an open letter from Director Ginger Kathrens of The Cloud Foundation
The Fight to Save a Legendary Wild Horse Herd
Cloud in the Pryor's July 2010 ~ Photo courtesy of the Cloud Foundation
The Custer National Forest awarded a contract on August 6, 2010. It calls for the building of new, bigger, stronger, longer fence to prevent the Pryor Wild Horse Herd from grazing on their mid-summer through fall pastures atop their mountain home. The first question I am always asked is “Why?” To answer honestly, I am not sure what is pushing this kind of expensive and unwanted project. But, to even try to answer the question requires a bit of a history lesson.
The wild horses of the Pryor Mountains, known as the Arrowhead Mountains to the Crow Indians, have been documented as living in this area since the early 1800s. But, they probably have lived here for far longer. The Arrowheads were the sacred heart of Crow Indian country, and the Crow tribe possessed the largest horse herd in the West. The wild horses are likely descended of their treasured war ponies.
It is also likely that they are the descendents of the horses of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The famous explorers had traded for Shoshone and Nez Perce stock and on their return trip from the West Coast in 1806 they put Sgt. Nathaniel Pryor in charge of bringing the horses back to the Missouri River. While camped in the Arrowheads, the Crow Indians stole all the horses. The mountains were subsequently named for the hapless Sergeant.
However, the history of the mustangs of the Arrowheads traces their back even farther through a genetic blood trail that leads to the Caribbean and the breeding farms of the Spanish Conquistadors. The Spanish returned the horse to the Americas in the early 1500s and the DNA of the Arrowhead mustangs links them to the horses of the Conquest.
Painting courtesy of the Beringia Interpretive Centre
Time travel back even farther into the prehistory of North America, and you will see that the small Pryor horses resemble their ancient ancestor, Equus lambei, also called Yukon Horse. E. lambei was a small but stout, solid-hooved horse with a flop over mane, that lived in North America for at least 20,000 years before dying out only 7,000 years ago. E. lambei is the genetic equivalent to Equus caballus—the modern horse. I believe this link allows us to better understand why the horse, re-introduced in the early 1500s, was so successful once it began roaming wild again. North America is its ancestral home. The eco-systems the horse re-occupied were those in which it had co-evolved.
Even as recently as the early 1900s there were millions of wild horses roaming the west, including the isolated Pryor Mountains.
Flash forward to the 1960s when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sought to exterminate the hundreds of horses that ran wild amongst the rugged canyons and windswept ridges of the Pryors. Local residents protested the destructionof the herd, and Hope Ryden, a reporter for ABC News exposed the upcoming roundup to a national audience. After much rapid fire wrangling and debate, Secretary of the Interior, Stewart Udall, quickly stepped in and designated the BLM lands on East Pryor Mountain a sanctuary for the wild horses.
It was named the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Range in 1968. As Interior Secretary, Udall had no authority over the Custer National Forest Service lands, most of which were in the high country, and fall under the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture. No move was made to include any of these lands, despite the presence of wild horses in the Forest Service area.
Three years later, in 1971, the Wild Horse and Burro Act was unanimously passed by Congress. The Act states that horses will be managed “where presently found.” The Forest Service has denied that the horses were present in 1971 and the BLM has never challenged them on this. The locals, who had fought so hard for the horses did not make a point of challenging the Forest Service and for years the local philosophy was to “let sleeping dogs lie.” The wild horses continued to roam the area, descending to the lower country in the winter and traveling with the greening grass to higher elevations in the summer.
Unspoiled Beauty ~ Photo courtesy of the Cloud Foundation
When a wooden buck and pole fence was constructed by the BLM to prevent the horses from using the Forest Service lands atop the mountain in the 1980s, it quickly fell into disrepair because the horses kicked it apart so they could continue to travel their well-worn trails back and forth from BLM to Forest Service land.
By the time I arrived on the mountain in 1994, the fence was down in a dozen places or more and the horses were using their traditional trails into the Forest Service. In 1997, the fence was repaired, but within days the horses had again torn it down. While the horses are in the Forest Service lands they are called “trespassers” even though they were simply doing what they had always done, and that is to freely roam.
Actually, the full name for the 1971 Act is the Free-Roaming Wild Horses and Burros Act. The free-roaming part is what is being denied the historic Pryor mustangs today. The new fence to be built atop the mountain still closely follows the boundary line between the Custer National Forest and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). This new fence promises to be stouter. It certainly is longer… by nearly a mile.
For those of you who have traveled to the top of the Pryors and have seen the old fence you will know what I mean when I say that the assertion that the wild horses of the Pryor Mountains used only the open meadows on BLM land and did not graze the same open meadow to the west on the Forest Service makes absolutely no sense. It is a ridiculous argument, and is one we are legally challenging.
Just this July we watched a dozen or more family bands, including Cloud with his newborn daughter, Bolder and his trio of rambunctious foals, and Flint with his two mares, his yearling son and his two little fillies. Many tourists came to watch the horses. We talked to folks from nearby towns and others from Oregon, Ohio, Kansas, Colorado, and even Switzerland. Without a 4-wheel drive vehicle or driving dangerous roads they could observe the wild horses of the Pryors grazing, playing and sparring in lupine covered meadows. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many of these people—something they said they would never forget.
Besides being a spectacular eco-tourism destination which brings considerable economic benefits, the Forest Service meadows are essential for the well being of this world famous herd—to meet their physical requirements and their genetic needs. The Pryor herd is too small right now. Closing off this vital area will hamper efforts to let the population expand to at least 200 adult animals.
And for me, there is something very wrong with denying these beautiful animals access to their home… a home they have known for hundreds of years. Might Forest Service have another motive for evicting the wild horse… beyond the unbelievable argument that the horses were not here in 1971?
Photo courtesy of The Cloud Foundation
Some within the Forest Service believe the agency plans to open the area up for cattle grazing. There are cattle allotments farther down the mountain, but not in this area near the Dryhead Overlook. In July, it was a thrilling sight to see the vast majority of the Pryor herd in this incredible location. Visitors were awed. I doubt they would react the same to a herd of cows out here.
It would be great if our elected officials would work on a solution to this dilemma. Those who live in Montana need to voice their objection to fencing the Pryor horses out of their home. Please let Senator Tester and Senator Baucus know your views on this issue.
Everyone please contact Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack to ask him to intervene, just as Secretary of Interior Udall did years ago. With the stroke of a pen Secretary Vilsack could create a wild horse sanctuary in the Custer National Forest atop the mountain. You can also contact the Custer National Forest Service directly about the fence and tell them that they don’t want taxpayer money spent on this kind of project.
Here is something else you can do if you are able: The Cloud Foundation is waging a legal battle on behalf of the horses, which is not cheap—even though our attorneys work at greatly reduced rates. Many of you responded with donations for Cloud’s Legal Fund (Don’t Fence Me In Legal Fund). Please do what you can to help us fund this lawsuit and keep fighting for the herd!
Get involved (TAKE ACTION HERE) and let your friends know that we need everyone’s help to expand the Pryor Wild Horse Range and preserve this legendary herd. Don’t let them fence Cloud and his herd in. Thanks so much!
Happy Trails!
Ginger
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Categories: Horse News, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Someday, hopefully soon , the BLM and the individuals who seem to get so much enjoyment out of causing the wild horses more suffering, will pay..as they are today held in contempt by the american people, looked down on as lowly cockroaches for their obvious persecution of the wild horses..go home and kick your wife ,dog and children..for that you will go to jail.
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When I think of what Cloud has brought to the region, and Hope and others along with Ginger, I can’t believe they haven’t given him the key to the City in Lovell. This fence action is spiteful and unnecessary. How silly if it were not pathetic. These horses need to be celebrated and restored to their natural boundaries. This is the same game in Yellowstone that has escalated against the bison over the past 10 years.
Think of the positive publicity to the American People if Custer National Forest should say ‘Home to Cloud’s Herd,’ and not build the fence. You cannot buy publicity that nice. mar
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Sandra, you are so right. They have brought a wave of public scorn upon themselves. They are being used to advance some agenda, and will be looked upon as expendible once they are no longer needed.
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BLM – mismanage Cloud’s herd and you’ll be missing the boat BIG TIME!
Because of Ginger Kathryns’ dedication, Cloud’s story and the stories of numerous other herd members have captured the attention and imagination of so many people – both in our country and around the world!
The Pryor Range is such a beautiful backdrop for these magnificent and FAMOUS American Mustangs – horses with names, histories and personalities. Their story speaks to the circle of life on our planet – births, lives lived, and, inevitably, deaths.
There is no better place for the BLM to prove its sincerity in launching a REAL ecotourism opportunity. No better place to monitor the potential value of ecotourism to the surrounding community. No better place to celebrate the mustang’s unique role in the development and progress of our nation.
And don’t imagine the significance of this fence will be lost on those who visit Cloud’s herd. It will be a scar across this pristine land. If the Forest Service land is destined for cattle allotments or some other use, people are bound to ask, “Why?” Which would be the better draw – wild, free-roaming mustangs and burros or herds of ruminating cattle?
The fence will be a tangible reminder that more and more American public lands are being taken in the name of multiple use. Under this mandate, this use is directly tied to profitablity. Must everything in our country be about the dollar? Will there be nothing left for people to simply enjoy?
For good or ill, the decision has been made our public lands must pay their way. By failing to take full advantage of the best opportunity for mustang ecotourism in the entire country – Cloud’s herd – the BLM denies the very thing it purports to seek. And it removes all hope of proving the mustangs CAN pay their way, both in this area and on other HMAs throughout the West.
Currently, the BLM/FS partner in removing “excess” wild horses under the same set of criteria. If Cloud’s herd and others MUST be managed, why not partner to prove continuing, minimally intrusive management and protection can work?
BLM – please don’t allow the herds to build up over a number of years, then remove to the lowest AML. It doesn’t have to be “raining wild horses”! Don’t compromise the genetic viability of the herds, which all but guarantees inbreeding. Allow our mustangs to live as nature intended – stallions, mares, foals, and teenagers. THIS is what visitors want to see, not static, non-reproducing herds.
If you prove beyond a doubt herd members MUST be removed, surely this can be done with a minimum of disruption. Identify the best candidates for adoption and remove them at an appropriate age – at least 4 years old, when their bones are set and they can be gentled to ride. These are the mustangs that get the most bids and highest fees at adoption events.
Devise a plan to take them WITHOUT the brutality of helicopter drives. Promote lives saved rather than having to continually explain lives lost.
Imagine how proud people would be adopting members of Cloud’s herd. Imagine the advantage of encouraging adoptors to provide updates to the BLM on the horses’ progress. This would go a long way toward proving the value of these and other mustangs and might well rehabilite the Adoption Program. And it would be a PR coup!
President Obama has stated our country cannot continue failed policies and expect different outcomes. BLM – why not “turn the page”? Then your PR folks can spend their time crafting a positive message – declaring a “new dawn” for the protection and management of mustangs and burros.
Cloud’s herd presents a golden opportunity to “mend fences” rather than building them. Don’t let it pass you by!
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Matt Dillon’s Blog
http://www.pryormustangs.org/mustang_blog.shtml
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This is the answer I got from Gov. Arnold S.
Thank you for writing to Governor Schwarzenegger. The Governor appreciates hearing from people like you who care about the future of our great state.
The issue you have written about is federal in nature and falls outside of the Governor’s jurisdiction. Our office suggests you contact U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein on this matter at the following address:
The Honorable Dianne Feinstein
One Post Street, Suite 2450
San Francisco, California 94104
(415) 393-0707
http://feinstein.senate.gov
You may also wish to contact your U.S. Congressional Representative. To find out whom your local Representative is, please visit http://www.house.gov/writerep.
Again, thank you for writing and voicing your concern on this important issue.
Sincerely,
Lauren Thurston
Office of Constituent Affairs
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Remind Arnold, that great americans have always risen to the challenges of great problems..Arizona stood up to the federal government, wheter right or wrong is not my point here-its that the federal government is not doing its jobs, and a state stood up-its govenor-and said if you won’t do your job -we will do it for you-because we are desperate and can no longer wait on your inaction..and that is our posistion in this case..keep holding their feet to the fire..You know when politicians do something…to get people off their back when they won’t go away..DON’T GO AWAY! Keep asking, back them into a corner where they have no more excuses…and many calls…
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Even though I call myself a Christian, I pray that God will forgive my angry thoughts & wishes, because right now, I am completely FED UP, &, I think eveyone in the BLM needs to be assasinated, ASAP!! This is SO sick & assinine!! What’s the reason? What difference does it matter to let this historic band of wild horses graze where they want, & where they’ve been for hundreds of years?? Why can’t America stand up & protect these living legends from our past? Why can’t this area be designated as a sanctuary, to preserve the horses & their bloodlines? Why are people SO STUPID!!??
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On that parks website they seem to have something different posted. They call the fence fence minor??? and say there is no impact for the changes? here is the Parks page with the info. There are phone numbers there and names.
http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/custer/projects/projects/d2_wildhorses/index.shtml
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reply to my self. this quote from the parks website upsets me. One person can have this fence idea get the plans in in place and then the way to oppose that persons crazy fence idea is almost impossible to stop?
“”Custer Forest Supervisor Mary C. Erickson, selected the Forest Service portion of Alternative B, for maintenance, minor realignment, and extension of the PMWHR north boundary fence and associated cattleguard, and improvement of one water source. “”””
how can this one Mary Erickson, be allowed to ruin the entire herds grazing area forever? does she even know the horses have migrated to those areas for hundreds of years and what she herself is doing to this herd of horses?
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I say go after them with the land law of Adverse Possesion..they have allowed these horses continual use of these lands for over at least 20 years..the horse are federally protected species…they have legal standing..literally land has laws that have nothing to do with the ownership..adverse possesion is one of them..explore it…a good lawyer could make a case for it..i always found it to be a fascinating legal concept in real estate law.
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