This is a very different post for me. In fact, it is a plea for help. The Onaqui Herd is scheduled to be “gathered” by the BLM in July. What this “nice term” used by the BLM means is that the BLM will send out helicopters to stampede the herd almost to their death, (in fact based in recent roundups, two foals will likely die during the roundup and one or two adult horses will have to be euphemized). They will then be forced into gathering pens, destroying tightly bonded families, castrate the mustangs, separate mothers from their sons and daughters, send over 400 horses to the Midwest to live the rest of their lives in pens (All this is of course at tax-payer expense. Last year 80% of the BLM’s budget went towards feeding the 50,000 horses already in pens). The BLM will then return 100 horses to our public land. All because the BLM refuses to do their job of managing these protected horses that live on our public lands.
Don’t believe the stories that there isn’t enough feed based on the current drought. The Onaqui herd has survived much worse. In fact, they are as healthy as I have ever seen them. At times they must travel 10-20 miles a day between feed and water, but they have done so for hundreds of years and they have never been on the verge of starvation in the nearly 10 years I have photographed them. You can believe the fact that the BLM has fenced off thousands and thousands of acres of rangeland that they only allow cattle to be grazed on.
Don’t believe the stories that there isn’t enough water for the horses. The Herd Management Area (HMA) has dozens and dozens of wells that they can simply “open the spigot” to allow the water to flow. Who do you think paid for those wells… taxpayers paid for those wells.
Don’t believe the stories that say the herd is too big. At the present time the herd actively uses nearly 500,000 acres each year to feed on. If the BLM had done what it was charged to do years ago, (slow herd growth by using PZP to temporarily manage birth by mares), the herd would already be less than 500 horses and easily managed by ongoing PZP.
I believed the BLM last year when they said they would not round up the Onaqui herd. They would only round up the horses on Dugway property and a few horses that were in the surrounding mountains. You can believe that they rounded up dozens of the Onaqui herd including my favorite stallion “the Ghost”.
I am asking for your help in preventing the gathering scheduled for this July. I doubt we can stop this roundup in spite of the fact that the Onaqui herd is probably the most photographed and visited herd in the country. In just my two most recent trips to the herd I met people from Alaska, Idaho, California, Arizona, Michigan, Wyoming and of course Utah.
Our only hope to prevent the roundup is to have our voices herd. Here is a link that allows you to sign a petition to Nada Culver, the delegated director of the BLM. If you do sign, I believe it will also allow you to go on and send a message to your Senators. Please take a few minutes in an attempt to save our Onaqui herd of wild horses…
https://secure.everyaction.com/zOtzsdqHUUKMfAs7-S65rw2#
I have included a few photographs of just the last two outings to the Onaqui. The captions discuss how these photographs will likely never occur again.
These horses deserve to be left alone! They are not in our way, we are in theirs. How dare you speciesists disturb these sentient beings. You are not superior. They deserve to live & have a free life just like you.
Any way of saving them?
Don’t kill these beautiful souls.