Lawmakers and Citizens Come to the Rescue of Wild Horses
Lawmakers introduced legislation following the Bureau of Land Management’s controversial announcement last year that it is considering killing large numbers of wild horses taken from the rangeland.
FOXNews.com
Saturday, February 14, 2009

Two lawmakers are saddling up to save wild horses.
Reps. Raul Grijalva,D-Ariz., and Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., are trying to restore a 34-year-ban on the commercial sale and slaughter of wild horses and burros after it was lifted four years ago.
They introduced legislation following the Bureau of Land Management’s controversial announcement last year that it is considering killing large numbers of wild horses taken from the rangeland.
“Congressmen Rahall and Grijalva are seeking to protect the rightful place of wild horses on our public lands in the West and to stop the misuse of tax dollars on inhumane round-ups,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society.
“They have been tireless in their efforts to correct the past mismanagement of this program and to get the program on the right footing.”
But the bureau says it’s stuck between a rock and a hard place because it has few options to manage wild horses that aren’t being adopted, and the costs for keeping them in a holding facility are overwhelming its budget.
“We’re the bad guys,” Tom Gorey, a bureau spokesman, said about the public campaign animal welfare advocates are waging against the bureau.
“They’re looking at the situation and failing to realize we’re a multi-use agency,” he said. “We don’t just manage horses in the bureau.”
The bureau is spending $27 million of its $36 million budget to hold 34,000 horses, or three-fourths of its budget. Of those horses, 3,700 were adopted last year.
“There’s no adoption market to speak of,” Gorey said. “It’s very weak.”
Gorey said the bureau is reprogramming $20 million in its budget to pay for the holding costs and has told lawmakers that it would need $85 million by 2010 to continue holding the horses without destroying them.
“Congress has shown no inclination to fund us at a higher rate,” he said.
The bureau is defying the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act, which requires excess animals not being adopted to be destroyed in the most humane and cost-efficient manner possible or, under certain circumstances, be sold without limitation.
The bureau has chosen not to slaughter the horses out of concern over public and congressional reaction.
“All we said last year is we need to consider legal options to humanely put down excess horses for which there is no adoption demand,” Gorey said.
Since 2004, when the ban on slaughtering or selling horses was lifted, only 2,900 horses have been sold. Two incidents in 2005 led to 41 horses being resold and slaughtered. As a result, the bureau warned potential buyers that they could be subject to prosecution if horses ended up in a slaughterhouse.
But this isn’t enough for lawmakers. Grijalva and Rahall introduced their legislation last year and it was passed by the House. But the legislation got stuck in the Senate and the lawmakers had to introduce the legislation again this week for the new Congress. Aides to the lawmakers hope the legislation will be passed by the end of the year.
“It’s been an ongoing issue and the wild horses were symbols of the West,” said Natalie Luna, an aide to Grijalva. “And a lot of people who live in the West where they roam free have asked for the protections.
“We hope the Bureau of Land Management will want to cooperate with the needs and voices of the constituents,” she/he said. This is ground we want to stand up for and protect our horses and national treasure!!

What You Can Do to Help Save Cloud’s Herd and America’s Wild Horses

Over 40% of America’s wild horses have been removed from the wild from 2000-2008 alone and if the agency responsible for managing our wild horses, the Bureau of Land Management, does not change we are in danger of losing the last of our wild horses. Over 100 herds have been zeroed out from the over 19 million acres legally designated for their use. The BLM needs to return wild horses to these areas—over 30,000 are currently in government holding.
As few as 13,600 wild horses remain in designated public land herd areas in ten western states in America, among them is Cloud’s herd in the Pryor Mountain area of Montana and Wyoming. Only 25% of our wild herds are currently at genetically viable population levels! Cloud’s herd is one of these although a massive round-up planned for August 2009 would change this. The round-up would result in 60 horses losing their families and their freedom, including some horses who have lived their entire 20+ years in the wild. We must stop the destruction of Cloud’s herd and work for the sustainable future of all our wild horse herds across the west.Congressmen Nick Rahall (D-WV) and Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) have stepped forward to make real and positive changes to the Wild Horse and Burro program with their recently introduced bill HR 1018. Please write to them to thank them for their hard work. You can read Ginger Kathrens’ comments and suggestions to the congressmen here.

Here is a short list of government contacts — please write, e-mail and/or call on behalf of Cloud and all our wild mustangs.

Contact the following agencies and representatives
PRESIDENT:

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comment line: 202-456-1111
http://www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/

CONGRESS:
1. Stop the BLM from managing our wild horses to extinction.
2. Halt all round-ups of wild horses until range conditions and herd numbers can be verified.
3. Return wild horses in holding to the 100+ herd areas (19+ million acres) that have been zeroed out.
4. Expand the Pryor Mountain. Wild Horse Range for Cloud’s Herd & protect herd at viable population level of at least 150 adult horses until range is expanded.

Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV)
2307 Rayburn HOB
Washington,DC 20515
(202) 225-3452
email

Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
1440 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
ph (202) 225-2435
fax (202) 225-1541
Email to: Laurel.Angell@mail.house.gov

Your US Senators and Congress people

Montana Senator Max Baucus (D)—specific to Cloud’s herd
511 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510, phone: 202-224-2651
e-mail from: http://baucus.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm

Montana Senator Jon Tester (D)—specific to Cloud’s herd
204 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510,
phone: 202-224-2644, e-mail from: http://tester.senate.gov/Contact/

Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee:
304 Dirksen Senate Building, Washington, DC 20510
phone: (202) 224-4971, Fax: (202) 224-6163, e-mail all 23 members at http://energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseA...
Reinstate wild horse protections removed in 2004 by the Burns Rider and include language in the bill that would prevent BLM from destroying healthy wild horses.

DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR- BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
1. Work to expand the legal boundaries of the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range to include the historic and current use areas in the Custer National Forest. This will allow for a truly viable herd of 200-300 mustangs.
2. Keep the population at a viable number of at least 150 adults until range expansion is achieved. This will allow for the preservation of the rare Spanish genetics of the herd. Bringing in horses from other herds is ill advised, unnecessary and costly.
3. Do not remove older horses
4. Work to protect the mountain lions that have kept the herd at zero population growth in years past. Natural management should be the goal.

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
DOI, 1849 C Street NW, Washington DC 20240
Phone: 202-208-7351, exsec@ios.doi.gov

BLM Acting Director Ron Wenker & Acting Deputy Director Mike Nedd
1849 C Street NW, Washington DC, 20040, phone: 202-208-3801 Ron_Wenker@blm.gov, Mike_Nedd@blm.gov

Don Glenn BLM Division Chief of Wild Horse and Burro Program
BLM Washington Office, 1849 C Street NW, Rm. 5665 Washington DC 20240
Phone: 1-800-710-7597 or 202-208-3801, Fax: 202-208-5242, wildhorse@blm.gov

Jim Sparks, Field Manager BLM -Billings Field Office
5001 Southgate Drive, Billings, MT 59101
phone (406) 896-5223, fax (406) 896-5281
Jim_Sparks@blm.gov

United States Department of Agriculture
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, DC 20250
Email: AgSec@usda.gov

FOREST SERVICE
Ask the following people to please work with the BLM to expand the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range to include the historic and current use areas in the Custer National Forest. This will allow for a truly viable herd of 200-300 mustangs.

• Abigail Kimbell, Chief USDA Forest Service
1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, D.C.
20250-0003


phone: (202) 205-1661, e-mail: akimbell@fs.fed.us
• Mary Erickson, Acting Forest Supervisor- Custer National Forest
PO Box 130, Bozeman, MT 59771,
p. 406-587-6701, mcerickson@fs.fed.us
• Chris Worth, Acting Deputy Supervisor
1310 Main Street, Billings, MT 59105
phone: 406-657-6200, cworth@fs.fed.us

Please write letters to the editor, ask that your favorite radio and TV hosts cover this story and last but not least, please tell your friends and family about wild horses and ask them to join the Cloud Foundation in helping to protect and preserve wild horses on our public lands.

List compiled by The Cloud Foundation, March, 2009 ~ http://www.thecloudfoundation.org

Cloud’s grandchildren, Arrow & Image: two who could be removed

Barbara Ellen Ries Says:

July 4, 2009 at 3:40 PM
Stand you ground in July’s 2009, Peaceful protect with the Cloud Foundation ~ Save cloud and his Herd and the Ely, Nevada, horses from extermination. Donate and become a list of CITIZENS STANDING Their for to GROUND FOR SAVE WILD HORSE HERDS, e-mail join today!!

Sign up to the Cloud Foundation at support@thecloudfoundation.org.

If you can help call,
Phone:
719.633.3842

U.S. Mail:
The Cloud Foundation
107 South 7th Street
Colorado Springs, CO 80905

Folks, his misplaced logic is proof of the fact that we have erred in permitting school grade promotion when that shouldn't happen. I know several people who were “failed” yet went on to become very intelligent and well educated people. They probably would have really failed in life had some teacher not cared enough to “fail” them progression to the next class.

Folks, this is the stupidity we get in schools when we permit grade passing for those that should remain behind.

Folks, his misplaced logic is proof of the fact that we have erred in permitting school grade promotion when that shouldn't happen. I know several people who were “failed” yet went on to become very intelligent and well educated people. They probably would have really failed in life had some teacher not cared enough to “fail” them progression to the next class.

Folks, this is the stupidity we get in schools when we permit grade passing for those that should remain behind.