outcry from the American public last year regarding BLM plans to kill wild horses in holding, the agency is still pressing forward with a plan to destroy our American mustangs both on and off the range.”

Division Chief of the Wild Horse and Burro Program Don Glenn told The Cloud Foundation that “no decision has been made to move forward on a large scale with this plan, yet.”

BLM meeting minutes speak for themselves. “Security at facilities and at gathers would need to be increased to combat eco-terrorism. Having the people that are willing to put down healthy horses at gather sites could be a problem. Having vets putting down healthy horses at preparation facility[ies] could also be a problem.” Meeting minutes reveal the psychological toll that employees would pay-“have counseling for employees and contractors that have to euthanize the healthy horses because it is very stressful.”

The report created an option in which wild horses of all ages could be sold “without limitation”. In other words, horses could be sold directly to killer buyers in unchecked numbers. The Team admitted that “some wild horses will go to slaughter”.

“Once they are gone, they’re gone” says Karen Sussman, President of the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros. “To lose this incomparable species would be a travesty.”

Team Members formulated ways in which they could circumvent the National Environmental Policy Act, asking “How many (wild horses) could be euthanized during a gather (roundup) without having NEPA?” BLM discussed ways to circumvent the federal carcass disposal law (43 CFR 4730.2). Conversations included how many wild horses could be rendered at the Reno Rendering plant or “disposed of in pits”. The Team concluded that “there will not be large numbers of horses euthanized during gathers or in the field. This is due to state environmental laws.”

Recommendations include the creation of gelding herds, and sterilization of mares to create non-reproductive herds in the wild in place of natural herds. The team recommended changing the sex ratio from the normal 50% males and 50% females to 70% males and 30% females. Then the experimental two-year infertility drug, PZP-22, would be given to all mares that are returned to the wild. Plans call for rounding up the wild horses every two years to re-administer the drug.

“Mares on the drug will cycle monthly and, with the altered sex ratio, the social chaos will be dangerous and on-going,” Kathrens explains. “Any semblance of normal wild horse society will be completely destroyed.”

Kathrens has spent 15 years in the wild documenting mustang behavior for her PBS television documentaries which chronicle the life story of Cloud, the now famous pale palomino stallion she has filmed since birth. “Even Cloud and his little herd in Montana are in serious danger if BLM implements these options,” she continues. “The BLM plans a massive round up in Cloud’s herd beginning August 30, 2009.”

Call your senator, and the BLM

Call to stop the wild mustang round ups - they are trying to do as much damage as they cn before legislation is passed to protect the herds. The BLM has become a revolving door for lobby firms (work at the BLM, then make $$$ lobbying in a few years, getting your buddies to push your special interest agenda forward).

These wild horses are our inheritance. Only our inaction will allow it to be lost.




Visit Cloud Foundation and Angels for Cloud to learn more. Then pick up the phone and call both your senators, the white house, the BLM and your representative. That's 5 phone calls. Make sure they note your name and zip code when you call.

Thanks to Baba Yaga and Grey Horse for the updates.

Miracles in the Round Pen

It's amazing.

This is not the same horse I started with a week ago. That horse couldn't go in a circle if you hitched her to a merry go round.

She ran like her tail was on fire and turned for no reason.

She stopped at the gate, turned her butt (more like side, like she knew her butt to me was really bad manners), never kicked, but certainly was reluctant to listen.

We've had four round penning sessions and she is now:

changing gaits when asked,

turning only when asked,

staying on the rail (after about two loops),

no longer stopping at the tree (where the other horse is standing)

going from trot to canter to trot (the down shift is still a little sticky, but at least it's there)

She is still testing with presenting her 3/4 butt, and taking a LONG time to join up, but I think I'm spoiled with Canyon. He's at least half joined up when he walks in, round penning with him these days is just insuring sincerity. And he never presents his butt, 3/4 or 1/2. lol

Lily, however, is the kind of horse that doesn't fake it. She's on, or she's off. And it takes a long time for her to be on. I think part of the issue is that Canyon is right outside the pen and she still gravitates to the horse - so we aren't just trying to join up, but also break away.

That's okay. This way I know she's really hooked on, even if it takes twice as long.

She's also dropping her head in response to pressure, finally. We got her a nice blue rope training halter and started to work on her dropping her head when I pull down. Initially she'd give after a good three minutes (no kidding). Now she's dropping her head instantly and I've gotten her head down to her knees.

"She's like a different horse," said Sierra today. I think she thought I was crazy if I thought this was a good horse for her. When she saw how nuts she was in the round pen that first time, she got a little worried. I told her then that I needed three weeks.

After a week, I think my estimate was right - if I can keep up the pace. And Sierra is hopeful.

This has been a magical experience for me too. This is the first time I've taken what I've learned and applied it to a different horse. I've never been the type to offer to work other people's horses, people are so ... possessive, and rightly so. So I've been satisfied to be a sponge, soaking up every bit of knowledge I can from everyone I see working their horse.

It's gratifying to not only get a better response from Lily, but to get a sense that she is calming because someone else is in charge. Like it's supposed to be.

She's still giving me a bit of a fit with her back feet. Not as bad as the first time I picked her out, but still...

Tomorrow she gets new shoes and, if she's anything like Canyon, she may get better with her hooves. Something about those natural balance shoes.

She and Canyon seem to be making friends too, and I hope soon they'll be turned out together. Some of the other geldings are running her around a bit. Canyon, in the meantime, is getting run around by an old arabian mare. Maybe if Lily and Canyon were together they'd just graze.


Mustang update
Here's an update on the Madeline Pickens' attempt at saving the Mustangs. Kind of interesting, looks like she's not "adopting" but offering to keep them on land if the gov't pays. Which wasn't the point, really. I'm conflicted, but like most things, I'm sure there's more to the story...




Btw, here's what I told Canyon was the internet in his stall. Don't tell him...

New legislation to save the mustangs

FYI, there's Legislation in the US House to save the mustang. You can find info on Augustus Reign.

Madeline Pickens rescues wild horses

wow.  Read about it here.

Madeleine Pickens, wife of billionaire T. Boone Pickens, made known her intentions to adopt not just the doomed wild horses but most or all of the 30,000 horses and burros kept in federal holding pens. Lifelong animal lovers, the Pickenses just a few years ago led the fight to close the last horse slaughterhouse in the United States.
Madeleine Pickens is looking for land in the West that would be an appropriate home for the horses.

Think she can get the 19 million acres back too?  Madeleine Pickens is my new cowgirl hero. Couldn't find her email anywhere, but I bet if you send your thanks here, it'll get to her: press@pickensplan.com

Wild Horses - still slated for euthanasia

I guess they figure we will be distracted by the election, economy and the holidays...
From the Cloud Foundation:

The National BLM Advisory Board for the Wild Horse and Burro Program will hold a meeting on Monday, November 17th in Reno, Nevada and will discuss the BLM euthanasia plan. The public is encouraged to attend and share their comments.

“This board is stacked against wild horses,” says Carol Walker, equine photographer and author of Wild Hoofbeats. “It is possible that they will condone euthanasia for healthy wild horses that belong to the American people,”

Over 19 million acres originally designated for wild horse use are currently empty of horses. The Cloud Foundation recommends the return of healthy wild horses to these ranges wherever possible. “Without immediate action to stop the BLM from continuing to mismanage wild horses, America may lose its mustangs forever,” Kathrens concludes.

Time to call and write. These are your horses, and they've got land we set aside for them, a fact ignored by the GAO report (who's methodology was focused on talking to the BLM which is leasing land to cattle ranching. Hmm. wonder why they are trying to get rid of 30,000 horses).

Here's a good news story from Salt Lake Trib on the GAO study.

an excerpt:

But Karen Sussman, president of the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros - the South Dakota nonprofit group that initiated and helped push through the 1971 law - said Monday that the BLM has acted illegally by rounding up the horses without first determining whether they had damaged the range.
Sussman said a 1990 GAO report recommended that the BLM also curtail the number of livestock on the range. "If you want to improve habitat," she said, "you need to remove livestock."

From Newsweek:

What are the biggest threats to the wild horse population?
I think it comes down to mismanagement. Study after government study, dating back to the Teddy Roosevelt administration, shows that it's livestock grazing that does the most damage to the range, not wild horses. You can't say that 20-something-thousand horses are doing more damage to the land than 4 million cows. Yet the Bureau of Land Management claims that wild horses are overrunning the West and that there is an "overpopulation" problem. It's simply not true. The only place there is an overpopulation problem is in government corrals—because the horses shouldn't have been removed from their home turf in such great numbers to begin with.

Then what's spurring the BLM to cut herd sizes?
There are a number of factors. The livestock lobby regards mustangs as pests, animals that steal food from cows, and since members of the lobby lease federal land for ranching, they pressure the BLM to curb the wild mustang population. There are also a lot of other things happening on public lands these days: increased oil and gas drilling, mineral leases, development. The BLM is supposed to determine how many wild horses as well as cows and sheep the range can support with range studies, but these are not always up to date. What this all comes back to is mismanagement: The fox is guarding the henhouse.

Readers comments from news stories around the country:

The real question is why are these horses in captivity in the first place? They are supposed to be protected on the 34 million acres allotted for them by Congress. Less than 15,000 are left on that land. And that's only 1/2 of 1% of BLM land! This certainly doesn't seem like what the 1971 law intended. Mining, energy and cattle interests have hijacked the BLM process that should have protected these animals. A better solution than shooting them would be to let some go and have the BLM partner with private interests to manage reserves for the horses and burros. You can go to www.reinfree.org to find out more about what can be done. Doing anything will take time but if the BLM kills them, that's an irreversible loss.

here's another:

The cattle out number the wild horses and burros 400 to 1 on OUR federal land. Their land is being dwindled away by mineral extraction, sheep, cattle, industry & development.

We just need them to get these horses, our horses, back on the land we established for them and stop caving in to the cattle ranchers, miners and developers.

(Here's a cool blog I found about a man who has adopted and trained wild mustangs. Gorgeous photography too).

Update on Cloud

What with the collapse of the financial markets, I fell out of touch with the plight of wild horses. Here's the update from the Cloud foundation

Cloud's Herd Removal Postponed Again
September 22, 2008
Dear Supporters of Cloud and His Herd,

This morning Jim Sparks, BLM Billings Field Manager, called to tell us that they have postponed indefinitely the removal of Pryor Mountain Wild Horses. We are relieved to know that the horses are safe in their wild home for now. Although a bait trap has been set up since Wednesday, no horses have been removed and we will keep you updated on this situation.

Thanks to everyone who wrote in support of protecting our wild horse legacy. The outcry made it damn difficult for BLM to turn over public horse pasture to cattle ranchers. I doubt they are gone for long. Be ready to make your voice heard (pun intended, although it's a bad one).