On this Thanksgiving, we have much for which to be thankful.
Our mustangs and wild burros found heroes in the Senate.
Wild Horses and Burros — The Committee appreciates the seri-
ousness with which the request takes the on-range overpopulation
of wild horses and burros. With on-range wild horse population 270
percent over Appropriate Management Level; on-range wild horse
populations doubling roughly every 4 years; adoption numbers
steadily decreasing over the last decade, and unlikely to return to
historic levels; range conditions inadequate to sustain both wild
horses and burros and native wildlife habitat; and significant tres-
pass issues and instances where wild horses are found outside des-
ignated Herd Management Areas, the Committee recognizes that
bold steps must be taken to put this program on a path to sustain-
ability. The Committee looks forward to the release of the report
required by the Statement of Managers accompanying division G of
the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2017 and is hopeful that it will
contain a range of humane and politically viable options that can
collectively be implemented to drastically reduce on-range popu-
lations and a variety of methods to limit unsustainable on-range
reproduction and the Committee has provided an additional
$5,000,000 to begin this effort. The Committee again asserts its po-
sition that no one solution will resolve this issue and multiple ap-
proaches employed together are necessary to controlling the cur-
rent unsustainable trajectory of wild horse and burro population
growth.
On this Thanksgiving, we are so grateful for the appreciation of the wildness of our mustangs and burros.
Thank you to our BLM employees and advocates – local and elsewhere – who work hard together to protect and manage well our wild horses and burros.
Thank you to those who have ideas and to those who have the ability to implement those ideas.
Thanks to those who write letters and make calls.
Thank you to our families, who may or may not understand our obsession with these magnificent wild beings. 🙂 You, in some form or fashion, are the reason why we do what we do … and why we can do what we want to do for these horses and burros that roam their ranges and our hearts.
Be grateful. It matters.
Spring Creek Basin Mustangs 