AWHC NEWS ALERT: THIS is how to enjoy summer

, , , , , , 0

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

This week marks the halfway point of summer, the third week of roundup season, and the end of foaling season with many baby foals taking their first steps on wild ranges across the Western United States.

We’re working around the clock to make sure those first steps are free, but our wild horses still have a long road ahead.

We’re like to share some small, but meaningful, actions you can take this weekend that will go a long way in helping us keep up the fight for our beloved wild horses and burros:

TAKE ACTION: Tell the BLM to Humanely Manage Utah’s Wild Horses!
Deadline July 27. TAKE ACTION now:
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released a 10-year roundup plan for the mustangs that live within the Confusion Herd Management Area (HMA).

The BLM estimates that just 551 wild horses live on the roughly 235,000 acres of public lands approximately 30 miles north from Garrison, Utah. However, the BLM wants to reduce the population to just 70 horses.

That’s one horse for every 3,350 acres! At the same time, the BLM authorizes approximately 10,400 cattle and sheep to graze in four grazing allotments within the HMA.

Under the Proposed Action, the BLM plans to:

  • Reduce the Confusion wild horse population by 87% through the permanent removal of 481 wild horses
  • Apply untested, inhumane surgical sterilization procedures on mares released back to the HMA; including the brutal ovariectomy via colpotomy method
  • Geld a portion of the stallions making them non-reproducing and destroying their natural behaviors

Please weigh in today against this destructive management plan, which threatens the welfare of individual wild horses and the long-term viability of this herd.

UPDATE: Last Week in Congress…
A quick update about last week’s House Appropriations Committee hearing:

We were disappointed when the Committee voted to move the Interior spending bill on to the full House for a vote without the amendment to rein in BLM wild horse roundups, or prohibit the cruel surgical sterilization of wild horses.

The news is not all bad, however: The bill passed out of Committee continues the ban on slaughtering wild horses and burros under the jurisdiction of the BLM and the U.S. Forest Service, and rejects the Administration’s request for a budget increase of $13.5 million on top of the $102 million appropriated last year. We will have many opportunities over the coming months — including when the Senate weighs in on the agency’s plan for wild horse management — to continue to push for meaningful reform of the cruel and costly BLM Wild Horse and Burro Roundup Program as Congress continues the appropriations process this year.

We will keep you updated on opportunities to encourage Congress to hold the BLM’s feet to the fire, but in the interim it’s important to celebrate the efforts of our champions in Congress who have been leading the charge to curb the roundups and institute more humane management methods.

Will you JOIN US IN THANKING Reps. Raúl Grijalva, Marcy Kaptur, Dina Titus and Steve Cohen who have been leading the fight to rein in BLM’s cruel and costly wild horse management program?

It’s important to let our elected officials who are standing up for America’s wild horses and burros know how much we appreciate their continued efforts!

VIDEO: Summer on the Range
It’s warming up and just like us, these wild horses are using every excuse to cool down!

Nevada, Arizona, and Utah are home to thousands of wild and free horses, who are thoroughly enjoying themselves with some play time in the water… take a watch, and live vicariously through our treasured wild horses for a couple of beautiful minutes:

From the AWHC family, we hope you get to have a little summer fun with your herd!

You Can Help Horses With Your Morning Coffee!
Did you know that you can support wild horses with a cup of coffee? Wild Grounds is our Cause Coffee, and 20% of every package sold comes directly back to our work at the AWHC! We approached Thanksgiving Coffee with the concept for Wild Grounds as a way to generate much-needed funds for our work, and also to support their work fighting for economic and environmental justice for coffee farmers. Needless to say, Thanksgiving Coffee joined our cause right away!

This isn’t just any coffee, it’s “A Just Cup.” That’s the message of Thanksgiving Coffee, the roaster behind Wild Grounds. They have been roasting coffee since 1972, and are one of the country’s pioneering socially and environmentally progressive roasters.

Order a Just Cup today… it feels good and tastes delicious!
Order now and 20% will benefit our work at AWHC
In case you need additional incentives: Thanksgiving Coffee was named Time Magazine’s 2017 Roaster of the Year, won a Good Food Award in 2019, and received a 96 point score from Coffee Review in May… so you can enjoy a great cup of coffee, while doing good work for wild horses. A win-win for the horses, and for you.

A big thank you for all that you continue to do to keep our wild horses, free. We hope you enjoy your weekend — may we suggest a frolic in the water, a strong cup of coffee, and some time with your herd of choice!

— The whole team at the American Wild Horse Campaign