How we’re fighting for burros
The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:
Wild burros are faced with significant threats to their freedom and safety as a result of misguided federal policy that prioritizes cruel roundups instead of humane in-the-wild management.
We focus much of our efforts on fighting for wild horses, and we are just as staunch in our commitment to advocating for our beloved burros! And what better time to double down on our burro advocacy than during Burro Awareness Month?
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One of the most important ways we’re fighting back for burros is on Capitol Hill. We’re advocating for several important bills that would reform the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) cruel and costly Wild Horse and Burro Program, like the Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act of 2023-2024 introduced by Representative Dina Titus (D-NV)). This important piece of legislation would ban the use of helicopters in federal wild horse and burro roundups. Thanks to our advocacy efforts, over 20,000 individuals have written to their Members of Congress asking them to cosponsor the bill.
We’re also advocating for the passage of the Ejiao Act, a bill that would prohibit the transportation, sale, and purchase of donkeys or donkey hides for the purpose of producing ejiao – a gelatin made from boiling donkey skins. Experts estimate that the global demand for donkey skins is approximately 4.8 million hides per year. As a result, the donkey skin trade is decimating global donkey populations. Passing this legislation could help save untold numbers of donkeys and burros from slaughter for their skins. Our advocacy work has generated over 50,000 letters sent in support of the Ejiao Act!
AWHC is leading the charge and thanks to our herd of advocates, Congress is hearing our collective calls for the humane conservation of America’s wild horses and burros!
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Beyond our legislative efforts, we’re also defending burros in court, particularly against the BLM’s disastrous Adoption Incentive Program (AIP), which has resulted in droves of wild burros being funneled into the slaughter pipeline in recent years.
The AIP was meant to increase the number of untrained wild horses and burros adopted out by offering financial incentives to adopters. However, less than two years after the program began, AWHC began receiving reports from rescue groups about an influx of BLM-branded wild horses and burros to known kill pens. Our team has identified and aided in the rescue of several groups of AIP burros, including a group of 22 burros and another group of 11 burros that were all dumped at kill pens together.
To combat this extremely worrying trend, AWHC filed suit against the alleged illegal implementation of the AIP and is taking the BLM on court right now to put a stop to the program.
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Thank you,
Team AWHC