That day was the last time I saw my family

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

Hi there — my name is Nellie, I’m the tiny foal being chased by a big helicopter in the photo below.

I haven’t seen my family since the day this photo was taken last year, and I’m so scared and lonely without them. Here’s what happened: 

My herd was grazing peacefully on our home range (Twin Peaks, in California) when these loud machines descended from the sky. The whole thing was a panicked blur. Throughout the entire chase, all I could hear was the deafening whirr of the terrifying helicopter. I struggled to keep up with my mom and the rest of my family, as we were running for a very long time in the high summer heat and across rocky terrain. After what felt like forever, I was chased into a metal trap, with walls much taller than me.

I barely made it out alive that day, and I’m lucky I did — my friends at the American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) told me that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the federal government agency that rounded us up, reported that there were 31 deaths: All were members of my herd. But AWHC’s work didn’t end once the helicopters landed. Their investigations team dug in and uncovered that 69 additional members of my herd lost their lives in the days and months after the “roundup” and at least 14 of them were babies just like me, with their wild lives cut tragically short.

Now, I’ve heard that what happened to me is going to happen to my herd again next summer, and to more than 20,000 other horses and burros in 2024.

My friends at AWHC are doing everything they can to fight back and defend us. Can you help them? They need to raise $200,000 by the end of the year to be ready for the fight. Luckily, a group of generous individuals have offered to match donations up to $125,000 to help them do it — so whatever you give will go twice as far.

DONATE TO PROTECT MY HERD

Friend, even for foals like me who survived the initial roundup, many of us suffered greatly or succumbed to our injuries in the days following. AWHC uncovered these vet records from the aftermath of my herd’s roundup:

“This foal arrived at the Litchfield Corrals so tired and so sore it could barely move. Suspect this foals death was from the stress of being run long distances in rough terrain and in high temperatures”

“Dr. (REDACTED), DVM, stated that these foals are foundering due to being run too far during the gather”

“3‐4 month old foal found dead in mare/foal pen. Necropsy showed no obvious cause of death, possible stress from gather”

If AWHC wasn’t there to document the day the “helicopters” chased my herd and my family, nobody would know about what’s happening to wild horses and burros like me. And if they hadn’t done their investigative work through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), nobody would know about our suffering in the aftermath.

Friend, AWHC is standing up for me and all wild horse herds across the West, both out in the field and on Capitol Hill. We are counting on AWHC to be our last line of defense, and to ensure our freedom for generations to come, but they need your support to keep fighting. Can you make a 2X matched contribution before the end of the year to help them?

MAKE A DONATION NOW

Thank you for listening to my story, and for standing up for those who don’t have a voice.

Nellie the Foal