Fertility control | Spring Creek Basin Mustangs

BLM seeks comments on Piceance-East Douglas Roundup EA

19 07 2011

Thanks to photographer Pam Nickoles for this heads-up about the environmental assessment now out for comment about the upcoming Piceance-East Douglas roundup scheduled for Sept. 20-30 (just after the one here in Spring Creek Basin, which is set for Sept. 15-18). She has been visiting this herd and has some awesome photos of these beautiful mustangs.

From the BLM website:

July 7, 2011

Contact: Tom Alvarez, public affairs specialist, (970) 244-3097

Environmental Assessment for Piceance-East Douglas Wild Horse Gather Available for Public Comment

Meeker, Colo. — The Bureau of Land Management, Northwest District, White River Field Office (WRFO) is releasing a preliminary Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Piceance-East Douglas Herd Management Area Wild Horse Gather Plan for public review and comment. The gather is needed to help balance wild horse populations with other resources, restrict wild horses from areas where they were not “presently found” at the passage of the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act and to manage wild horses within the area designated for long-term wild horse management.

The WRFO manages wild horses within the 190,130 acre Piceance-East Douglas Herd Management Area (HMA), located in Rio Blanco County, Colorado. The Appropriate Management Level (AML) in the HMA is 135-235 wild horses. The Proposed Action analyzes the impacts of gathering the current estimated population of 382 wild horses from inside and 78 wild horses from outside the HMA; to implement fertility control, sex ratio adjustments, and a selective removal of excess wild horses. If the Proposed Action is fully successful, the HMA will consist of approximately 135 wild horses; the lower range of the appropriate management level of 135 to 235 wild horses. The BLM would select the 135 wild horses to maintain a diverse age structure, herd character, body type (conformation) and implement a sex ratio adjustment of 60 percent studs to 40 percent mares. All mares, over two years of age, released back to the HMA would be treated with Porcine Zona Pellucida (PZP) immunocontraception (fertility) drugs. In addition, the BLM has fully analyzed three additional alternatives to the Proposed Action to address issues and concerns brought forward during the initial scoping process.

“The Bureau of Land Management is tasked with managing our rangelands for a variety of uses. Providing management for a healthy wild horse herd within the HMA so the thriving natural ecological balance is maintained for all plant and animal species on that range, in conjunction with all other resource uses, it is one of our most important responsibilities to the American public and public land users. The public’s participation in this analysis process is vital to the decision making process,” said Kent Walter, field manager for the White River Field Office.

The gather EA can be found on the BLM WRFO website at http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/wrfo/piceance_-_east_douglas.html, and selecting Preliminary Environmental Assessment DOI-BLM-CO-110-2011-0058-EA. All comments must be submitted in writing and received by the WRFO by the close of business on Aug. 8, 2011. Comments may be sent via email to mkindall@blm.gov with “Wild Horse Removal Plan” in the subject line of the email. Comments can also be sent by regular mail to the Bureau of Land Management, White River Field Office: attention Melissa Kindall, 220 E. Market St., Meeker, CO 81641. For more information, call James Roberts at (970) 878-3873 or Melissa Kindall at (970) 878-3842.

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I went looking for information about the specific fertility control to be used … “two-year PZP contraceptive vaccine,” according to the EA, but the language seems to mean native PZP and/or PZP-22 interchangeably. (Page 94 of the PDF; Page 85 of the EA document.)

It seems odd that BLM would continue to use PZP-22 given the known timing problems from the HSUS studies in Sand Wash Basin and Cedar Mountains – and the EA acknowledges that it is best given between November and February (though I’ve also heard between December and March, and I think the Spring Creek Basin preliminary roundup EA pegs it at between December and February). This roundup is scheduled immediately after the Spring Creek Basin roundup.

PZP-22 is not “fairly inexpensive”; PZP-22 was about $200 a dose when it was allegedly administered to the Spring Creek Basin mares in 2007. Native PZP, however, is quite inexpensive – less than $30 per dose. Also, PZP-22 can be given “in the field” if that means at the roundup … but not (yet, that I know of) without a roundup – like native PZP can be given. The efficacy percentages are attributed to Dr. Kirkpatrick, who works with native PZP (and percentages are low for native PZP, which has at least an average 90 percent efficacy rate – also, native PZP is effective for one year, so the rest of that would seem to be moot)). Dr. Turner, attributed elsewhere, works with PZP-22.

Just some “hmms” I had when reading that part of the EA. I am not familiar with this herd at all and plan to seek more information from people who know those horses and that area.

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Categories : Fertility control, Piceance-East Douglas, PZP, PZP-22, Roundup

Down to the wire

10 07 2011

Comments on our preliminary EA for this fall’s roundup are due tomorrow – Monday, July 11. Comments from this preliminary document will form the basis of the final EA. If nothing else, and if you haven’t already, please send comments in support of “Alternative 1 – proposed action: Helicopter drive trap and capture up to 60 wild horses in order to remove 50 excess animals. Apply the contraceptive porcine zona pellucida (PZP) with annual boosters over the next five years, and establish a 60% male sex ratio.”

Cinch

Details: Mail to Tom Rice, BLM Associate Field Office Manager, 27501 Highway 184, Dolores, CO 81323, or email to trice@blm.gov. For more information, call Tom Rice at (970) 882-6843. Comments are most helpful if they are specific to Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area and to the proposed gather activities described in the Alternatives section of the EA. Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses, will be part of the public record.

Hacho & Maiku

We have worked hard – almost four years, since the last roundup in 2007 – to get to this point. Is there more work to do? Of course there is – management has goals, but good management has no end point – it evolves. Right now, this is the next step on the path to sustainable management for the mustangs of Spring Creek Basin. Do we wish bait trapping was being used over the helicopter? Of course we do. We worked on that, and for a variety of reasons, that plan did not come to fruition for this roundup. We’re also working on the gender skewing issue. Sixty percent stallions is actually better than it was after 2007 – and now we know the exact makeup of the herd to ensure it’s no more than that.

Whisper & Aurora

But annual PZP darting is a huge, integral part of the new management plan – and that IS being implemented at this roundup. This is a giant step, and it represents numerous steps in a process that at times has been massively frustrating, and it heralds a valuable new partnership between our advocacy groups (National Mustang Association/Colorado, Four Corners Back Country Horsemen, Mesa Verde Back Country Horsemen – as individual groups and collectively as Disappointment Wild Bunch Partners (which also includes San Juan Mountains Association)) and the Dolores Public Lands Office, managing agency for Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area. Representative volunteers from these groups will be actively involved at both the roundup and adoption.

To clarify some concerns I’ve heard from people: We are NOT using PZP-22 here again; we are using native PZP, delivered annually via dart. No stallions will be returned to the basin as geldings. Cattle grazing in the basin is NOT part of the current EA – which pertains to the roundup only.

Sustainable management means managing wild horses in the wild. Doing that means reducing population growth. The means to do that is within reach. Please support Alternative 1.

Varoujan

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Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Roundup, Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area

Preliminary roundup EA – comments due Monday

8 07 2011

A reminder that comments for the preliminary EA for the scheduled roundup this fall of Spring Creek Basin are due Monday, July 11.

Here’s a link to my previously posted thoughts about this preliminary EA and a request for folks to get their comments in. Again, this roundup and the removal of some horses IS necessary this year. Visitors can attest to how dry it is in the basin, and we’re nearing capacity for what this range can sustain in numbers of horses. Please support “Alternative 1 – Proposed Action: Helicopter drive trap and capture up to 60 wild horses in order to remove 50 excess animals. Apply the contraceptive porcine zona pellucida (PZP) with annual boosters over the next five years, and establish a 60% male sex ratio.”

https://springcreekwild.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/thoughts-on-the-preliminary-ea-for-scb-roundup/

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Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Roundup, Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area

Thoughts on the preliminary EA for SCB roundup

28 06 2011

With less than two weeks before comments are due for the preliminary EA for the Spring Creek Basin roundup this fall, some thoughts.

First, here’s the link to the preliminary EA.

And here is information about where to send your comments.

I’ve been reading over the preliminary EA for our roundup this fall, and our groups (National Mustang Association/Colorado, Four Corners Back Country Horsemen and Mesa Verde Back Country Horsemen – singularly, and collectively as Disappointment Wild Bunch Partners) propose to support “Alternative 1 – Proposed Action: Helicopter drive trap and capture up to 60 wild horses in order to remove 50 excess animals. Apply the contraceptive porcine zona pellucida (PZP) with annual boosters over the next five years, and establish a 60% male sex ratio.”

A roundup IS necessary in Spring Creek Basin with the attendant removal of some horses for the benefit of the herd as a whole and for the finite, fenced environment on which they depend.

Notice that this preliminary EA is for the roundup, not specifically and/or separately for fertility control. I/we thought that was coming in a combined EA, but that’s apparently not the case. The fertility control EA will have to be much more complete – along the lines of the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range Fertility Control Environmental Assessment, but there are some things that need to be addressed in the roundup preliminary EA as presented.

Some of my concerns about our preliminary EA:

* Application of PZP: All the mares will need to be treated with primer this fall (primer, not “primary”), not just the mares captured and released. Hopefully, that’s just an oversight in this prelim EA because I’ve been talking about that all along. Also, I wonder when the number of mares to be “treated” fell from 10 to five? This has never been discussed with us by BLM. Note, it’s still “10” on the roundup schedule, even though the number of horses to be captured/removed varies between this preliminary EA (round up 60/remove 50) and the roundup schedule (round up 65/remove 45) – and has changed from the original roundup schedule (round up 90/remove 60). I was never sure where the number 10 came from originally (in fact, this was the first glimmer we had that BLM was planning fertility control here), and I’m making the possibly erroneous assumption that that’s the number of mares BLM thinks to give the booster (as opposed to the primer … but given the information about PZP, the EA writer is unfamiliar with PZP at all) … The point is, that number from BLM is premature; no one knows the post-roundup makeup of the herd or number of total mares, and there is no herd manager or approved fertility control plan in place to dictate for certain one way or another. As it says about gender skewing in this preliminary EA: “It is impossible to determine the sex ratio of captured horses until the gather takes place.” (Page 12, third full paragraph) It also is impossible to determine the number of mares to be boostered (or even given the primer) until the roundup is complete and the number of horses and makeup of the herd is known. But to implement the program, it is necessary to treat all the mares with the primer. They get it just once in their lifetimes, but they have to get it before the booster can be given the first time. The primer needs to be given even if the mare will not be boostered next spring. In the future, we will have a seasonal application plan of boostering selected mares in the late winter/early spring and giving primer doses in the fall to maturing fillies. NMA/CO will pay for the PZP (primer and booster doses) for the first five years. This should not be a problem, and it should not have been overlooked in this preliminary EA.

* Low range of AML: This preliminary EA continually mentions taking the population back to the bottom range of the AML – 35 (AML is 35 to 65 adult horses). We also have repeatedly argued against that, especially with the implementation of an annual PZP darting program. Based on the precedent in Spring Creek Basin of leaving 43 horses after the last roundup and the PMWHR statement that their “Decision Record” states “The population will not be taken to the low range of AML when fertility control is utilized” (top of Page 3), I’d like to see that acknowledged here, especially with the continuation of gender skewing. Even with gender skewing (apparently even less than this prelim EA proposes – gender skewing was said to be 55% stallions/45% mares post-2007 roundup and is planned to be 60% stallions/40% mares this fall), and the PZP-22 that was administered to the released mares in 2007 not working (it worked on one mare; two of the original five have since died), and the introduction of three mares (from Sand Wash Basin, for their genetics) between the last roundup and currently (and three foals produced by two of the mares), we still went four years before a roundup. There’s no rational reason to remove more horses than necessary given BLM’s troubled Wild Horse & Burro Program and all the horses in holding. In fact, rational reason dictates managing horses in the wild as much as possible and appropriate – as is the case here. So our suggestion is for BLM to leave 40-45 horses after this roundup, in conjunction with the annual PZP darting and their 60/40 gender skew. We do not plan to contest the gender skewing – partly because I think it will fall on deaf ears and so it’s not a battle worth fighting at this time, and partly because, if we are given enough time and not hampered in our ability to prove the efficacy of PZP here, it should naturally skew back to normal (and I’m curious enough to see that happen).

* Modeled population growth: Also, I’m disappointed that BLM’s “Win Equus” model of population growth and this preliminary EA seem to present a token use of PZP rather than making full use of it in a plan of sustainable management that will actually save BLM money and labor and us horses. This preliminary EA suggests status quo (even with the use of PZP and gender skewing): the continuation of roundups every few years – three per 10 years (2011, 2016 and, presumably, 2021) – as was done in 2001, 2005 and 2007. Why? Just five years between this roundup and the next? Why? My proposal shows that it’s possible to reduce roundups here from three per decade to one – with all the attendant cost savings, in roundups (lack thereof; this would amount to at least $150,000 in savings per decade in roundups NOT held), and horses going to holding (lack thereof; this is by far the biggest savings over time, at least $2 million saved in horses NOT removed and sent to holding during the decade). So BLM is already anticipating that PZP won’t work? Or that it won’t use the PZP well enough to be as beneficial as it could be? With a roundup in 2011, the next anticipated roundup (by BLM) – indicated by this preliminary EA – will be in 2016 (Page 31) and, presumably, one to follow in 2021, that’s three per decade – exactly what we’re trying to prevent.

Again, reviewing some precedents to the above issues: In 2007, BLM left 43 horses (remember, low end of the AML is 35). Pryor Mountain, in its fertility control EA (which, again, we do NOT yet have here …), says that when PZP is used, the herd population does NOT need to be reduced to the low end of the AML. Mention is made in our EA (Page 12) that it is “impossible to determine the sex ratio of captured horses until the gather takes place.” By all logic, it also is impossible to know how many mares to treat post-roundup with PZP – other than with primer, and this number should be “all.” 😉

A concern raised specifically by our Colorado chapter of the National Mustang Association is the lack of mention of our group’s longtime role in advocating for these particular mustangs – about 15 years’ worth.

On page 41, the preliminary EA states: “The Four Corners Back Country Horsemen has helped obtain horse counts in the Spring Creek Basin HMA for several consecutive years (I believe this is at least 12 years). They also have been consulted regarding the proposed gather and subsequent local adoption. Some members have expressed an interest in observing the gather but none have expressed any specific concerns relative to the gather or the adoption.”

I guess I can’t speak for 4CBCH, but NMA/CO and MVBCH have expressed concerns – members of both our groups made comments at the public hearing. Not mentioned? Why? Also, although 4CBCH has, indeed, conducted counts all these years, BLM has not very often taken their counts into account. Case in point: In February 2007, a flyover was conducted during which two BLM personnel (the then-current herd area manager and the previous herd area manager) counted horses. They each (separately, we were told) observed “97 horses.” In May that year, during their annual count, 4CBCH counted about 120 horses. Based on my knowledge of the 2007 roundup and subsequent documents and my own documentation, there were between 110 and 120 horses in the herd. Based on the numbers in this preliminary EA we’re now discussing, there were at least 118 horses present in the herd pre-roundup 2007. 4CBCH just about nailed it – but was discounted.

In the paragraph above the aforementioned, it states: “A local wild horse advocacy group the Disappointment Wild Bunch [Partners] (affiliated with the Colorado Chapter of the National Mustang Association (NMA)), has worked closely with BLM on several projects and have been consulted regarding both the proposed gather and the adoption planned immediately afterward at the Montezuma County Fairgrounds. In ” (One wonders what got cut out …)

Correctly, NMA/CO is one of the represented groups that make up Disappointment Wild Bunch Partners. Each group holds equal representation as a stakeholder in the welfare and well-being of the Spring Creek Basin wild horse herd. NMA/CO was formed at the request of a former BLM herd area manager (surprise?) and is the longest-serving advocate of the Spring Creek Basin herd.

Also, no mention is made of the specific, extensive documentation project conducted (by yours truly) that enables – finally – a sustainable management plan for this herd – and would allow for NOT BRANDING PZP-treated mares. This hasn’t been mentioned, but it’s a lingering concern. NMA/CO, 4CBCH and MVBCH have been the foundation and support of the documentation work I’ve been able to do to reach this point. Nationwide, BLM hasn’t been able to figure out a sustainable management plan in 40 years (euthanization, sterilization, tens of thousands of horses in holding, more being rounded up, HMAs and HAs zeroed out/reduced in size … need I say more?!) – though some individual herds have and are on that path (Little Book Cliffs, Pryor Mountain, McCullough Peaks). Now we have been able to, in less than three years, hand BLM a sustainable management plan on a silver platter. We had hoped bait trapping would be the method of this roundup … but that’s another story … and it’s likely coming in the future.

I’m extremely proud of the accomplishments we’ve made, and I’m cautiously optimistic for the future (I say that a lot; it has been a frustrating journey in many ways). We have a lot more work to do, but we’re here, we’re obviously not going away, and we will continue to advocate for the sustainable future of our Spring Creek Basin mustangs.

Again, with any questions, please contact me by leaving a comment or email me at mtbgrrl (at) fone (dot) net. If you’re a long-time reader of this blog and enjoyer of these mustangs, you are aware of most of the unique components of this herd and how/why we’ve arrived at this point. If not, I’ll be happy to explain some of the “back story” in more detail. Thank you with all appreciation for your support of our Spring Creek Basin mustangs.

Comments : 4 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Roundup, Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area, Wild horses in the news

Oppose sterilization

24 06 2011

Sterilizing wild horses is NOT management. BLM has apparently “reconsidered” spaying mares in two Wyoming herds (White Mountain and Little Colorado) but plans to continue with the gelding of stallions.

No, no and NO.

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6931/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=1168526

Why BLM in general *won’t* come up with sustainable management plans is beyond me. It talks about that often enough. In fact, we’ve effected change here by showing local BLM just how workable sustainable management can be. In 40 years, things have gone from bad to worse with these hare-brained ideas apparently designed to allow BLM to do little to nothing about their responsibility to wild horses and burros AND the American public for whom mustangs and burros are managed. And yet, when I talk about fertility control in the form of REVERSIBLE PZP, people invariably ask: “Why don’t they just geld the stallions and return them?”

* Horribly invasive.

* Horses must be rounded up and captured to do it.

* Horses must (?!) be held in corrals while they heal.

* Complications?? One of the introduced Spring Creek Basin stallions (three were introduced in the late 1980s or so) was later removed to a sanctuary, where he was gelded … and bled out … How often does this happen insanitary conditions? In a temporary pen full of other horses in dusty range conditions …??

* If I wanted to see a pasture – no matter the size – of geldings, I’d take a drive up the road to see ranch horses. Talk about upsetting the natural dynamic of wild and free-roaming (as much as possible) horses.

In contrast, fertility control such as PZP is reversible. By its use, we’re not trying to stop population growth, just limit it to sustainable levels. Periodic removals will still occur but with less frequency and hopefully on a much smaller scale than currently. While I fully appreciate that annual darting is not feasible or even possible in many large areas, where it IS, it should be used.

As adamantly as I support limiting population growth, I am adamantly opposed to stopping it altogether.

Comments : 2 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Wild horses in the news

EA out for roundup

10 06 2011

Preliminary Spring Creek Basin Wild Horse Herd Gather Environmental Assessment available for comment

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking public comments on a preliminary Environmental Assessment, which analyzes the environmental consequences of removing up to 50 excess wild horses from the Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area on BLM lands located in San Miguel and Dolores counties, about 45 miles northeast of Dove Creek, Colo., and 33 miles southwest of Norwood, Colo., off San Miguel County Road 19Q. The document is tiered to the 1994 BLM Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area Management Plan and the 1985 San Juan/San Miguel Resource Management Plan.

The Proposed Action would gather about 60 and remove approximately 50 excess wild horses from within and outside (if necessary) the Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area in mid-September 2011 (the roundup is now scheduled from Sept. 15-18). Horses would be removed using a selective removal strategy. In keeping with BLM guidance, fertility control options are also being evaluated.

Comments must be received by close of business on Friday, July 11, 2011, and should be mailed to Tom Rice, BLM Associate Field Office Manager, 27501 Highway 184, Dolores, CO 81323 or emailed to trice@blm.gov. For more information, please contact Tom Rice at (970) 882-6843. Comments are most helpful if they are specific to the Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area and to the proposed gather activities described in the Alternatives section of the EA. Comments received in response to this solicitation, including names and addresses, will be part of the public record. Link to PDF : Preliminary Spring Creek Basin Wild Horse 2011 Gather Plan EA

[NOTE: The EA link referred to above is not actually set as a hyperlink right now, but this is the link to the San Juan Public Lands website for the above information: http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/sjplc.html

Please also note that the correct name of our herd area is Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area, not “Spring Creek Wild Horse Herd Management Area.”

**I’ve changed it above to reflect the correct name.]

UPDATE: Here is the link to the actual preliminary EA for the 2011 Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area Gather Plan.

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Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, Roundup, Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area, Wild horses in the news

Scoping reminder

3 05 2011

This is what I need for myself – a reminder that we’re still in the scoping period ahead of the fall roundup for Spring Creek Basin.

To keep our current scoping process in front of people and continue to ask for your help to help us help the horses, I’m reposting links to the scoping request out now from the Dolores Public Lands Office ahead of our fall roundup. Send comments to Tom Rice, Associate Field Manager, Dolores Public Lands Office, 29211 Highway 184, Dolores, CO 81323. Comments, due May 12, may also be sent via email to trice@blm.gov

We want to make the roundup as gentle and safe for the horses as possible, and we also want to encourage BLM to implement an annual darting program with native PZP using volunteer darters. In the future, we want BLM to use bait trapping over helicopter-driven roundups. This is a win-win situation that will present a longer interval between roundups – and hopefully fewer horses at those times, hopefully create a little bit of a market for our Spring Creek Basin mustangs that are removed and ensure the herd’s sustainability long into the future – and present the most humane way possible to reduce numbers of horses to preserve the overall herd and the range the horses depend on for survival. It also encourages a necessary partnership between our advocate groups and BLM to share in the responsibilities of managing OUR herd.

To all of you who have sent your comments, thank you, thank you, thank you on behalf of our Spring Creek Basin mustangs.

This is the link to my post about points to make in your comments:

https://springcreekwild.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/scoping-comments-points-to-make/

This is the link to the scoping letter itself:

https://springcreekwild.wordpress.com/2011/04/08/scoping-is-out/

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Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP

More scoping information

22 04 2011

To keep our current scoping process in front of people and continue to ask for your help to help us help the horses (!), I’m reposting links to the scoping request out now from the Dolores Public Lands Office ahead of our fall roundup. Also, a sample letter that might help you in crafting your own comment letter to send Tom Rice, Associate Field Manager, Dolores Public Lands Office, 29211 Highway 184, Dolores, CO 81323. Comments, due May 12, may also be sent via email to: trice@blm.gov

A reminder: A public hearing about the helicopter portion of the roundup will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 25, at the Dolores Public Lands Center, near the junction of Colorado highways 184 and 145 just west of Dolores. If you’re local and can attend, please do so to make your comments about our Spring Creek Basin mustangs known to BLM!

This is the link to my post about points to make in your comments:

https://springcreekwild.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/scoping-comments-points-to-make/

This is the link to the scoping letter itself:

https://springcreekwild.wordpress.com/2011/04/08/scoping-is-out/

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This is a cover (explanatory) letter and sample comment letter NMA/CO sent to NMA/CO members by longtime board member Pati Temple that I thought would be helpful to share here:

TO: Members of National Mustang Association and those who care about wild horses

DATE: April 21, 2011

RE: Bureau of Land Management scoping process for the September 2011 wild horse roundup

Hi Everyone –

National Mustang Association needs your help by sending a letter to BLM introducing important issues related to the upcoming gather (roundup) of the wild horses in Disappointment Valley – our Spring Creek Basin herd. Currently, BLM is soliciting information during their “scoping” process. After that, BLM will develop “alternatives” contained in a document called an “environmental assessment” (EA) that will be presented to the public for review. Last, BLM will review the comments and select one of the “alternatives” that will guide the process of the gather. Now is the time to submit issues and concerns that you may have.

As you know, NMA has been working for the benefit of this herd for more than 10 years and trying to persuade BLM to include immunocontraception (birth control) as a regular tool to address reproduction rates. The preferred fertility control agent is native porcine zona pellucida (PZP), which has been used extensively with great results. A successful birth control program will result in fewer round-ups, fewer horses going to long term government pens, tremendous monetary savings, significantly less stress for the horses as family bands remain together, on the range and wild, and improved land health.

About PZP: PZP does not inhibit a mares’ cycles at all, so yes, she will continue to come into heat. PZP does not harm either the mare or the fetus she may be carrying at the time of application (of either primer or booster). PZP is a protein derived from pig eggs. It simply blocks fertilization of the mare’s egg by the stallion’s sperm. It does not cause a mare to develop masculine features. Mares in herds where PZP has been in long use are living longer, healthier lives – the result of not having babies year after year after year. PZP is administered by remote dart when biologically appropriate. The mares aren’t rounded up, they aren’t tranquilized, they aren’t touched except by the dart. PZP has at least a 90 percent efficacy (success) rate. We don’t want to stop reproduction; we want to slow it. No Spring Creek Basin adult horses died last year, which means it’s not very realistic to think that we’ll equal birth and death rates.

Be assured, NMA has researched this issue extensively and concluded it is safe, humane and cost-effective, with a long history of use. Our chapter president, TJ Holmes, has become certified to dart, and NMA has purchased the appropriate darting rifle.

We also have concerns about the gather process as listed below. Please join us in providing comment to BLM during this scoping process. Comments should be in by May 12.

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Please send your letters or emails to: (sample below)

Bureau of Land Management, Attn: Tom Rice, Associate District Ranger/Field Office Manager, 29211 Highway 184, Dolores, Colorado 81323 and/or email: trice@blm.gov

Dear Mr. Rice:

Thank you for the opportunity to comment regarding the upcoming wild horse roundup of the Spring Creek Basin herd. Below are my comments and concerns:

A roundup is necessary this year while the horses remain in good condition and to preserve the health of the range.

The use of native porcine zona pellucida (PZP) should be introduced at this roundup. Further, native PZP should become an integrated tool to address reproductive rates and part of the Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area Management Plan.

Native PZP is cost-effective.

An effective birth control program will result in fewer roundups and fewer horses being removed from the range and ending up in expensive and unnatural government holding pens. It would amount to significantly less social disruption to the herd and fewer injuries to horses during the gather process. Roundups and removals completely remove genetics of horses that have never contributed to the gene pool. Reducing the frequency of roundups will allow more horses to contribute their genetics over a longer period of time – even though fewer horses are reproducing at any given time.

Roundups are extremely stressful and socially devastating as family bands often become permanently separated. The social structure in the equine world is the single most important thing in their lives. To greatly reduce this practice and to progress toward selective and infrequent removal of horses is far more acceptable management.

Use the expertise and ability of TJ Holmes in the administration of native PZP. TJ is familiar with each and every herd member, is properly certified to dart and the Colorado chapter of the National Mustang Association (NMA/CO) has ownership of the appropriate darting rifle.

It is unnecessary to brand treated mare because NMA maintains extensive documentation of 100% of the horses in Spring Creek Basin.

We do not support excessive gender skewing where more stallions versus mares remain in the herd. This is socially incorrect.

It will not be necessary to reduce the herd down to the lower end of the “appropriate management level” of 35 because of the documented efficacy of native PZP and potential slowed growth of the Spring Creek Basin herd.

In the future, please institute mineral bait trapping and horse removal (with continued PZP treatment of wild mares) as a more humane alternative to helicopter-driven gathers.

Regarding the use of helicopters during the gather process, please instruct the contractor and helicopter operator to bring the horses in band by band and corral them that way to avoid the injuries suffered by forcing unfamiliar horses together. Please do not drive them too fast, particularly those that are with foals, very old or somehow incapacitated.

At the trap site, it is imperative that BLM instruct the contractors and other handlers to be careful NOT TO OVERSTIMULATE the horses with their flagging, which often causes the horses to become very frightened, unduly stressed and often injured by jumping into panels. This is not contemporary or humane handling. Once the animal is going in the desired direction, stop stimulation. It will go a long way toward reducing injuries.

Please be certain the contractors provide salt and water at the trap site and only good-quality grass hay (not alfalfa).

Our wild horses are important to us. They touch our hearts in many ways. The remote Disappointment Valley’s Spring Creek Basin herd is truly wild, incredibly beautiful and significant. They provide an important nonconsumptive use of wildlife, an opportunity to view spirit, wildness and beauty all at the same time. They represent so much to so many for a variety of reasons.

BLM is the keeper of this resource. Please do the best job you can, hand-in-hand with willing volunteers.

Sincerely,

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Roundup

Scoping comments – points to make

10 04 2011

The scoping process starts the chain of events of BLM looking for public input about the upcoming roundup in Spring Creek Basin. We also understand that it is a time when public comments advise BLM of “alternatives” the public would like to see – these then come out in the EA, which provides another opportunity to comment.

A roundup and removal of some horses needs to happen, and it needs to happen while the horses are in good condition – not when they’re in poor condition. An annual PZP darting program is necessary and appropriate to integrate into the management plan of Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area.

When you make your comments in support of annual PZP darting by trained volunteer darters in Spring Creek Basin (and please do support us in exactly this, not more use of PZP-22), focus on these areas:

* Cost – This is perhaps the biggest in getting BLM’s attention. A complete dose of PZP (PZP + adjuvant + dart) costs less than $30 per mare. That’s no typo, and I’m not missing a zero. PZP-22 is about $200, and it currently requires the additional expense of a roundup to capture the mares and deliver. Native PZP does not require a roundup, does not require handling the mare in any way, so it’s also less stressful to the horses. And with fewer foals born, less potential for those grown-up horses to end up in holding, which is another massive expense for the Wild Horse & Burro Program. Labor provided by the Science and Conservation Center-certified volunteer darter(s) who knows and has complete documentation of the horses – FREE. Paperwork/record-keeping done by volunteer darter(s) – FREE. Cost to BLM to implement the annual PZP darting program – FREE. The Colorado chapter of the National Mustang Association has offered to pay for the first period (to be laid out in the EA as a five-year period, we hope) of PZP. This will be in our formal comments; we made the oral offer to BLM at our recent Disappointment Wild Bunch Partners meeting.

* Genetics – Roundups and removals completely remove genetics of horses that have never contributed – the youngsters. Reducing the frequency of roundups by use of PZP will allow more horses to contribute their genetics over a longer period of time – even though fewer horses are reproducing at any given time. Because of the small size of the Spring Creek Basin herd (AML = 35-65 adult horses), we foresee that periodic introductions of mustangs from similar herds will continue to be necessary.

* Social – PZP is far less disruptive to the horses than roundups and subsequent removals. PZP does not inhibit a mare’s cycles at all, so yes, she will continue to come into heat. The “disruption” of bands in the Spring Creek Basin herd has been minimal and, as far as I can tell, not related to the PZP-22 several of the mares have received. It worked on Alpha – she has been with the same band/stallion since she was released after the 2007 roundup. It worked on Mona – she was with the same stallion until she foaled in 2010; when she went off alone to have her foal, she was picked up by a different stallion. It worked on Raven – she came to us pregnant, and when she went off to have Corona, she ended up with a different stallion; after about six months, she ended up back with the original stallion; she did not foal last year; she looks on track for a spring foal. It worked on Kootenai – she has been with the same stallion with one brief exception (which seemed to be to go get Raven) since her arrival. She ought to have a foal this year, but so far, she does not look pregnant. The other surviving SCB mares have been with the same band since their release – with the exchange of a single band stallion for a dominant band stallion and three bachelors, one of which may be the mature son of one of the mares.

* Safe for the mares – PZP does not harm either the mare or the fetus she may be carrying at the time of application (of either primer or booster). PZP is a protein derived from pig eggs. It simply blocks fertilization of the mare’s egg by the stallion’s sperm. It does not cause a mare to develop masculine features – it is a protein. Mares in herds where PZP has been in long use (example: Assateague Island) are living longer, healthier lives – the result of not having babies year after year after year.

* Low stress/no handling – PZP is administered by remote dart when biologically appropriate. The mares aren’t rounded up, they aren’t tranquilized, they aren’t touched except by the dart. I won’t say there’s no stress to being darted, but compared with a roundup and separated from family members?? No comparison. Very low.

*Effective/successful at preventing pregnancy – PZP has at least a 90 percent efficacy (success) rate. On Assateague Island, as of last year, it’s 95 percent successful. We don’t want to stop reproduction; we want to slow it. No adult horses died last year, which means it’s not very realistic to think that we’ll equal birth and death rates.

* Branding of treated mares – Unnecessary because of extensive documentation of 100 percent of horses in the Spring Creek Basin herd.

*Excessive gender skewing – Unnecessary because of documented efficacy of native PZP.

* Removing horses to the low end of the AML – Unnecessary because of the documented efficacy of native PZP and potential slowed growth of the Spring Creek Basin herd.

* Ask also that bait trapping be used as a more humane alternative to driving horses with a helicopter. This requires more time and patience (when is that ever a bad thing with horses and/or wild animals?) and a temporary holding facility onsite or very near – which I have a lead on. We have pushed for this since 2007 … keep it on BLM’s radar! Dan Elkins, who does bait trapping, is just south of us in New Mexico, and he uses bait trapping very effectively on the Carson National Forest and Jicarilla Wild Horse Territory – also the first Forest Service-managed herd to use PZP.

Other comments to make about the roundup itself:

* During the heliocopter gather, bring the horses in band by band and corral them that way to avoid the injuries suffered by forcing unfamiliar horses together.

* Instruct the contractors and other handlers to be careful NOT TO OVERSTIMULATE the horses with their flagging, which often causes the horses to become very frightened, unduly stressed and often injured by jumping into panels. This is not contemporary or humane handling.

* Be certain to use grass hay – not alfalfa.

* Provide water and salt immediately as many of the horses have been driven from the southern end of the herd management area. (The trapsite is at the upper western edge of the basin.)

Spring Creek Basin and its mustangs meet all the criteria: Check out again this FAQ card I created.

Talk about the horses. Call them “wild horses” or “mustangs” – beings that have touched your heart, that you admire, that you love. Make frequent use of their homeland’s name: “Spring Creek Basin.” This is not a random herd. This is not an unknown place. Yes, it’s remote. Yes, it’s small and out of the way. The horses are no less beloved for those facts. In fact, they ARE beloved – the “stats” on this blog tell me that – almost 70,000 hits in three years. YOU love these horses. Tell BLM – and back it up with these facts about why it should implement an annual PZP darting program in Spring Creek Basin using trained volunteer darters.

Do use these facts to make your case in your comments for the use of an annual PZP darting program here with trained volunteers. The way this works is that BLM needs you, the public, to make this information known – for this herd – ahead of this roundup. What can you do for our mustangs? … I hope I’ve just given you a way. On behalf of the mustangs of Spring Creek Basin – for their well-being and healthy future, I THANK YOU for helping us help them!

Comments : 4 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy, Disappointment Valley, Fertility control, PZP, Wild horses in the news

Little Book Cliffs – shining example

9 04 2011

Press release about fertility control out of the Grand Junction BLM office:

March 31, 2011

Contact: Tom Alvarez, Public Affairs Specialist, (970) 244-3097

Fertility Drug Contributes to Wild Horse Population Control

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Grand Junction Field Office’s (GJFO) use of the fertility control vaccine porcine zona pellucida (PZP), used for managing wild horse herd populations, is significantly contributing to successful population control of wild horses in the Little Book Cliffs Wild Horse Range (LBCWHR). The fertility program’s success is due to the support and assistance from the Friends of the Mustangs (FOM), a local volunteer group in the Grand Junction community.

The fertility control program has reduced the annual population growth to an extent that a gather for 2011 will be unnecessary because 2004 foal counts in the LBC herd have declined, with just 11 born in 2010.

“We are not trying to stop population growth,” said Jim Dollerschell, rangeland management specialist for the GJFO. “We just want to slow it down to reduce the frequency of gathers, which leads to less disruption of the wild horse herd.”

The GJFO last gathered the LBC herd in 2007 and typically plans a gather every two or three years. The next anticipated gather would now be in 2012.

“It’s a wise decision. We don’t have enough horses to justify a gather,” said Marty Felix, founding member and long-time volunteer of the FOM. “Our horses are very resourceful, and they know where to find food. Almost all of them look fantastic. We’re here to help the BLM and help the horses.”

A fertility control research program was first introduced in 2002 in coordination with the Biological Research Division of the United States Geological Survey. Fertility control continues to be a principal component of management of the LBCWHR, using a one-year vaccine by means of field darting as the primary method used. GJFO staff and volunteers from the FOM participate in the darting process, as well as keeping required observations and records.

“What we are doing here in the LBCWHR will not work for all herd management areas across the West,” added Dollerschell, “but our efforts do show that PZP is an effective tool to be used in controlling wild horse population growth rates. Our relationship with the FOM also provides an example of how partnerships are effective and needed within the wild horse program. When we are working together, positive results will occur.”

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This is exactly what we’re working toward here, with a partnership between BLM and NMA/CO and, collectively, Disappointment Wild Bunch Partners. We ARE here to help the horses and BLM, and this is what a successful partnership will look like: Slowing population growth and reducing the frequency of roundups in Spring Creek Basin. And we have set things up so it can work excellently here. All the pieces are in place – I’ve documented all the horses in the herd, I’ve been certified to handle and dart PZP, I’ve spent the time with the horses – we’re ready to start. And it has to start somewhere, like everything does.

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy, Fertility control, PZP, Wild horses in the news

Spring Creek Basin Mustangs