The wild horse galluping across the land with it's beautiful tail and mane flowing in the wind is the perfect iconic symbol of freedom and beauty. Wild horses exist all around the world and their beauty is often captured through photography and art.
The wild mustangs of the western U.S. also hold a special place in the hearts of the American people. These wild horses are indigenous to the U.S. with fossils dating back to prehistoric times before the ice age. In the 1500's the Spanish explorers reintroduced the mustang to the Americas where they began to repopulate. As recently as 110 years ago there were 2 million mustangs roaming free. Now, there are only approximately 30,000 wild mustangs roaming the country. The tragic reason for this is because they are now subjected to government roundups through the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior that administers America’s public lands, totaling approximately 253 million acres. The wild mustangs currenty roam on these public lands of their heritage. However, the BLM leases the use of these public lands also to the cattle ranchers through what is termed "Welfare Ranching". The BLM manages private livestock at a cost of $144 million/yr. while only collecting $21 million in grazing fees which ends up at a loss of $123 million/yr.
Because the cattle ranchers complain that the wild horses are cutting into the cattle grazing lands, the BLM conducts yearly roundups at a cost of nearly $40 million to the taxpayers. The roundup process consists of low flying helicopters chasing the horses for miles at a time to a designated area. Then, trucks load up the horses and bring them to short-term, cramped holding facilities where they will potentially stay up to 3 years at a time if not adopted or sold.
The roundup process is very stressful and terrifying to the horses and many will die from exhaustion, broken legs,etc. Yearlings have been known to literally run their hooves off. The deaths continue in the holding pens. It is a very heartbreaking scene to observe these once free and majestic horses all crowded together in filthy holding pens.
Although in 1971 Congress had passed the Wild and Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act which declared the horses and burros to be living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit and guarenteed their protection on our public lands, these roundups are continuing to this day. The American mustang has also been sold to kill buyers (through various loopholes) who send them to slaughter in Mexico for financial gain since it is illegal to slaughter horses in the United States.
These beautiful horses belong to the American people not to the BLM who is to just manage them. Americans and other horse lovers must speak up and take action as to what happens to these beautiful souls who so wonderfully exhibit all that is wild, free and magnificient in the wild. They need to be left alone to live out their lives as nature intended not as man has so cruelly inflicted on them.
WILD HORSE PETITIONS & LETTERS
1-Prewritten letter to President Obama and Secretary of Interior, Ken Salazar asking them to suspend immediately any plans for wild horse roundups this summer.
Tell President Obama to Suspend ALL Summer Round-Ups Immediately
2-ASPCA's prewritten letter to your Senators to ask them to support Indiana's U.S. Representative, Dan Burton's ammendment to the Interior Appropriations Bill to cut $2 million from the annual budget of the Bureau of Land Management when it comes to the Senate. This will severely limit the BLM from continuing with the inhumane wild horse roundups.
USA: Save Wild Horses from Inhumane Roundups
3-Petition to the U.S. Senate asking them to support IN. Representative Dan Burton's amendment to cut the BLM's budget by $2million in order to eliminate wild horse roundups.
Don't Give the Bureau of Land Management More Money for Wild Horse Roundups
Music by John Trudell Spirit Horses
The wild mustangs of the western U.S. also hold a special place in the hearts of the American people. These wild horses are indigenous to the U.S. with fossils dating back to prehistoric times before the ice age. In the 1500's the Spanish explorers reintroduced the mustang to the Americas where they began to repopulate. As recently as 110 years ago there were 2 million mustangs roaming free. Now, there are only approximately 30,000 wild mustangs roaming the country. The tragic reason for this is because they are now subjected to government roundups through the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior that administers America’s public lands, totaling approximately 253 million acres. The wild mustangs currenty roam on these public lands of their heritage. However, the BLM leases the use of these public lands also to the cattle ranchers through what is termed "Welfare Ranching". The BLM manages private livestock at a cost of $144 million/yr. while only collecting $21 million in grazing fees which ends up at a loss of $123 million/yr.
Photograph by Raymond Gehman
Because the cattle ranchers complain that the wild horses are cutting into the cattle grazing lands, the BLM conducts yearly roundups at a cost of nearly $40 million to the taxpayers. The roundup process consists of low flying helicopters chasing the horses for miles at a time to a designated area. Then, trucks load up the horses and bring them to short-term, cramped holding facilities where they will potentially stay up to 3 years at a time if not adopted or sold.
The roundup process is very stressful and terrifying to the horses and many will die from exhaustion, broken legs,etc. Yearlings have been known to literally run their hooves off. The deaths continue in the holding pens. It is a very heartbreaking scene to observe these once free and majestic horses all crowded together in filthy holding pens.
Although in 1971 Congress had passed the Wild and Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act which declared the horses and burros to be living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit and guarenteed their protection on our public lands, these roundups are continuing to this day. The American mustang has also been sold to kill buyers (through various loopholes) who send them to slaughter in Mexico for financial gain since it is illegal to slaughter horses in the United States.
These beautiful horses belong to the American people not to the BLM who is to just manage them. Americans and other horse lovers must speak up and take action as to what happens to these beautiful souls who so wonderfully exhibit all that is wild, free and magnificient in the wild. They need to be left alone to live out their lives as nature intended not as man has so cruelly inflicted on them.
WILD HORSE PETITIONS & LETTERS
1-Prewritten letter to President Obama and Secretary of Interior, Ken Salazar asking them to suspend immediately any plans for wild horse roundups this summer.
Tell President Obama to Suspend ALL Summer Round-Ups Immediately
2-ASPCA's prewritten letter to your Senators to ask them to support Indiana's U.S. Representative, Dan Burton's ammendment to the Interior Appropriations Bill to cut $2 million from the annual budget of the Bureau of Land Management when it comes to the Senate. This will severely limit the BLM from continuing with the inhumane wild horse roundups.
USA: Save Wild Horses from Inhumane Roundups
3-Petition to the U.S. Senate asking them to support IN. Representative Dan Burton's amendment to cut the BLM's budget by $2million in order to eliminate wild horse roundups.
Don't Give the Bureau of Land Management More Money for Wild Horse Roundups
Music by John Trudell Spirit Horses
This is fantastic! Thank you for this..
John Trudell, I have known of you for a few year's now. I know of your works, and, I appreciate this video and song.