Save America's Wild Mustangs
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In 1971,Congress declared the wild mustang and the wild burro "living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West" and passed 'The Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Prior to that time, wild mustangs were not protected and in the 1950's were hunted for commercial purposes. With the enactment of that legislation, the horses and burros fell under the protection and management of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
Unfortunately, in 2005, Congress enacted and President Bush signed into legislation changes to the original 1971 Act, allowing the BLM to euthanize and/or sell these animals. Currently, the BLM is considering euthanizing 2,300 horses and selling another 8,000 for slaughter.
The BLM is partnered with the Public Lands Council which consists of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, the American Sheep industry and the Association of National Grasslands. These are the people who have tried to get rid of wild horses for years. They argue that the federal lands cannot support all of the mustangs and burros and yet over 3,000,000 cattle are grazing the same land.
Make your voice heard. The BLM can be influenced by public outcry and congressional objection to the current policy. If you'd like to weigh in with your opinions and support, there are a number of links near the bottom of this page with information.
Unfortunately, in 2005, Congress enacted and President Bush signed into legislation changes to the original 1971 Act, allowing the BLM to euthanize and/or sell these animals. Currently, the BLM is considering euthanizing 2,300 horses and selling another 8,000 for slaughter.
The BLM is partnered with the Public Lands Council which consists of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, the American Sheep industry and the Association of National Grasslands. These are the people who have tried to get rid of wild horses for years. They argue that the federal lands cannot support all of the mustangs and burros and yet over 3,000,000 cattle are grazing the same land.
Make your voice heard. The BLM can be influenced by public outcry and congressional objection to the current policy. If you'd like to weigh in with your opinions and support, there are a number of links near the bottom of this page with information.
Contents at a Glance
Don't Take My Home
Beautiful Video - music by Mary Ann Kennedy
You can't watch this video without realizing how important it is to keep our mustang populations wild and free. The music of Grammy Award nominee Mary Ann Kennedy will tug at your heart. If you'd like to hear more of her music, go to:
http://www.maryannkennedy.com/
http://www.maryannkennedy.com/
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Wild Burros
"Jacks" and "Jennies" on the range
Half the wild Horses and Burros live on Nevada rangelands. Wild Burros are about half the size of a horse and can be domesticated.Early New World explorers brought both horses ad burros to America. Some escaped, and some were simply released into the southwest U.S. During the gold rush, miners brought even more burros to this area. Today, the Red Rocks area and the Marietta area have the largest populations of wild Burros.
Wild burros originally descended from Africa, where they were used as pack animals and were valued for their hardiness in arid country. Sure of foot, they can carry heavy burdens in hot, dry environments.
They eat a variety of plant life including Mormon Tea, grasses, and Palo Verde plants. Foraging takes place during the daytime most of the year but in the summer they search for food during the cooler hours of morning or evening.
Like the mustang, wild burros are available for adoption from the BLM holding pens. Visit http://www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov to find out more about the adoption program.
Wild Mustang
Wild Mustang - Montgomery Pass, NV - photo copyright Theresa Rose/RoseGraphics
“There are less than 30,000 wild horses on federal land but there are at least 3 million grazing cows”
Wild Mustang pair
Wild Mustangs - PahRah Range, NV - photos copyright Theresa Rose/RoseGraphics
Group of Wild Mustang
Wild mustangs near Montgomery Pass, NV- copyright Theresa Rose/RoseGraphics
Adopt a Mustang
So many of these beautiful horses need homes!
I took the following pictures at the BLM adoption center in northern Nevada, located very near my home.The corrals are usually full of horses waiting for adoption. It is sad to see these beautiful, wild animals caged, sometimes for over a year waiting to be adopted or put down. Please help them in any way you can.
Can you offer a loving home?
Madeleine Pickens speaks about the BLM
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Viggo Mortensen Wild Horse PSA
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Unadopted Mustangs and Burros - Animals in Crisis
What happens to the mustangs and burros that no one adopts?
A quarter of the wild horses brought in by the Bureau of Land Mangement never find homes. Sanctuaries in Kansas and Oklahoma have taken 2,000 of the older 'unadoptable' horses, but there are at least 5,000 horses in BLM holding facilities at any given time. Currently, nationwide, the captive herd numbers around 33,000.
There has been heated controversy about the the BLM's plan to euthanize unadopted horses. Is euthanaia an acceptable solution for eliminating the cost of boarding and feeding horses that the BLM contends overtax the meager habitat of the Great Basin?
The BLM plans to gather between 12,000 and 13,000 more wild horses in 2010. This threatens the very survival of the remaining wild horse herds in the west and it must be stopped.
The BLM claims that the agency can't "allow horses to multiply unchecked on the range without causing an environmental disaster." But there are less than 30,000 wild horses on the range versus at least 3 million grazing cows.
Over 21 million acres of land designated to be available for our wild mustangs has been taken away. Those 21 million acres are now being grazed by cattle.
Please make your voice heard. Go to Madelaine Pickens website for updates and read more about all of her efforts to save the mustangs. http://www.madeleinesmustangs.org
Wild Horse and Burro Links
- The American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign
- Dedicated to preserving the American wild horse in viable free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage. Its grassroots efforts are supported by a coalition of over forty organizations.
- Bureau of Land Management - Adoption site
- Information on the Adopt-a-Horse-or-Burro program and how to qualify for adoption. This program is run by the Bureau of Land Management.
- Help Us Save Our Wild Horses
- Save Our Wild Horse. Latest News! What's New! ... In the '50s and '60s it was virtually open season on the wild mustangs of the West. ...
- Wild Horse and Burro Groups and Registries
- A listing of bona fide wild horse and burro advocacy, adoption and interest groups and registries.
- Nevada's Wild Horses
- "In the end, we need 33,000 good homes. If we can't find them, we only have a few options. These are very tough decisions," said Stokke, referring to the horses already in holding facilities.
- Nevada-Home to the Nation's Wild Horses
- Nevada is home to most of the nation's wild horses and burros.
- Welcome to Nevada's Wild Horses and Burros
- Half of the Nation's wild horses and burros live on Nevada rangelands managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The current population is about 13,665 wild horses and 998 burros. These Living Legends move with the seasons within Herd Management Areas. This website has information primarily about these sturdy creatures on the rangelands.
- Northern Nevada & Its Wild Horses
- On October 21, 2008 the Nevada Department of Agriculture asked the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association to help find a sanctuary that would accept 23 mares, one stallion and 10 of their off spring.
- TELLING THE STORY OF NEVADA'S WILD HORSES
- Wild horses conjure up an image of an earlier time -- they are a reminder of our country's mythical and untamed past. Their role in the history of the West and their impact on Native American culture is profound. The mustang is enshrined in our collective imagination as a cultural icon, enduring as the bald eagle, the grizzly bear or the wolf.
- Madeleine Pickens
- Wild horses on federal land are living symbols of the history of the American West and must be protected. My view is for a wild horse sanctuary that will be a tourist destination where Americans and tourists from around the world can observe and be a part of this great part of American history. If we can together establish a plan for the permanent retirement and care of these magnificent animals, it will be a legacy that all Americans can be proud of.
- Wild horses saved, but much work to do to change the way the BLM manages wild horses
- As you now know, Madeleine Pickens has saved the 33 thousand wild horses, but we have to continue the work to change the way the BLM manages wild horse for the future.
- American Herds -Devoted to the Preservation of Wild Horses & Burros
- n this 10 year anniversary, a video memorial of the brutal and senseless crime that shocked the Nation, inspired Deanne Stillman's book, "Mustang" and changed laws - but with little justice served.
- National Geographic News
- U.S. Wild Horses: Too Many Survivors on Too Little Land?
- Save Our Wild Horses
- Article from the Las Vegas Sun
Explore Mustang Country
To see the wild mustang of northern Nevada, you will need to plan your trip and prepare for emergencies as northwest Nevada is remote and many back roads are impassable in winter and spring.
Here are a few things you will need to access the area:
Purchase and carry 1:100,000 scale topographic maps of the area - Denio, Eugene Mountains, Gerlach, High Rock Canyon, Jackson Mountains, and Vya;
High clearance, four-wheel-drive or all-terrain vehicles (ATV) are necessary for most travel off State or County designated roadways;
Closed routes are signed as closed, please keep vehicles and ATVs off of them;
The High Rock Canyon road is closed from about the 1st of February until the second weekend in May. The closure is to prevent damage to the historic Applegate-Lassen emigrant trail and reduce human disturbance to lambing bighorn sheep and nesting raptors;
Explore the area prior to hauling in a trailer to assess access. Pulling horse or other trailers off of State or County designated roads should only be done with prior operator knowledge of the road. Many roads are narrow, rough, steep, or impassable. Turning around may be difficult or impossible, especially with a trailer;
Tire blowouts are common. Six-ply tires or better are recommended. Carry several, good, full-size spares for each vehicle and trailer;
Bring extra gasoline as gas consumption is greater on rough, slow roads;
Bring and carry at minimum one gallon of drinking water/person/day;
Be respectful of private lands and property and obey all signs.
Make sure to come prepared as supplies and services are very limited and there is no reliable cell phone coverage in these areas.
(info from BLM, Mustang Country booklet)
Here are a few things you will need to access the area:
Purchase and carry 1:100,000 scale topographic maps of the area - Denio, Eugene Mountains, Gerlach, High Rock Canyon, Jackson Mountains, and Vya;
High clearance, four-wheel-drive or all-terrain vehicles (ATV) are necessary for most travel off State or County designated roadways;
Closed routes are signed as closed, please keep vehicles and ATVs off of them;
The High Rock Canyon road is closed from about the 1st of February until the second weekend in May. The closure is to prevent damage to the historic Applegate-Lassen emigrant trail and reduce human disturbance to lambing bighorn sheep and nesting raptors;
Explore the area prior to hauling in a trailer to assess access. Pulling horse or other trailers off of State or County designated roads should only be done with prior operator knowledge of the road. Many roads are narrow, rough, steep, or impassable. Turning around may be difficult or impossible, especially with a trailer;
Tire blowouts are common. Six-ply tires or better are recommended. Carry several, good, full-size spares for each vehicle and trailer;
Bring extra gasoline as gas consumption is greater on rough, slow roads;
Bring and carry at minimum one gallon of drinking water/person/day;
Be respectful of private lands and property and obey all signs.
Make sure to come prepared as supplies and services are very limited and there is no reliable cell phone coverage in these areas.
(info from BLM, Mustang Country booklet)
Wild Horse Merchandise
More Wild Horse Merchandise!
Books about the Wild Mustang and Burros
Visit Nevada and see the beauty of our high deserts, mountains, rivers and lakes.
While you are here, seek out the wild mustang and burros for a photography adventure.
DVD's about Wild Mustangs
Nickers and Snorts
Let's hear those comments!
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Bindelstiff
Aug 28, 2011 @ 8:00 pm | delete
- This is a very well-written and informative lens! Thank you for sharing the information and the beautiful videos. Are there any updated petition to sign out there? (Aug 2011)
Thanks for speaking up for the wild horses.
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VickiSims
Aug 27, 2011 @ 8:37 am | delete
- A very well done page about wild horses and burros. It is a shame that there are so few left. Featured lens on my wild horse monument lens.
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SylviaRolfe
Apr 21, 2011 @ 10:05 pm | delete
- Beautiful horses that deserve to be respected, cared for and loved. Wonderful lens. Blessed by a Squid Angel.
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RenaissanceWoman2010
Apr 16, 2011 @ 10:01 am | delete
- The plight of the wild horses is very emotional for me. Really hard to see what is happening to these majestic animals. I feel so protective of the two bands of wild horses that live near me. Just cannot stand the thought of anything bad happening to them. Really appreciate your feature on this key issue. Thank you!
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nancycarol
Mar 16, 2011 @ 12:45 pm | delete
- I just lensrolled this lens to my Help Save America's Endangered Wild Horses. These roundups are an atrocity committed in the name of money. It makes me sad to think in a few years these beautiful animals will all be gone, and for what?!
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by Stinky
Stinky
I'm Theresa Rose, and I've made this page about something I feel strongly about, preserving mustangs and burros in the wild. There is nothing more beautiful... more »
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