BLM

The BLM has already started the emergency roundups — beginning with the Antelope Complex in northeastern Nevada, where 2,200 wild horses are being removed. AWHC has tasked a field representative with documenting the roundups and providing updates to our team.

The Antelope Complex is one area where livestock heavily outnumbers the wild horse populations in the area. But yet again, the BLM has placed the burden of range degradation on mustangs and is ignoring the massive effect that livestock grazing has on our public lands!

The BLM must be held accountable. If range conditions are really so poor that the BLM feels the need to conduct emergency roundups of wild horses, then the agency should remove the livestock that utilize the same habitat. Take action now: Tell the BLM to prioritize the removal of livestock and protect wild horses and burros. >>

We’re taking on the AIP from every possible angle. Can you make a donation to the AWHC today to help fuel our efforts?

— AWHC Team

July 24 2021

Our game plan to stop the AIP: litigation, rescues, and investigation

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, equine welfare, equines, Horses, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

As we write this, more and more wild horses and burros continue to be funneled into the slaughter pipeline through the the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) failed Adoption Incentive Program (AIP), which pays people $1,000 to adopt a wild, untamed horse or burro. Unscrupulous adopters are collecting the incentive payments, then sending the adopted mustangs or burros to slaughter auctions as soon as the money clears their bank accounts. Help us put an end to this shameful program >>

All the while, the BLM continues to round up wild horses and burros across the West, fueling this slaughter pipeline. The summer/fall roundup season is now in full swing — by the end of August, at least 1,400 wild horses and burros will be captured and removed from their homes on our public lands.

We have already filed suit against the BLM over the AIP and the federal laws they broke in the implementation of this program. And, we are also funding the rescue of innocent wild horses and burros who were “adopted” through this program and have ended up at kill pens — many just days or hours away from shipping to slaughter in Mexico or Canada.

In fact, we were just alerted to 10 BLM-branded burros up for sale in an Oklahoma kill pen. We know that burros are at a particularly high risk of being sent to slaughter through the AIP, giving us even more reason to help save these innocent animals. So we decided to offer a matching grant to help pay their bail!

DONATE NOW >> STOP THE AIP

BLM-branded burros being rescued from an Oklahoma kill pen.

We’re continuing to investigate the AIP and uncover the full breadth of the fraud and abuse that America’s mustangs and burros have suffered at the hands of this program.

Thanks to our months-long investigation, and an explosive New York Times exposé – we have delivered compelling evidence-filled reports to the BLM and we have worked with members of Congress to call for an immediate end to the AIP.

We’re taking every possible measure — litigation, rescues, and investigation — to end the AIP and stop the flow of federally-protected mustangs and burros to kill pens. Can you help us fight back with a donation to our efforts today to help us protect the lives of wild horses and burros and put an end to the AIP?

DONATE NOW >> STOP THE AIP

Thank you for your support,
AWHC Team

July 21 2021

Help us enact lasting change for wild horses and burros

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, Onaqui wild horses, wild burros, Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

The roundup of the beloved wild horses from the Onaqui Herd Management Area (HMA) in Utah has officially ended. In total, 435 mustangs were captured, and there was one death of a young mare who suffered a severely broken leg after she was likely kicked in the chaos of the trap.

Approximately 135 Onaqui horses will be released back into the wild and our friends at the Onaqui Catalogue Foundation are using their comprehensive database of the Onaqui herd to assist the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in making the best decisions possible about which horses to return based on thoughtful criteria like keeping family bands together.

We are devastated, heartbroken, but more importantly we are fired up to fight harder than ever. The unnecessary mass roundup of most of the Onaqui wild horses has launched a rallying cry for true change.

ACT NOW FOR WILD HORSES >>

For 50 years, the BLM has all but ignored the will of the American people who want humane management of our Western herds. It has flipped the Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act on its head, and instead of protecting these animals from “capture, harassment, and death,” its outdated management practices actively harm these beloved animals. What’s worse — Congress has granted the agency more than $100 million dollars to continue on with this woefully mismanaged program with no restrictions to prevent the BLM from using the funds to roundup more horses without implementing real change.

But we have an opportunity to change course during the next federal budget cycle. In fact, the U.S. House of Representatives is set to pass Fiscal Year 22 appropriations legislation that includes language, championed by AWHC and U.S Representatives Dina Titus, Steve Cohen, and Mark Pocan, to require the BLM to allocate at least $11 million to implement humane fertility control as a step toward eliminating cruel roundups and evaluate relocating these federally protected animals as an alternative to their removal from the range. Very soon, the Senate Appropriations Committee will also consider this protective language.

Time is of the essence. Join us in a day of action for the Onaqui wild horses who lost their freedom, for Velma Johnston, aka “Wild Horse Annie,” whose work contributed to federal wild horse protection 50 years ago, and for the millions of Americans who want wild horses and burros to be protected and preserved on our public lands for generations to come.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Click here to send an email to your Senators today. Then, follow up the email with a call.
Download this graphic and upload it to the Interior Department and the White House Facebook pages.
Click here to send an automated Tweet to President Biden and Secretary Haaland.

Let’s harness the outrage over the roundup of the Onaqui wild horses to make lasting change today!

ACT NOW FOR WILD HORSES >>

Thank you for standing with us and with wild horses,

Suzanne Roy
Executive Director
American Wild Horse Campaign

July 14 2021

ACT NOW>> How you can help us reform the roundup-and-stockpile system

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, Onaqui Herd Management Area, Onaqui wild horses, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Late last night, advocates around the world waited with bated breath as we learned that the roundup of the beloved wild horses of the Onaqui Herd Management Area (HMA) had been postponed for another day. This was the second time in five days that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) postponed the roundup because of a pending federal court decision.

This morning, a federal judge denied an animal rights groups’ motion for an injunction to stop the roundup. The BLM then announced that the roundup will begin tomorrow.

Our work to reform the costly and cruel wild horse program doesn’t stop here, however. Can you sign our petition to the Biden Administration calling for meaningful reform to keep wild horses and burros in the wild where they belong?

Collectively, wild horse organizations threw everything we had at the effort to halt this roundup.

AWHC launched SaveOnaqui.com to mobilize our grassroots army, which resulted in thousands of messages sent to both Congress and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. We garnered 50,000 petition signatures and hand-delivered them to the U.S. Department of the Interior. We worked with actress Katherine Heigl on developing and delivering letters to Congress. We held a virtual rally attended by hundreds of people around the world. And, we worked with our friends at Western Watersheds Project to develop a detailed, scientifically-based proposa for long-term management of the Onaqui wild horses, which was reviewed at the highest levels of the BLM.

We want you to know that while we did not stop this roundup, our collective voices have been heard. The BLM understands the high public interest in protecting this herd and has committed to working on a collaborative plan to humanely and sustainably manage the iconic Onaqui horses and protect the public’s interest in viewing them.

This morning, AWHC’s Field Correspondent Kimerlee Curyl was with the Onaqui herd documenting what will likely be the last moments of freedom for many of these cherished mustangs.

WATCH & DONATE

These heartbreaking images only strengthen our resolve, but not just to ensure that this is the last helicopter roundup that ever takes place in the Onaqui HMA. We’re also working nonstop to reform the entire roundup-and-stockpile system that is leading to slaughter for far too many of these cherished animals.

Thanks to the many photographs who follow this herd, we know the Onaqui wild horses as individuals and families, and the prospect of their roundup is painful. But the reality is that all wild horses and burros are individuals who love their freedom and their families and suffer under the current federal management program.

Our work will not stop until we ensure that all wild horse populations are managed humanely in the wild, where they belong. Please support this work by signing and sharing our petition to the Biden Administration calling for meaningful reform to keep wild horses and burros wild.

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 Adoption Incentive Program, American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, slaughter, wild burros 0

Stay wild,
The AWHC TeamP.S. — We’ll be on the ground to witness and document the removal of the Onaqui wild horses. Be sure to stay up to date on our social media channels for the latest: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

July 10 2021

ACTION ALERT: Tell your Senators to protect wild horses and burros!!

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Over the last several months our Government Relations team has been working in collaboration with members of Congress to ensure that the interests of wild horses and burros are represented during the FY 2022 Appropriations process.

We are excited to report that the House Appropriations Committee just passed the Fiscal Year 2022 Interior Appropriations spending bill and it includes important language championed by AWHC and U.S. Representatives Steve Cohen (D-TN), Dina Titus (D-NV), Mark Pocan (D-WI), and over 40 other Representatives!

If included in the final spending bill passed by the House and Senate, this legislation will continue the ban on slaughtering wild horses and burros, require the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to allocate at least $11 million to implement fertility control programs to manage wild horse and burro populations, evaluate relocating these federally protected animals as an alternative to removals, and review the “Adoption Incentive Program,” (AIP) which was exposed by the AWHC as a pipeline to slaughter for hundreds of wild horses and burros.

This is a win for wild horses — but our work isn’t done. We’re currently working with several Senators to urge the Senate Appropriations Committee to adopt similar language.

We need your help to get this language passed in the Senate. Can you contact your two Senators right now and ask them to support this important language to protect the lives of wild horses and burros?

CONTACT YOUR SENATORS >>

Our next steps are very important, Meredith. We’re extremely concerned that an increase in funding to the BLM will continue the Trump Administration’s wild horse management plan, which calls for the removal of over 90,000 wild horses and burros from public lands over the next five years.

We have an opportunity to protect the lives of thousands of wild horses and burros, but it can’t be done without you. Can you contact your Senators right now and ask them to adopt at least $11 million for fertility control and the horse-friendly language passed by the House to protect the lives of wild horses and burros?

CONTACT YOUR SENATORS >>

Thank you for your support,

Holly Gann Bice
Director of Government Relations
American Wild Horse Campaign

July 7 2021

LEGAL UPDATE 🚨: We gave the BLM a chance, now we’re suing.

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 Adoption Incentive Program, American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, Carol Walker, Evanescent Mustang Rescue, Skydog Sanctuary, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Last month, we sent a legal petition to the Department of the Interior, giving it until June 30, 2021 to shut down the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) failed Adoption Incentive Program (AIP). Unfortunately, Meredith, the Interior Department failed to respond to our petition.

So now, in collaboration with several of our partners — Skydog Sanctuary, Evanescent Mustang Rescue, and photographer Carol Walker — we have filed suit against the BLM to put an end to the AIP.

We have provided the Interior Department with clear evidence that the BLM violated several federal laws when creating the AIP, and that the program has resulted in a significant uptick in the number of wild horses and burros entering the slaughter pipeline. But so far the response is just an internal “review” with no halting of the program — meaning that BLM horses and burros continue to be sent to kill pens through the AIP.

Even if just one more wild horse ends up at a kill pen as a result of this program, that is still one too many. Will you make a $25 donation to our Legal Fund today to help us have the resources for this legal battle?

Can you make a donation to our Legal Fund today to help us take on the Interior Department’s BLM in court and terminate their Adoption Incentive Program?

Since uncovering this slaughter pipeline, which led to a New York Times exposé earlier this year, we’ve been working nonstop to put an end to this disastrous program. We’ve worked with Senator Dianne Feinstein and 30+ other members of Congress urging the Interior Department to suspend the program and conduct a thorough investigation.

The lives of hundreds of wild horses and burros are at stake, Meredith. The Interior Department has failed to appropriately respond to our requests to end this program. So with no signs of stopping from the BLM — we’ve now taken legal action to ensure that the AIP program is terminated.

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, Nevada’s Virginia Range, wild burros, wild horses 0

Thank you for your support,

Suzanne Roy
Executive Director
American Wild Horse Campaign

June 30 2021

How a donation from Meredith helps us rescue wild horses and burros

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Just this year, AWHC’s Rescue Fund has helped save dozens of lives, from assisting foals on Nevada’s Virginia Range to saving the victims of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) failed Adoption Incentive Program from kill pens.

Day in and day out we fight to protect wild horses and burros — whether that be through our rescue fund, in the courts, on the Hill, or in the field. None of this would be possible without supporters like you. Chip in to our Rescue Fund to help us continue saving the lives of wild horses and burros.

We couldn’t have helped these lucky horses and burros without your generosity, so we wanted to share with you some of the recent rescues we financially supported:

Hazel

From left to right: Hazel (she’s gotten so big!) and her roommate

You might remember Hazel from when we shared her story with you on April Foals Day!

She was alone, separated from her family, and when Least Resistance Training Concepts team members were unable to locate Hazel’s mom, they got permission from Wild Horse Connection Range Management to take Hazel to LBL Equine Rescue.

After clearing some medical hurdles, we are so excited to tell you that Hazel is thriving! She is healthy and is getting stronger every single day! She even goes on walks twice a day with LBL Equine Rescue team members, who all say she is quite the fighter and a true spitfire!

Now, Hazel can be found cuddling with her two new roommates and playing in their enclosure, which we’ve equipped with rubber mats, thanks to your support through our Rescue Fund.

It’s stories like these that make what we do all the more worth it, Meredith. Thanks to your donations, we were able to play a hand in saving Hazel’s life. Your generosity provides us with the means to support the wonderful local volunteers and groups who work night and day to protect the Virginia Range horses in Nevada. If you can, please help us save more lives like Hazel’s by donating to our rescue fund today!

The Roan Filly and Her Friend

Back in April, we teamed up with wild horse sanctuary, Montgomery Creek Ranch (MCR) to rescue a roan BLM-branded filly from a Texas kill pen. This beautiful youngster was extremely skinny, in poor health, and was clinging to her friend, a domestic filly.

We promptly rescued both of them, and are excited to share that they arrived safe and sound at MCR. While they are in need of a lot of TLC, the caring staff at MCR will nurse them back to health in no time! Please help ensure we have the funds to continue helping organizations like MCR rescue mustangs in need.

The Victims of the Adoption Incentive Program

As part of our investigation into the Bureau of Land Management’s Adoption Incentive Program (AIP), we partnered up with Evanescent Mustang Rescue to save the lives of over 30 wild horses and burros who were dumped at kill pens across the country.

Most recently, with your help, we funded the rescue of 12 burros from a kill pen in Oklahoma as well as 10 unhandled mustangs from a kill pen in Colorado. All of the burros and horses have found homes and even better — three horses and four burros are going to a place we like to call “horsey heaven” — an AWHC board member’s sanctuary, Freedom Reigns!

These animals are symbols of the failure of the AIP. When AWHC staff investigated, it was discovered that all 12 burros were adopted by the same family and were dumped at the kill pen as soon as the family received their second payment of $500. But thanks to your generous support, they get a second chance at life. Donate today to help us continue saving the lives of wild horses and burros!

Your generous support for our Rescue Fund saves lives. Please help us continue this work by making a donation to our Rescue Fund today.

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, equine welfare, Equine Welfare News, equines, horse slaughter 0

Thank you,

Suzanne Roy
Executive Director
American Wild Horse Campaign

June 25 2021

ACTION NEEDED: Tell your U.S. Rep to vote YES on the Carter-Fitzpatrick Amendment to the INVEST Act!

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

In the last week, there has been some important wild horse news that we wanted to make sure you didn’t miss!

Urgent: Contact Your Rep to Stop Horse Slaughter

Right now, in the House of Representatives, we have an opportunity to stop horse slaughter through the INVEST Act. This Act is a large government infrastructure bill that may also give us an opportunity to stop the transport of horses and burros across the border to slaughter. It goes up for a vote next week!

We need you to contact your Representative right now and tell them to vote YES on the Carter-Fitzpatrick Amendment!

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro budget, PZP fertility control, wild burros, wild horses 0

We’re Challenging the BLM’s Wild Burro Eradication Plan

Last week, AWHC attorneys filed a legal challenge to the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) burro eradication plan, which calls for the roundup and removal of all of the burros in three California Herd Areas (HAs).

In it, we charge that the agency violated federal law by not considering the newly-published science that documented the key benefits of these very burros to their ecosystems, which includes well digging in the arid desert. The new science even went so far as to call wild burros “ecosystem engineers!”

LEARN MORE

Sierra Club Adopts Friendly Wild Horse Policy

The Sierra Club, the nation’s leading environmental organization, recently updated its wild horse and burro policy. This policy had not been changed in 40 years and it called for the elimination of wild horses and burros from key habitats.

Now, the new policy calls for scientific and humane in-the-wild management, including removal of livestock before horses, predator protection, and the use of fertility control! We are so excited to work with the organization to protect wild horses and burros on public lands in the future.

LEARN MORE

Lawmakers, Advocates Push to End BLM Wild Horse Adoption Incentives

Recently, AWHC’s Executive Director, Suzanne Roy, and wild horse champion, U.S. Representative Dina Titus were interviewed on a Las Vegas NPR affiliate, KNPR, about the BLM’s failed Adoption Incentive Program (AIP).

In this 25 minute segment, they cover what the AIP is, it’s disatorious effects, how lawmakers are calling for its end, and what a better solution is for our wild horses and burros! The riveting interview is not one you want to miss!

LISTEN NOW

Thank you for your support,

—The AWHC Team

June 22 2021

Urgent! We need Coloradans to speak up for mustangs TODAY

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

We have an important ask: Can you please take one moment to reach out to your Senators in Colorado and urge them to protect wild horses?

Currently, a letter is being circulated in the Senate that would allocate significant funding from the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro budget to humane management using safe and effective PZP fertility control. Unfortunately, your Senators have not yet joined and we need them to hear from their constituents.

Please, take one moment to contact your Senators today:

Sen. Michael F. Bennet

Denver Office: 303-455-7600
DC Office: (202) 224-5852

Sen. John W. Hickenlooper

Denver Office: 303-244-1628
DC Office: (202) 224-5941

All you have to say is, “I’m a constituent, and I’m calling to ask that you please sign onto a letter being led by Senator Cory Booker that promotes humane, cost-effective management of wild horses and burros in the wild where they belong. It calls for allocating $11 million of the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Program budget to fertility control. Today is the deadline to join the letter. You can contact Sen Booker’s office to join on. Thank you.”

Then, follow up with a message using the button below.

CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATORS >>

Thank you so much for taking quick action to help wild horses!

Thank you,

Holly Gann Bice
Director of Government Relations
American Wild Horse Campaign

June 19 2021

Tell Congress to Support Humane Management of Mustangs and Burros!

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, Devils Garden wild horses, Modoc National Forest, wild burros, Wild Horse and Burro Program, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Wild horses & burros need your help. Read on to see how you can take action to protect these cherished animals!

Act Now: Tell Congress to Support Humane Management of Mustangs and Burros

As we speak, a sign-on letter is circulating in the U.S. Senate requesting that at least $11 million of Fiscal Year 2022 funding for the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Program be earmarked for humane fertility control as a step away from brutal helicopter roundups and the removal of wild horses and burros from public lands. Over 40 members of the House have signed onto a similar request. Now we need your help to get your Senators to sign on!

TAKE ACTION

In-Depth: Forest Service Plans Mass Removal for California Wild Horses

The U.S. Forest Service is planning to continue its assault on the Devil’s Garden wild horses in California. During a Motorized Vehicle Public Meeting last week, officials from the Modoc National Forest announced their intent to remove between 800-1,000 wild horses from their 285,000-acre federally-designated habitat beginning in September.

The Forest Service will “dispose” of most of these horses by selling them — up to a truckload at a time — for $1 a piece! The plan is the result of a secret settlement between the Forest Service and ranchers who graze their privately-owned cattle on the public lands where the Devil’s Garden wild horses roam. Take a moment to read our in-depth blog on this unfolding situation and be on the lookout for a way to take action!

LEARN MORE

OpEd: America’s Wild and Wondrous Wild Burros

It’s well past the time to hit the reset button on the management not only of wild horses, but wild burros as well. Last week, AWHC’s program specialist, Mary Koncel teamed up with an adviser to the Cloud Foundation to write an opinion piece for the Washington Examiner to raise awareness about these amazing animals of the desert southwest and inspire citizens to take action to protect them. Read more below.

LEARN MORE

Tell the BLM Advisory Board: Protect Wild Horses and Burros

The BLM National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board will meet from June 30 – July 1. This citizen Advisory Board is supposed to represent broad stakeholder interests but its membership, which is appointed by the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture, is heavily weighted in favor of livestock interests.

For far too long the BLM’s solution to managing wild horse and burro populations has been costly and brutal helicopter roundups that lead to slaughter for far too many of these iconic animals. Please take one moment to sign onto our letter demanding meaningful change and protection for wild horses and burros.

TAKE ACTION

Thank you for your support,

—The AWHC Team

June 9 2021

HELICOPTER ROUNDUPS: Less than a month away (!!)

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, equines, Utah’s Onaqui herd, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

As I write this, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is rounding up wild burros in California. Next month, the official roundup season begins in full force. In the middle of July, Utah’s Onaqui herd will be targeted.

For these wild horses and burros, the dust never settles.

As you know, a huge part of our work involves observing and documenting as many roundups as we can. We do this to hold the agencies and government contractors accountable for their often inhumane actions. And, we report to the public what happens at each roundup on public land, so you’re informed.

Help fuel our programs. Please donate $30 today, and help us work to make roundups a thing of the past!

DONATE

But, we’re doing far more than just documenting. We’re fully engaged on the ground and working to ensure that cruel roundups are minimized — and ideally eliminated — in the future.

We’re working in Congress to ensure that protective language is being submitted that would give funds to in-the-wild management to begin the shift away from removals.
In Onaqui, we have submitted a scientific plan for the humane management of the beloved horses that would leave them wild.
We are working with a prestigious University on a rulemaking petition to make violations of the BLM’s animal welfare standards enforceable by law.
We are proving humane management can work to keep wild horses wild through the world’s largest fertility control program for mustangs in Nevada.

We need all hands on deck, Erica, because the Biden Administration just released the next fiscal year’s budget, and it includes a $36.8 million increase for the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Program. The new proposal also continues the Trump Administration’s accelerated roundup plan that could remove nearly 90,000 wild horses and burros from their homes over just the next five years!

We’re pulling out all the stops. We’re using our legal, legislative, scientific and grassroots resources to do everything we can to halt this inhumane and antiquated population control tactic. Can you make a $30 donation today to help us have the resources necessary to continue our efforts?

DONATE

Thank you for your support,
Suzanne Roy

Executive Director
American Wild Horse Campaign

June 5 2021

ICYMI: Over 30 members of Congress have called on the BLM to suspend its’ AIP!

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, Black Hills Sanctuary, BLM, equine welfare, Equine Welfare News, equines, Evanescent Mustang Rescue, Horses, Skydog Sanctuary, slaughter auctions, wild burros, wild horses 2

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

We wanted to make sure you heard about this exciting update:

Over the last week, 30+ members of Congress have called on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to suspend an adoption program that’s sending wild horses and burros to slaughter.

SIGN ON NOW TO DEMAND THE BLM HALT THE AIP >>

The recent groundbreaking New York Times report — prompted by an AWHC investigation of the BLM’s Adoption Incentive Program (AIP) — has led to national awareness about the plight of wild horses and burros, and has received significant attention from legislators on Capitol Hill.

Late last week, in a letter directed to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (CA) called on the Interior Department to immediately suspend the BLM’s AIP and conduct a thorough investigation into the program that’s become a pipeline to slaughter for untold numbers of federally-protected wild horses and burros.

On Wednesday, U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, Dina Titus, Steve Cohen, Jan Schakowsky, and Mike Quigley along with 25 of their House colleagues sent a similar letter to Secretary Haaland, asking that the AIP be suspended and calling for the passage of the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act to protect all American horses from slaughter.

Thanks to your support and the buzz surrounding the New York Times article, significant action is being taken to protect America’s wild horses and burros! But Erica, we can’t stop now. Can you sign our petition and join Congress in demanding that the BLM halt the Adoption Incentive Program that’s sending wild horses and burros to slaughter?

In coordination with our rescue partners, Evanescent Mustang Rescue, Skydog Sanctuary, and Black Hills Sanctuary, AWHC spent significant time searching for and accumulating tangible evidence to document the connection between the BLM’s AIP and the uptick in cherished wild horses and burros in slaughter auctions across the country — all leading to the New York Times exposé. We’re working with Senator Feinstein, Reps. Titus and Cohen, and many other members of Congress to put a halt to the AIP, pass federal legislation to help keep wild horses in the wild, and we’re fighting back against a dangerous bill that would strip away federal protections for wild horses and burros by allowing the BLM to trade away their habitats to states.

Erica, we’re doing everything we can to preserve and protect wild horse and burro herds across the U.S. Can you join us in our efforts by signing our petition and demanding that the BLM put an end to its disastrous Adoption Incentive Program?

Will you make a donation today to help us continue our PZP program and help further research to prove that large horse populations can be managed humanely on public lands?

Thank you,
AWHC Team

May 31 2021

Your $30 gift today will help us save a wild mare

Kyle Davidson Uncategorized, Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, equine welfare, Equine Welfare News, equines, fertility control, Horses, irginia Range, PZP program, sterilization, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Did you know the price of a single mare’s annual PZP vaccine is just $30?

We’re asking: today — on May 30th, will you make a $30 gift to fund our PZP program and help us manage wild horse populations using tried and true fertility control measures?

DONATE $30 NOW

In Nevada’s Virginia Range, AWHC operates the world’s largest humane management program for wild horses. We recently celebrated our two-year anniversary of the establishment of this historic initiative to prove to the world that THERE IS a humane way to manage wild horse populations that doesn’t require mass roundups, crowded holding corrals, dangerous sterilization surgeries, or slaughter.

We’re fighting back against the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) massive herd removals in court and on Capitol Hill — and the success of our PZP program in Nevada has been critical in our fight to protect wild horses.

In roughly a month, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is scheduled to resume helicopter roundups. And over the next 5 years, the BLM is planning to round up an estimated 90,000 wild horses and burros!

DONATE $30 NOW

What’s worse, is that the BLM is accelerating roundups over the next five years, which is projected to cost taxpayers nearly $1 billion dollars. Now we don’t have to tell you that a $30 fertility control treatment is a MUCH MORE cost-effective option compared to these costly roundups!

Tens of thousands of wild horses and burros will lose their families and freedom because of these roundups, and because the BLM doesn’t have the capacity to store all of the horses they capture, it’s already leading to slaughter for too many of these cherished animals.

PZP is a much more sustainable and humane option to keep wild horses in the wild where they belong. On today, the 30th — will you help us to continue the successes of our PZP program with a $30 donation?

$30.00 >> HELPS 1 HORSE

$60.00 >> HELPS 2 HORSES

$150.00 >> HELPS 5 HORSES

$300.00 >> HELPS 10 HORSES

DONATE OTHER >>

Thank you for your support,
AWHC Team

May 29 2021

🚨 BREAKING 🚨 : Biden just released the proposed budget for the Interior Dept.

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program, equine welfare, Equine Welfare News, equines, Horses, slaughter, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

The Biden Administration just released its proposed Fiscal Year 2022 budget for the U.S. Department of the Interior. It contains an astounding increase of $36.8 million for the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program, and continues the Trump Administration’s accelerated, mass roundup plan and scapegoating of wild equids.

Remember what that plan includes: the removal of nearly 90,000 wild horses and burros from their homes on our public lands, the tripling of the number of wild horses and burros in holding facilities, and a cost to taxpayers of nearly $1 billion in the first five years! And, as the New York Times recently reported, this is already leading to the slaughter of these protected national icons.

It’s shocking that Interior Secretary Haaland has put her seal of approval on this plan. As a member of Congress, she opposed additional funding for wild horse and burro roundups, advocating instead for humane birth control. Clearly, at the helm of the Interior Department, she’s now prioritizing livestock industry interests over the protection of wild horses and burros.

But remember, this is only a budget request. It does not mean that Congress will fund it.

So, it’s time to fight back … And it’s already happening!

Increasing numbers of environmental organizations are speaking up against the scapegoating of wild horses for damage caused by massive livestock grazing. In fact, the Sierra Club recently adopted a policy calling for the elimination of livestock grazing in wild horse and burro habitats!
Support for humane, in-the-wild horse and burro management is growing on Capitol Hill. Reps. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Steve Cohen (D-TN) were recently joined by over 40 of their House colleagues in requesting Congress to fund humane fertility control and other on-range methods as a priority over removing wild horses and burros from their homes.
AWHC is working with key members of Congress to support a humane, environmentally-focused and scientific approach to wild horse management that would drastically reduce the removal of wild horses and burros from their habitats.
We really need you to take action too. Here’s what you can do:
1. Protest this budget request on the Interior Department’s Facebook page by downloading the below graphic and uploading it to this post.
2. Tweet at President Biden and Secretary Haaland using this automated Tweet.
3. Email Secretary Haaland at exsec@ios.doi.gov. Suggested message:
  “I strongly oppose your cruel plan to remove tens of thousands of wild horses and burros from our public lands. I’m especially disappointed that you blame wild horses and burros for environmental damage and climate change while you continue to ignore livestock grazing, which is the real contributor to these issues. Humane on-range management alternatives — including birth control and removing livestock — are available, scientifically-recommended, and cost-effective. I’m very disappointed that you are prioritizing livestock interests over the interests of the 80 percent of Americans who want wild horses and burros protected, not rounded up, penned, and slaughtered.”
4. Ask Congress to fund humane wild horse management.
Thank you,

Suzanne Roy
Executive Director
American Wild Horse Campaign

May 29 2021

Katherine Heigl joins the fight to save the Onaqui wild horses!

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, equine welfare, Equine Welfare News, equines, Horses, Katherine Heigl, Onaqui wild horses, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

The Onaqui wild horses of the West Desert in Utah just gained a powerful voice in the battle to save the iconic herd from a brutal helicopter roundup planned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) this summer. What’s at stake: the fate of 300 of the 500 Onaqui wild horses targeted for removal by the BLM.

Actress Katherine Heigl (Grey’s Anatomy), is using her platform to join AWHC in speaking out for this beloved herd, known for its striking colors, unique social dynamics, and acclimation to photographers and other visitors from all over the world.

We’re grateful to Katherine for tweeting out a link to our website, saveonaqui.com, spreading the word about the plight of these cherished mustangs and ways to join the fight to save them!

A growing chorus of celebrities and activists is speaking out against the BLM’s inhumane mass roundup and removal of thousands of wild horses and burros every year from the public lands they call home. As was revealed by our investigation and confirmed by a New York Times exposé — far too many captured wild horses and burros are adopted then dumped at slaughter auctions across the country.

Katherine makes a great point:
Why are we spending so much time and money to round up the Onaqui wild horses, separating their family groups, terrorizing or even killing them, when there is already a humane fertility control program in place to control the population?

The Onaqui roundup is scheduled to start on July 12th. Please take action now to help us stop it: Visit saveonaqui.com to learn how you can protect the Onaqui wild horses today!

Here are a few ways you can help right now:

Thank you for joining us in speaking up for the Onaqui wild horses,

American Wild Horse Campaign

May 23 2021

The BLM wants to remove 100% of these wild burros — can you help!?

Kyle Davidson Wild Horse and Burro 2021 American Wild Horse Campaign, BLM, burros, Centennial, helicopter roundups, Panamint, Slate Herd Areas, wild burros, wild horses 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

We have urgent news.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently released its final decision to round up and remove ALL of the wild burros in the Centennial, Panamint, and Slate Herd Areas (HAs) in California.

These Herd Areas are made up of roughly 1.73 million acres of public and private land and are currently home to roughly 1,000 wild burros!

The BLM changed the Appropriate Management Level (AML) for the burros in the three HAs to 0, even though these animals call this area home. NOW, the BLM is planning to conduct brutal helicopter roundups to remove every wild burro from this area over the next 10 years.

The BLM just announced that the first roundup is scheduled to take place next week, on May 28, and 300 burros are at risk of immediate removal, so we need your help now.

AWHC is working to appeal the decision, but we need your help to save these burros. Will you take the following actions to help us protect these three burro herds and save the place they call home?

Send a letter to the BLM and tell them that this final decision to remove ALL of the burros from the Centennial, Panamint, and Slate HAs must be revised. You can use the letter we provided to tell them that you oppose this decision.
Contact your members of Congress and tell them that you strongly oppose the BLM’s decision to remove these burros from the land they call home!

We sent a letter to the BLM months ago asking them to reinstate these HAs, and they ignored us. Not only will these roundups be traumatic for the burros being removed — this is another unnecessary removal action by the BLM at the expense of American taxpayers.

Recent research has shown that these burro species have made a positive impact on the lands where they live. Without burros as part of the ecosystem, the BLM could potentially impact the environment beyond repair.

We need your help, Erica. Will you take action and tell the BLM and your members of Congress that the burros in these three HAs MUST be protected?