Ushering the issue of wild horse conservation into the mainstream

The following is from the American Wild Horse Campaign:

In recent years, wild horse conservation is gaining more and more attention – in part thanks to American Wild Horse Conservation’s (AWHC) efforts to raise awareness about the issues facing our nation’s mustangs and burros.

If we’ve learned one thing as an organization, it’s that once people become aware of the plight of wild horses and burros, they are upset and motivated to take action to protect them.

That’s why we’ve been seriously ramping up our awareness efforts over the past several years. In the last month alone, we’ve placed and been included in 12 impactful stories in the media highlighting the dangers facing wild horses and burros, including the inhumane use of helicopters for roundups, the Adoption Incentive Program (AIP) slaughter pipeline — which is threatening the lives of hundreds of wild horses and burros — and more:

We’re translating this awareness into direct action for our wild herds.

Recently, we centered our efforts around three major focuses of our work:

• Ending the AIP cash incentive: we mobilized our supporters to call for an end to the AIP, leading to 10,000 actions taken within 24 hours;
• Increasing roundup transparency: We spearheaded a campaign resulting in over 50,000 total letter submissions calling on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to install cameras on helicopters used for roundups;
• And ending the donkey skin trade in the US: we called on our advocates to ask their representatives to cosponsor the Ejiao Act, resulting in over 31,000 total letters in support of this important bill.

Awareness is the key to bringing about the change our wild horses and burros desperately need. The BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Program holding system is nearing its breaking point, with more than 64,000 horses in captivity and roundup season less than a month away. Time is of the essence as we work to spread the word about more humane alternatives to protect our wild horses in the wild, where they belong. Will you help continue powering AWHC’s awareness work as we fight to keep wild horses and burros wild, Meredith?

Thank you,

American Wild Horse Conservation