Horses: Equine Advocate’s 2015 Summit is A Success
May 20, 2015Wild Horses: France TV Claims Wild Horses are Overrunning the West
June 13, 2015
Cloud and Encore
From the Cloud Foundation
TAKE ACTION!
Background. The Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range (PMWHR is a spectacular wilderness but a high percentage of the 39,651 acres is rocky and unproductive for grazing. The herd now exceeds 160 adult horses. Without range expansion which TCF actively pursues, there must be some limited removals to ensure that the range continues to support the herd. There are no livestock on the range. The BLM is seeking your comments on their proposal to remove “up to 25” young horses from the range starting this year.
Because BLM’s email system is inadequate to accept large volumes of correspondence they request that you send a snail mail letter. Please formulate a polite letter in your own words. Here are some points to make:
- Strongly Encourage BLM to adopt Alternative A, which calls for small, incremental removals as opposed to one large removal. Alternative A comes in response to suggestions made by responders to the Scoping document.
- Ask that a time limit of three years be placed on these small removals, then assess whether further removals are needed based on the new PZP protocols as well as unpredictable limiting factors (i.e. weather/predation).
- Remove no more than 6-10 young animals in any one year, so all the horses removed will have the opportunity to find good homes and the fragile genetics of this unique Spanish herd are not placed in jeopardy.
- Do not eliminate the yearlings from the removal protocol. Yearlings are traditionally the most easily adopted, and adapt more readily to a domestic setting. Spreading the limited removals over mainly the yearling and two-year old quadrants will ensure that no unique animals will be removed and that the horses will be more likely to find homes and successfully adapt to a domestic life.
- Remove as few three year-old as possible. Many three year-old fillies are settling in to life with their new bands and most three year-old males have become bachelor stallions, honing the skills they will need to one day win a mare. Because of this and their age, three year-olds typically require more time and expertise to gentle and train than most yearlings and two year-olds.
- Do not remove any young horse that threatens the loss of a genetic line.
- Do not remove any young horse that threatens the loss of a color. Encore is a low priority based on her sex and color. Mato Ska is the only blaze-faced roan that has ever been born on the Pryor Mountains to our knowledge. Palominos, Blue Roans and Buckskins are rare colors that must be preserved.
- Please acknowledge that we appreciate being listened to!
Send your letter postmarked by June 6 to:
BLM Billings Field Office
Attn: Jared Bybee
5001 Southgate Drive
Billings, Mt. 49101-4669
For More Information call Jared Bybee: 
406-896-5223
Environmental Assessment.
BLM Press Release
TCF Action Alert on Scoping Notice
20 Comments
Please leave them alone! Leave them be! I would come adopt, but live in OR! It is so sad that we have to remove these Mustangs! If you want, you can bring me one. So, with us humanes reproducing, what about us? Should we be taken care of as well?
Maybe they should give up their own kids
Fine by me
Please remember that they are God’s only creature with a single soul.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the range could be ‘farmed’ to support the herd rather than ‘remove an essential’ part of a herd that is not replaceable.
I honor your moderation
Why dont we remove the cattle and sheep from OUR PUBLIC range and leave it the wild horses and then there would be no need for the BLM
The blm needs to leave the wild horses alone. If they take the younger horses they are stopping the herd from continuing to reproduce. That is what theu are trying to do. The older mares get to a point the cant foal. No new foals they eventually dissapear which is what the blm and the ranchers want. Someone needs to get control of the blm.
I thought of the “farming” idea as well……I tend to agree with the “hands off” and let nature take care of the horses. Sorry but every time people get mixed up with trying to control what they are not meant to – the animals are the ones to suffer. That many acres and not enough grazing room sounds like a farce.
If the range is limited and there is no good grazing land for over a certain number of wild horses, then it might be ok to remove A FEW young horses to good homes. It must be done correctly, as listed above… bearing in mind they will be separating family members within Cloud’s herd. Is there no way to expand their range? It is not covered in the article.
Thank you, HJC
There are many ways to expand the range. The Cloud Foundation has been working to facilitate this, but it has still not happened.
My understanding from Front Range Equine Rescue in the front range of Colorado, is that the BL M ships off the horses for slaughter or starves them. Contact Hilary Wood there. She is very knowledgeable about all aspects of horses. I think she is in the Pueblo area. I think more land should be provided. Why isn’t it? The horses are harmless. Let them find their own way. I think BL M are killers.
Leave the horses alone !stop interfering with nature she has done pretty good all the centuries without our help!
Can’t you live & let live..this human interference with nature is so out to f hand.it sickens me
please leave them alone! they don’t deserve to be sent to slaughter! please just leave them! you are killing an american symbol!
Please redo this and actually write the letter for us so we can just copy and paste and make any changes. You will get many more people to participate if it take less time to do this. I am only trying to help.
Dear Janie,
I am actually not going to do that because in order to have each person’s comments count they need to be in your own words.
This is to the people in our government, Stop removing the WILD Mustangs! We the people of these United States,that pay taxes ,Do not want you too remove Any of the Mustangs off there home land leave them Wild and Free .I thought that FREEDOM ment something in our country . Please leave all the young and old horses alone , Nancy
Thank you everyone who has commented. However, in order for your comments to make a difference to Cloud’s herd, please write them down and mail them to the address in the post, the Billings BLM, by June 6.
Thank you!
Please leave the youngin’s alone!