Press Release from Animal Rescue Unit
Salazar’s “Wild Horse Harvesting Machine” Out of Control
Blue Moon's Final Fatal Stand for Freedom ~ Photo by ARU
Animal Rescue Unit is an organization dedicated to revealing the truth about animal suffering, we specialize in investigation, rehabilitation, education and legislation for animal welfare. Over the past few years we have become increasingly concerned about the tactics the BLM is using to round up the wild horses. We decided to launch an investigation into the round ups and organized a team of investigators to go to Burns Oregon to do three days of observation of the Warm Springs Herd and the Warm Springs Round up on November 6th. We teamed up with experienced wild horse observer Leslie Peeples to guide us on this western tour.
Investigators Brogan Horton and Brett Bowen along with Leslie Peeples spent two days out on the Warm Springs and South Steens herd management areas observing the herds in the wild, documenting the ranges and watering sources. Before dawn on November 6th Horton, Bowen and Peeples met a group of 8 including a Burns Oregon BLM office public relations manager and headed out to the Warm Springs HMA to observe the round up. We arrived at 7:00am, the helicopter came in to refuel once at 9:16 and the first set of horses was pushed for at least 3 hours, getting to the trap at 10:50. We had two video camcorders and a camera documenting every moment.
The rounding of these horses started on the 2nd of November, and the BLM contractors (Sun J) are planning to use only one trap site so many of the horses will have to be pushed 20 to 30 miles as the Herd management area is 475,000 acres. BLM provided only two public observation days if you preregistered. Laura Leigh and Debbie Coffey of Grassroots Horse came to observe the Warm Springs round up the day before. The helicopter pushed horses all day from great distances around this range, however no horses were brought in to the trap site.
The chute leading into the trap was not adequately set to guide the horses into the trap and the Judas horse was released much to close to the trap so the horses did not follow him well as they did not have a long enough run way to catch on and follow him. Consequently the horses were run back and forth in front of the trap relentlessly and many split off and scattered. Horses were pushed into the corrals, given a moment to regroup then herded into holding pens.
BLack Colt being led to Pen ~ Photo by ARU
At 11:35 a black foal became separated from his herd in the helicopter chase, he ran north up the hill while his family and mother was rounded up into the corrals. The helicopter chased him at very close range for but he was to scared to turn back so two wranglers mounted their horses and ran at breakneck speed after the 6 month old black colt and roped him, throwing their hands high in the air in apparent joyous victory. One rider pulled him and one rider pushed him down the hill toward the trap. Once they reached the outside of the trap, the colt started to resist, leaping forwards, up and toward the wranglers. The wranglers then marched the colt out of our view behind the bluff directly in front of the trap site, only to come out the other side with no colt. We watched as the riders went back to the trailers, dismounted and the helicopter brought in more horses. 41 minutes later the riders remounted and went back around the bluff, this time returning with a very shaken, exhausted and scared colt. We believe the colt was hog tied on the ground until they went back for him
The helicopter soon returned with a herd of about 30 horses and was unsuccessful at keeping the group together, horses were chased back and forth and splitting of and frantically running away. Many got away over the hills.The trap was poorly designed as the horses had to run straight for a fence then make an abrupt turn left.The corrals were not padded, and offered no protection for the horses. The wranglers congregated on one side and this left one area where there was nothing scary but a fence and it looked like the only way to escape. At least 6 horses, including a 4 month old baby, tried to go under, through or over the left corner panels smashing into the fence. One stallion jammed his knee into a space between panels, getting stuck and then ripping his body out of position, severely injuring himself, several fell to the ground.
The helicopter was very close to the horses at times traveling with the skids just a few feet of the ground with the rotor blade directly over the horses. On one occasion he came within feet of crashing into the bluff next to the trap site while focused on relentlessly pursuing a horse that was trying to escape in terror.
The helicopter pilot directed his attention at a small family of three. The stallion, later to be honored with the name Blue Moon, was with his mare and filly running down the hill with the helicopter hot on their tails. The helicopter intensely chased the family into the corral and took off. There were several more bands breaking away from the site, running for their lives from the helicopter and trap site. This created pressure for the helicopter pilot, pushing him to keep the bands in close proximity, and on the wranglers to carelessly hurry and process the captured horses, and empty the entrance corral. The wranglers brought out crops and sticks with bags on the end. The stallion stood before his mare and filly, against the wranglers as they whipped the bags and crops in front of them, causing a frantic panic in the pen that lasted 5 minutes. The family kept going for that one corner panel where there were no wranglers, throwing their bodies at the panel, trying to go over it, under it, or through it. The mare finally got chased into the separation corral leaving the filly and stallion, who were frantically throwing themselves at the panels, searching for freedom.
The beautiful blue roan stallion gave one final attempt at going through the fence, throwing himself head first into the unpadded steel bars, while the whips and bags cracked behind him. Out of fear, the stallion broke his neck trying to escape the intense pressure that was applied to him. He fell back nearly missing the traumatized filly, who just witnessed the entire event. He staggered to the left, sat on the fence and finally fell on his side, kicking out and desperately trying to lift his head as the wranglers snapped a crop at the filly, causing her to jump over her fathers shuddering body.
At this point, the wranglers decided it was more important to cover the corral with jute to block our view, than attend to the dying mustang. Our cameras were able to capture the entire tragedy in great detail. Their next move was to pull the trailer in front of the struggling stallion furthering inhibiting our view. The contractors attempted to bring more horses into the trap though the dying Blue moon was still in the capture pen. We were then approached by a wrangler on horse back telling us they were done, followed by the BLM employee telling us to pack up. From the moment of impact until we all cleared out, 30 minutes or more, the stallion lay there absolutely terrified, dying in agony and fear.
Blue Moon Down and Dying
When asked what they will do with the body, the BLM employee responded that they will load him in the trailer, drive him to another location on the HMA and unload his body, as a part of “natural selection”.
A band of 12 horses escaped over the horizon for their lives, unfortunately the entire process will start again tomorrow and continue until they round up every horse on the 475,000 acre horse herd area.
There are 361 horses on the Warm Springs HMA, the BLM intends to collect them all and only releasing 111 horses, 43 mares treated with fertility control vaccine, 43 stallions, 10 geldings and 15 burros, with no regard to family structures or herd dynamics what so ever.
Our investigators filmed the trailer that loaded from the trap site ,mares, stallions and foals all loaded together (BLM is not following their own rules and is supposed to haul the horses separably using partitions) on the trailer. We were then escorted by BLM to the short term holding site. Our investigators were held back 50-60 yards by BLM law enforcement from the horses on one side and could only catch occasional glimpses of a horse head and could see nothing of the mares and babies in the pens on the back side. It was impossible to check on the welfare or injuries to theses animals at that distance.
We documented the livestock contractors trailer full of mustangs going over 50 mph down the unmaintained, rough and rocky dirt roads for 5 miles, creating a huge dust cloud that filled the inside of the trailer with choking dust. Pulling a trailer full of horses at these speeds, in these conditions is a recipe for disaster incredibly thoughtless and inhumane. At one point, the hauler took a sharp corner close to 50mph, causing the trailer to slide around the corner, violently slamming the horses into each other, and the walls of the trailer. When reaching the highway the rig blew right through a stop sign with no regard for the horses or public safety.
Animal Rescue Unit documented this entire event from beginning to end with over 20 hours of footage. We plan on collaborating with Grassroots Horse in the future to show citizens of the United States what their tax dollars are really being spent on, and what is really happening behind the scenes to our wild horses, our national treasure.
We would like to thank Leslie Peeples for her incredible cinematography work, excellent guiding and major support. We would also like to thank Grassroots Horse, Laura Leigh and Debbie Coffey for their dedication and hard work on behalf of Americas Wild Horses.
Animal Rescue Unit will be 100% focused on these issues and continue our investigative work for the humane treatment and future viability of the wild horses. We do need funding for our upcoming investigations to spread awareness of the reality of the plight of the wild horses, as our investigators work on a 100% volunteer basis. We must keep people documenting on the front lines to witness and provide awareness to the public.
Categories: Horse News, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
Horrors of the BLM. We need to get these people away from the horses. Disgustig holligans.
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If he was speeding with those horses in the trailer – CALL the cops!! Better yet, if you all go up there again, alert the cops and let them know you are there and why you are there and tell them you may be calling them and may need them to respond immediately, call the ASPCA or the County animal control office and alert them you are going there and tell them you may be calling them or better yet, demand they have an animnal control officer on site. The law is on your side. Was the truck company also a Sun J truck? For God’s sake, you have to do something there to let them know you are not going to let them get away with this. God – please show us the way to protect our horses. Forgive us our foolish pride.
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Proper authority’s have been informed along with the footage of the trailer blowing through stop signs and our speedometer to prove what we were doing and then documented the truck speeding away. All on tape. 🙂 Being converted from tapes to DVD right now..
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You all did one terrific job of documenting from begining to end, great investigative journalism..can’t wait to see the rest..All of us appreciate you coming out here and taking this on…telling it is one thing. getting the photos and footage to back it up..very professional, I salute you all! It validates the importance of teamwork..
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Thank you for observing these criminal animal abusers and recording their behaviour.
I hope the “proper authorities’ inculde the DOT? The DOT do have rules and laws they have to follow. Here off the net search is the last business and DOT number ( dot: 1262904 )
of the contractor. I guess he was doing business as “dba: 4 H LIVESTOCK ” before he started killing wild horses for the BLM.
dot: 1262904
name: JOHN D HOLMES
address: 3345 SOUTH 1500 EAST
VERNAL, UT 84078
phone: (435) 781-0934
fax: (435) 781-0934
email: BURTON@UBTANET.COM
Additional Information
power units: 1
# of drivers: 1
dba: 4 H LIVESTOCK
hazmat: No
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WHO has been informed. Will it make a difference. My heart is just breaking over this particulr ‘GATHER” wHAT BEASTS THESE PEOPLE ARE. bLUE mOON HAD NO WAY TO DEFEND HIMSELF. wISH WE COULD BRING murder CHARGES AGAINST THAT COPTER DRIVER.
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I just want to point something out about the local police in these little cow towns, Oregon and Nevada both..expect the local police to be very much-literally-related to the BLM..there are family ties in these towns..go for the state police-and then call the FBI to make sure you are not railroaded. Seriously, it has a bit of a “deliverance quality..traveling in a group gives witnesses on your behalf, and someone to film while you are being shaken down
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Also contact #s for the ACLU and a contact person who is a resident in the state you are in that can call the senator in the state for intervention..The BLM has become VERY heavy handed, so be prepared and stay safe..and call any of us if you need help..I love the fact you started when you were 15..LOL you would have made a great “Nadars Raiders” back in the day!
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Good advice Sandra and so very true in many, many smalltowns all over the U.S.
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And what about when Ms Peeples was out that day going to see if there was indeed an un-disclosed roundup going on, and the big semi that belonged to the BLM actually aimed right at her trying to run her over…then the helicopter harrassed her till she held up her camera phone to them….was this ever reported to any kind of authority? My God, I believe they were really hoping to KILL her!!! I’ve been wondering and wondering about this more and more because all of a sudden it was never mentioned anymore. Thank God she wasn’t hit by that semi! Bless you, Ms. Peeples!
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And why are they not making sure the crowding alley is not completely clear before running a new group into the trapsite? This seems elementary to me.
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To sign on a ‘new’ contractor made up of both Cook and Cattoor people? They need to be stopped. This roundup and Piceance have shown us the hands on cruelty they deal out to young and old.
Your days are numbered, horse killers. mar
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I’ll take question #2 – who was the APHIS vet on sit?, Maybe they should review the video of the wranglers pressuring the horse. Also, looking at enlarged photographs, it looks like the two wranglers closest to the horse that died are SMILING as they watch. Perhaps BLM’s Kerns and West PR firm or the BLM PR people who wrote the Q&A on the link Laura provided above haven’t seen any of this.
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I’d like to add for #2: Blue Moon didn’t come into the trap “with 2 other horses” – he came into the trap with his FAMILY. Way big difference. One the BLM and their contractors seem determined to keep avoiding. Anyone who has ever herded a group of animals knows if you put too much pressure it all goes to hell real quick (I spent 11 years volunteering at a wildlife refuge). Those wranglers pushed that stallion into a blind right brain response, trying to protect his family and find a way to escape all at once.
Blue Moon did NOT die instantly, and the only thing being covered up here is the out and out murder of that stallion by the BLM and their contractor’s wranglers!
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Clearly this is the modus operendi for the new killers, also. mar
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No, he did NOT die instantly. He went down in exactly the same way a beloved horse of my own went down, although from a different cause. If you’ve never been around a horse in this condition, you cannot imagine how horrible it is. There is nothing you can do except GET OUT OF THE WAY so as not to make it worse on the terrified horse. I don’t think these “wranglers”- still with those damned flags – even stepped back.
DJ certainly didn’t die instantly, but he wasn’t alone. Once down, my husband and I convinced him not to try to rise again. This horse had been my best friend, trail buddy and confidant for 20 years at the time, and he trusted me completely. I put a towel under his head and stroked his face while my husband called our vet. The vet was an hour away, and my DJ did not make it that long. But, he was not afraid and breathed his last with his head in my arms.
What did Blue Moon get? Harassment, utterly heartless callousness and left to die alone. This thread breaks my heart. I’ve been crying ever since this broke. I keep thinking of my beloved DJ. This was in 2002, and it remains the worst thing I’ve ever experienced. I only wish SOMEONE had given Blue Moon a little love at the end.
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Kerns and West have been History for several months (one of MANY Best Kept secrets)
“Agency” didn’t like what they told them should be done
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Truly? The High Priced folks got the boot?? Or they never made enough difference to the BLM suits? Wonderful news! mar
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Hmmm.. Maybe Kerns & West didn’t LIKE what they were SEEING the BLM do to these horses? Jus’sayin? How can you possibly defend/represent a ‘monster’ like this after you witness the unfeeling cruelty first hand? I’d lay money they said to hell w/ you BLM murderers..
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Call Congress and vent your outrage! STOP BLM FUNDING FOR ROUND-UPS
More phone #s for HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Rep. Steve Isreal Dem New York (202) 225-3335 D.C. Office
(631) 951-2210 Home Office
Rep. Tom Latham Rep Iowa (202) 225-5476 D.C. Office
866) 428-5642 Toll Free (they don’t always work)
(641) 357-5225 Home Office
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And how much did the taxpayers get gouged for this round-up?
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Holy God….
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Is anyone going to the trap site in the day AFTER they are gone? That kind of hours of running the poor horses has got to leave behind much saddness and suffering. There could be many animals out there suffering 😦
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From the looks of this monstrocity they are pretty much incapable of learning. To be around a horse and to get them to cooperate you have to have common sense. Their handling of Blue Moon and the manner in which they flew the copter, set up the traps and the # of miles they are driving these horses shows they don’t have even one half of a clue and not the common sense of desert dirt.
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I know it must be so hard and to much for one person to bare. Plus the BLM spends so much time/money blocking your efforts.
I pray to God some wealthy person who really cares for wild horses notices and will donate to your efforts. Doesn’t even have to be an american with $$, I would think some saudi empire, dubai persons- if they will notice what deeds are happening in america would step-up with millions.
Perhaps to make some short Vids and publish them in several places overseas asking for help from wealthy NON-americans. share the vid aski for help across country sharing on youtube.
I think banging on our Govs door has not been answered for to long, we need to go to our worlds ‘neighbors’ and ask them for help for our wild ones. There are other wealthy beyond words people outside of America who have loved their horses for thousands of years more than american good ‘ld boys..
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Learning! Learning WHAT!
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Thanks to ARU for filming all of this. I feel like the Sea Shepherds have arrived.
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With the funding, we would be at every single one of them. Its our mission.
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🙂 They HAVE arrived! The Praire Shepherds, High Desert Shepherds?
Brogan & Co.! Thank you SO much for documenting every second! Goodness knows Laura & Co. needs the extra ‘eyes’ and ‘ears’. The more we can get ‘out there’ the better for our Wild Ones..
I don’t have the words I want.. Thank you’s and you’re awesome just don’t even seem to come close to how amazing you ALL are, out there on the ‘Battle Field’. But, you ARE awesome, amazing, strong, smart and brave.
Thank you ALL! Laura, Deb, Leslie, Brogan.. Damn, if I get his name wrong I’m sorry.. but Josh? If I missed anyone I’m sorry.. You guys TOTALLY FRIGGIN’ ROCK!
(I hope Josh is OK after what he saw.. I mean to have never known the Mustangs were out there and to see them wild one day and watch one die the next.. Bless his heart.. All of you.. Bless you and keep you safe)
Just be safe, like Sandra said.. You are in Good ‘ol Boy Country and they have ‘family’ everywhere.. Hell, even at the diner where you had breakfast is someone’s relation; listening to every word you say.. So be careful ALL of you.. Remember the ‘Buddy System’?! Use it!
Thank you so so much! 🙂
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Brogan, This was your initiation and it was very ugly and you were not spared one bit. Blue Moon was victim this day and he will not be forgotten. Get those pics and videos out and do all you are capable of. The horses need help. More will die. That is the certainty. The terrible certainty. mar
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Thanks Deb, for making a move that might have backfired on you but was worth the risk and stopped them for that moment in time. mar
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When will law enforcement start arresting these rogue contractors? Why won’t the FBI get involved? This is maddening, I wish all these contractors a lifetime of pain and suffering like they have inflicted on OUR WILD HORSES!!! What they are doing is against the law and against nature.
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This whole situation is DISGUSTING. THese people don’t deserve themselves to breath one more breath with the actions they did to the beautiful blue roam. The very idea that someone could do this to this beautiful animal is disgraceful and it is about time we, the American citizens demand it stop NOW. They cannot get by with this and if it takes a mass demand by the entire country, them be it. Everyone having anything to do with this, just as in previous roundups should be tried to the fullest extent for animal cruelty with the intent to kill. THe BLM employees was seen smiling after they killed the foal and then killed its mother. THis is another killing but this time it was the stallion. These people from Salazar on down is mentally unstable and they need to be stopped from killing anymore of our beautiful wild horses. The trailer ride for the other horses shows an additional attempt to kill as many as they can. THESE PEOPLE ARE KILLERS. I hope GOd gives them what they deserve and I hope it is soon. I’m crying for the stallion and his family as I read this, just as I did for all the other situations where the lives of horses have been lost.
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THis whole situation was disgusting to read. THese employees are KILLERS. That they would stand over the stallion, smiling after they caused this situation, and watching him suffer and die is something no caring person would do. THese people are maniacs. It seems the whole BLM, its comrades in terror all are maniacs. The American people should now demand that this entire agency be disbanded and all have sentences of rounding up horses with the intent to kill. How anyone could do what these men did, just as the men did with the foal and its mother, as well as all the other times they have killed our wild horses, is unthinkable. The BLM needs to be immediately disbanded and all the employees and its coherts taken to court and charged with the intent to kill the wild horses at any cost. The speed and actions of the trailer with all the wild horses in it confirms this. We, the American people, need NOW to demand these roundups stop IMMEDIATELY. I cry for all the beautiful horses that have lost their lives by these idiots. When are we going to band together as all citizens to demand that this stop NOW.
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And, let’s NOT forget the blatent attempt at murder to Leslie when the Cattoor truck driver tried to hit her in the road.
Or the Cattoor helicopter pilot harassing her over @ Sheldon..
ALL of this evidence needs to be out there and get the Cattoor’s brought up on attempted murder, in my opinion.
The jerk off’s standing there smiling while a bueatiful, brave Stud gives his life to try to save his family is cruelty at it’s worst! And to NOT give this horse ANY relief of his suffering; while he lay dying in the very place that was his home.
It’s just getting worse and more scary with each roundup. I just worry more and more about the ‘Girls’ when you are out there with these idiots. Sandra said it perfectly.. Deliverance.
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I would forward this to hundreds of my ‘closest’ friends, but there is no action item at the bottom. This is such a stirring, rousing post that it’s a shame not to have embedded in it an action that the reader can take to help end the roundups. Who do we contact? Who has the power to stop this?
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Yes this video that shows the lead up to the death of Blue Moon is very powerful as it shows all the terrorizing that leads up to the eventual death, and should be forwarded to senators, congressmen and the President..I would like to personally put it on the desk of my senator Ron Wyden, a senior member of the appropriations comittee, and ask hin ..Why a group of young people from Maine had to come out to Oregon to uncover this, Citizens of Oregon will not tolerate this..This is not Nevada and we donot treat any animals this way..Even someone who kinow nothing about animals can see for themselves what occurred here and that it is wrong on every level..I wished Blue Moon had turned on those people on the ground and took them down-perhaps that lesson would have made them understand not to pressure an already terrorized horse.
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Laddy, I hope you come back to read this — if you scroll back up the page, at the bottom of the article and before the comments, there are ways to forward this. One of them is email, which you can use to send it to your friends.
PLEASE we need all the exposure and public outcry that can be herd. NOISE is what counts, it is what gets noticed.
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THANK YOU, to all of you who documented this. Thanks to all of you for being there–it has to be sheer hell, but because you were there, it cannot be swept under the rug.
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I STILL SAY ALL WHO WANT TO SEE THIS STOP NEED TO “GATHER” STAND ARM & ARM ACROSS THE PATH OF THESE HELICOPTERS THE BLM & THE BUTCHERS THAT CALL THEMSELVES WRANGLERS. 1000 PEOPLE ARM IN ARM . EVEN 1/2 THAT ALL WITH CAMERAS, VIDOE EQUIPMENT, MAKE SURE THE MEDIA EVERYWHERE IS INFORMED. THEY CAN DOCUMENT HOW IT TURNS OUT. IF ONE HORSE GETS RUN INTO A PEN, LET IT OUT! I’M SICK & SO TIRED OF ALL THE OTHER TACTICS NOT WORKING. WHAT THE HELL DOES THE COURT NEED TO STOP THIS. MAYBE IF WE DRAG THE JUDGES OUT THERE TO WITNESS WHAT IS HAPPENING, IT WILL STOP. SOMETHING DESPERATELY NEEDS TO BE DONE. NOW. I CAN NOT STAND TO SEE ANYMORE OF THESE ANIMALS DYING. WHY HASN’T SOMETHING BEEN DONE TO STOP THIS? WHAT IS GOING TO TAKE. IF THEY DON’T ALLOW US THERE, AREN’T THEY VIOLATING OUR CIVIL RIGHTS TO DUE PROCESS! I JUST DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW THEY ARE ALLOWED TO USE THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TO KEEP US OUT. IT SHOULD BE THE OTHER WAY AROUND. THEY NEED TO PROTECT US & LET US IN!
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Dawna, the definition of an Eco Terrorist is someone who releases animals… besides, they would go after them again and the horses would be twice over run hard and exposed to these deadly people. I know you do not want this. If people could get to these places there would have been some passive resistance by now. I thought it would have been Twin Peaks and BLM was ready for it but it never came. There are new players in the struggle, on Both sides. Hang in there! You are right on all other counts. It must stop. mar
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No Mar, I am not an “Eco terrorist”. I am an animal activist. Do not compare me to someone who “terrorizes” anything. I have the right to be there whether on the ground, in the air or in their face. I would like to see someone else go out there with another helicopter & fly right in their path as well. What are they going to do, forbid us to fly our own in our air space. This is OUR LAND, THEY ARE OUR HORSES & the shear fact that we are not being allowed to go there, on the land, anywhere on the land is a violation of our rights. When you see hundreds of people in the streets or parks doing what they call “a march” or “a protest” is that Eco terrorists? The pens should not even be allowed to be put up, let alone in that manner. How many years has Laura & all her people been out there documenting this & having to endure years of watching these poor animals suffer. And the BLM just craps right in our face with comments like, a 2 year old is playing up there. WHAT THE HELL KIND OF A STUPID IODIOT DO YOU THINK I AM? THEY ARE MAKING FOOLS OUT OF ALL OF US & THE COURTS ARE ALLOWING IT NOW, WILL ALLOW TO GO ON & THE PEOPLE NEED TO MAKE A STAND AGAINST THEM. IT IS OUR RIGHT MAR! Instead of sitting here typing all of us should be out there protecting. All that’s being accomplished with Richard being there is such a great thing but lets how far he gets with the BLM. You can hear the frustration in their voice as she demands to be let up there with a CBS reporter & they just stand there on the tape with their backs turned to her & never, not once answered her. I would have walked around in front of her & demanded an answer. That’s what “in your face means!. Quit ignoring us like we are not there.
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Dawna,
I don’t believe Mar was calling YOU an eco-terrorist… She was stating that, that is what it’s ‘called’ if ‘we’ were to go in on a roundup and just go and do what we wanted. They could charge us as being an eco-terrorist…
Mar is as ‘up’ on this stuff as anyone.. She even told you to ‘Hang in there’.
I know everyone’s tempers are at their limits and with each week and round up that happens it just gets worse and harder to bear. But, WE have to stick together… WE’RE on the same side.
Jus’sayin.. Mar is on YOUR side and she’s a damn good on to have on OUR side! 🙂
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Dawna, I did not compare you to anyone. It is just the definition that people need to understand.. the releasing of animals would push us into the realm of eco terrorism as it is defined right now. Confronting and standing our ground may be the last resort. But we would lose the credibility that our front line advocates have been building and proving to the nation that we are the good guys. This situation deserves response from all of us.
Please support Laura Leigh in the field. Tell Grass Roots Horse to give your donation to Laura directly to get her gas, new tires and buy her time in the field. Check out Brogan’s group. Remember to donate to RT and Terry as they must defray the expenses of their law suits. They got BLM to back off West Douglas this year. They fought to save the North Piceance horses. Sun J was the contractor.
If you have been inspired by Animal Rescue Unit and Laura Leigh, please understand we have the ability to do only What You Help Fund!! We are the treasury for action. If you get upset that nothing has changed then give the most generous donations possible to these folks so they can function and get the facts and the documentation needed to make change happen. I put my money where my mouth is and I will spend a greater part of this winter season raising money for these people to continue. You should do the same, please. mar
show the world the horror the wild horses and burros are subjected to.
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Being a two time cancer survivor (breast & liver) & the fact that I do animal rescue on my own, I don’t have a dollar to help myself let alone somebody else. I have an outstanding vet bill for $1000.00 to try & save my dog from cancer herself, needless to say she died anyway, so sorry if I’m sounding a little pissed off right now. Money may be your answer, but you have to have it to give it. Also there is a web site called Animal Universe & I have spent hour upon hour posting all this information in all the countries across the world to let them know what is going on over here. The responce has been overwhelming, so even though I can’t put my money where my mouth is, I have been doing something POSITIVE to stop this!
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Come on Dawna, I am not just speaking to you. And you are doing plenty. You Know what you do… Those who have made this a part of their lives are doing much. Others are like voyeurs and they watch and comment and are paralyzed.
There are many folks here who have never given a penny. I have to wonder why. I know you are there because the donations come from a sprinkling of new people and the rest from the same people over and again.
RT and Terry, I appreciate the thank you note but save your moolah for the legal fund!
The $10,000. matching funds is good for another week I believe. Give to the legal
fund at Grass Roots Horse and double your donation! This is the time to start helping! Please allow the work all these people are doing to Continue! I kid you not. This is in Your hands People!! mar
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The Warm Springs debacle is up on Alex Brown. Could we use them for soliciting funds for Grassroots Horse or HerdWatch? I don’t know the rules or mechanics, but maybe someone else does.
http://forums.delphiforums.com/alexbrown/messages/?msg=52367.1
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I may only be 14 but i agree 100% with you dawna. THIS NEEDS TO END NOW!!!!!!
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I have to say, if you listened to Andi Hharmons version or published it side by side, with what was documented here..You would have to wonder if she spent the day at Disneyland, her comment on this tragedy, “things like this happen even to domestic horses”..Tell me that moron was not still waving that flag I see him holding in the picture while the horse was in his death throes???
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One of her groupies is saying that the horses don’t mind when the BLM separates them because they don’t live in family bands. And that the mamas don’t mind when they take the foals because in the wild the mares will kick out the foals as soon as they can. So, I’d take whatever she says with a grain of salt.
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I guess everyone has their local guru, It must be somewhat difficult for those same folks to explain away the video..hard to beat that with placebos..Andis contribution, over at ARU facebook page…its a bay roan not blue and it was a mare not a stallion..So Does that change anything about the death..seems it makes it worse that the foal was standing over her mothers dying body while the airheads were still waving flags..the mares brain was still working- she was still capable of being terrified-she was still capable of being concerned for her foal she could still see tho she was paralyzed and could do nothing to save herself or her foal-honest to god, did they run the next group of horses over her live body? They were coming down the hill with them
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It did look that way. I have found another BLM apologist at FB who I thought I knew. Lona Patton is telling people, although she was not present, the Warm Springs horses were thin and had to be rounded up. She also blamed the deaths of horses on the Activists Present! I am so shocked. I feel stupid. I am amazed by this ignorance. I told people this was not so. I told Lona she is wrong. I do think Blue Moon was a mare. She was a bay roan… but she was one wonderful horse and her death was such that we know she was too much for these jerks to handle. They did her in. I have no doubt.
Her foal should be saved. I want to save them all… mar
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Damn the BLM and the hired hands. Damn them, damn them. That is all I have left to say we have said it all before and it does not do any good, what will it take to stop this cruelty?
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Great Work. Thanks. Thanks Thanks for documenting what happens out there to our horses.
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Damn the BLM someone should do to them what they do to our wild horses. this makes me so damn sick . How do they keep getting away with this . our goverment
really sucks when they can let this keep happeneing to our horses . they need to get there heads out of there asses and do something useful But no they sit in there big offices and just keep hurting and killing ….
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For those of you who are subscribed to the post via email you may want to revisit it as Leslie Peeples has uploaded a slide show of Blue Moon’s capture and death.
Not for the faint of heart, but then again, none of this is.
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RT, it was so horrifying, I am still crying. We’ve got to keep fighting even ifm it seems useless, as it does now. Off to man the phone.
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Gov is having lots of “public” contests and postings. One on the right asks for a 10 second youtube vid to be uploaded on youtube. Perhaps our wild horses removel from the lands can be tied in with this contests ‘rules’
url- http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Engagement.shtml
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I answer myself its this contest http://www.epa.gov/earthday/video/
But I do suggest we ALL enter as many of those public page events as possible.
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It’s unbearable, R.T.
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Blue Moon’s horrific death was NOT “Natural Selection”. Natural Selection is based on Darwin’s Theory of Evolution – “the survival of the fittest” – i.e., passing on desirable traits to ensure that the species continues to thrive. It occurs exclusively in nature and has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with the hand of man.
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I can’t watch the slide show R.T. Not again can I watch a beautiful horse that should have been left on the range with it’s family break its fricken neck trying to protect that which it loves & trying to escape, while these bastards just stand there & watch.
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I know, we all react differently. I have never seen Terry cry as many tears as she has over the past year thanks to the BLM’smassacre of our mustangs, it rips my heart out. But this also steels me and angers me beyond words; years of military training have taught me to focus and direct that anger towards the enemy and gives me the strength to stay focused and dedicated to the mission. I hope that one day the anger will be displaced by calm and tranquility but today, that is not the case.
We march forward.
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The parties in a Federal Lawsuit have an absolute right to discovery. The State of NY challenged my right to enter the sewer system, building basements, and tunnels to gather discovery in my Federal Clean Water Act lawsuit. The Judge was adamant that I had every right to gather discovery for the litigation. Seems the issue is it’s our land and our horses no authority may prevent a plaintiff or his experts from filming and documenting the facts. Law enforcement generally remains neutral in these matters, not willing to be dragged into court for infringement of ones rights. Sadly the BLM and its contractors seem empowered to defeat the law and our rights, but seems there is legal precedent here for more transparency. The death of our American Mustangs is not to be taken lightly. Every one has 500 years of DNA coding that is impossible to reproduce.
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I am not going to be ‘civil’ to horse killers!! To those BLM ’employee’ horse killers standing there like idiots,- happy to pressure a wild animal into bashing itself into steel bars to its death. To that insane jerk with a plastic bag!!
Read and remember these 2 small bible verses. You will NEVER forget them, the rest of your pityfull lives, in your dreams, everyday, you’ll always remember these stains on your souls!
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Laura, those bas… could never own a bible, let alone read it.
maybe they can’t even read.
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Lrt me say this about these relentless pursuits by the helicopters that Catoors and the BLM claim, “the wild horses get used to it” THEY donot get “used” to it, they are terrorized out of their mind-If a group of people chased you waving axes and cutting your escape off over and over, would you-a human being think they were attempting to do anything other than kill you..would you run until your heart exploded..can you imagine these wild horses ‘getting over” this expierience? How does this trauma effect them the rest of their lives in their reactions to sounds or bags on a stick.or people in general.By the time they get into that tiny corral with a group waving bags and coming at them from all sides, their minds have been blown.Humane society, ASPCA-get your butts down there and stop this as BLM is unwilling to step in..I KNOW for a fact the crew that works the pens at Burns knows better..are their hands tied like ours. The BLM volunteers do not have their hands tied, they were there in force..you people are every bit as much to blame, you should be speaking up instead of spreading the propaganda from coast to coast
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Do you know that little Honey Bandit is afraid of things over her head. The psychological damage inflicted to the horses is incalculable, and to the brand new foals it may be lifelong. It really is terrorizing them. And there really are no rules in the contractor handbook for the helicopter pilots.
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Sandra and Save WH,
There is absolutely NO doubt in my mind that these horses remember these sounds and sights for the REST of their lives!
Kokomo is 12 years old, Chevy is 9 and are BOTH deathly afraid of that plastic bag sound. Now, these guys are LOVED to pieces and trust us unconditionally.. But, you get a plastic bag out in the barn or if I forget and bring stuff into the barn in one.. OMG! They ‘head out’ snortin’ and looking at me like I was CRAZY!
As far as helicopter sounds… We have a traffic chopper that goes up and down the highway near us on occasion. Of course I may ‘hear’ it but it doesn’t ‘register’ with me cause I know what it is, right… These guys hear it and honest to goodness, both stop munching or goofing around and are looking up to the sky. I sometimes hear myself asking them, what’s with you guys.. and then realize what IT is!
Here’s one that may be different too, I don’t know about other Mustang owners.. But my Son is in a Precision Mounted Drill Team and sometimes when they go into an arena, there are the metal panels on each side of the entrance to the arena.. To you and I, it’s just panels leading into the arena, right? Noope! Guess what it looks exactly like?! In a super small scale size, it looks like a crowding alley..
The first time Sam rode into this, I saw it coming cause Kokomo went ballistic, of course it didn’t dawn on me ’till a split second before it happened so I couldn’t have stopped it.. But, Kokomo spun on his heel and was headed outta there. I yelled at him and it brought him ‘back’ and of course Sam was giving him all he had.. But talk about scary for Kokomo AND dangerous for Sam!
We worked Kokomo for a couple weeks and he was comfortable with it, but was NOT happy about it at all, EVER!
So, yeah.. It’s like someone hurting a dog, or something, they DON’T forget.. It’s a shame what they do to each and EVERY horse they come in contact with.. Dumbasses is as ‘clean’ as I can get with what I’d really like to call ’em.
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This is a story i have heard many times from many people..the sound of a clanging gate can cause a horse born in holding to squat and shake..We now know the procedure used for gelding stallions does not in fact put them out..only temporarily paralyzes them..they know and remember as all of us who know horses can testify to-they turn to us because they trust us in scary situations..what if 2 legged people are that ones that have caused the most horrendous events in their lives?
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The FBI has been contacted on several occasions, they do not tell you if or when they are about to investigate, for all we know they could be processing the BLM right NOw ……………… There is no way of telling what they are doing, it would defeat the purpose……………………………………………….. They work very secretily……… For obivous reasons !!!!! Dont give up on them………………….
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to Frank Yes the loss of DNA is very disturbing–every scientist in the USA should be joining us in this cause. They are all worried (on paper) about bio-diversity and extinction –well they should be on the phones right now with the rest of us–not just putting up petitions on various sites. Once these herds are gone, that genetic info is gone. The world should be outraged by the eradication of these treasured herds–treasures for their very ability to survive and make it into the 21st C. Releasing infertile animals is not going to re-establish any herds!
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Does anyone have the phone number of the BLM office in charge of the Warm Springs round up? To gather horses over the paralyzed body of Blue Moon is beyond the pale.
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Leslie, Thank you for setting up this slide show of Blue Moon and his family. Every time I watch another horse abused, confused and desperate like this I am sure that there will be someone that will put the right law on the situation and this will end. It just doesn’t happen. We need to put all of them on a dvd, one after another and the mare that fought for her life also, at Silver King. They went down fighting for their lives, every one of them. This is the spirit we have to save and the spirit that tells us we are in a just fight. These are the most wonderful horses in the world. They are supposed to belong to all of us. This continued action against the wild horses and burros shows that our status has been usurped and replaced with the terror contractors and BLM who have taken possession of the publics’ herds in a manner that is illegal and threatening the very existence of them all. Just as they steal their lands they destroy their lives. The Reckoning will extract what the wild ones will need to survive proudly and we will see they get that in the names of every wild horse killed by the US Government and contract murderers. mar
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Thank you Brogran for your courage and determiniation.
R. T., there was something in your comment that reminded me of Odysseus’ advice to his son about controlling his anger until the right time. He and Telemachus both go to great pains to hide their anger until they get the cicumstances in place to release their anger and destroy their enemies. I love that story and that whole idea of controlling your anger until you have the right time and the right way to release it.
I spoke at length with a staffer in Senator Burr’s office on Friday about many of the concerns we share. Senator Burr represents North Carolina and is on the Senate Committe for Energy and Natural Resources. He is not on the subcommittees that deal directly with public lands. Among other things, the staffer told me that ROAM now has a sponsor, a senator from New York. The staffer told me that with the other things that Congress has to deal with this session, he did not expect that ROAM would be among them. He told me that the GOA is currently investigating the BLM’s activities. So, I think that whatever we see that seems that it is a violation of law should be reported to GOA among other places. I think the idea of enlisting the FBI is a good idea.
This staffer told me that the BLM says that it must hold the press and public at a distance because of the danger of 500 stampeding horses would pose. Well, we all know that rarely do we see 500 stampeding horses.
Furthermore, in this vein, how dangerous could it be if the contractor’s two year old is playing next to the pen??? I mean this is such a strong contradiction to BLM propagada, that it turns this argument into a seive. Also, I don’t recommend this experience to anyone, but as someone who got caught in the middle of a stampede one time, I can pass on what was passed onto me, which is the word “freeze”. That horses don’t want to run into anything, so as long as you don’t move, they will run around you.
Also, it seems to me that in some of the earliest photos and videos both Laura and Elyse (maybe it was someone else) was very close to the horses when they came in, but also very quiet and still focusing on the work of documenting the horses. That, it seems, was before or around the time of Calico. So, I think it would be good to have photographic evidence of how the public/press/advocates actually conduct themselves when close to horses actually being brought in.
I told the staffer that I was concerned that the round-ups had been moved to private lands where the public could not observe the horses coming in, and that increasingly the horses were being kept on private land after they came in. We want to know what the BLM is doing to these horses that can not be seen by the public. I shared with him that I have ridden at numerous boarding barns, and that you can access the barns 24/7 if you own or lease a horse there. Also that sometimes things happen to horses. Horses can start playing around and hurt themselves. Everyone knows that, and accepts that there are times when horses have to be put down. We know that everything we see may not be pretty, but that we should have the right to see it. We are concerned about the effects of running horses for miles and miles. Etc.
The staffer was familiar with this issue to a certain degree, but was not aware that the BLM was now conducting these round-ups extensively on private lands.
We talked some about the stimulus bill and the push to get green energy systems at least started by the end of the year, so that they could receive some of the government loan money available to finance projects like the solar panels that will take up over 2000 acres in the Mojave desert. The problems with solar panels and wind turbines is that they take up a lot of land. And because they are not all that energy efficient, we are now seeing taller wind turbines and larger solar panels. We have seen our horses moved this year primarily for the purpose of making way for Ruby, more wind turbines, and to make way for the building of not one, but many solar energy projects in California. He suggested to me that nuclear energy in the same area would take much less land, and provide far more electricity. He did not say that that was the way to go, but that rather suggested that there might be other ways to assure that the area got more electrical power.
I told him that the most important issue is that the round-ups need to stop now.
I tried to let the staff know that as a citizen my interest in wild horses and their fate was forcing me to examine our government much more closely.
He told me that with regard to the North Carolina horses being targeted by USFWS that Senator Burr and state Senator Walter Jone are drafting a bill to change the minimum levels of horses that must be allowed to stay on the Forest Service Land, and that they are advocating the number to remain between 115 5o 120.
I have a meeting Monday with my Representative.
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WOW! Christie!
That is fantastick! Sounds like you had a nice, long conversation with a Staffer that may have genuinly cared!? And, you got some great information too! Way to go!
Good for you, too that you’re going to meet with your Rep! This is where it all starts! 🙂
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Hello…there are a lot of great posts on here…the folks that have posted here, should go to The Bureau of Land Managements Wild Horse & Burro Program on their Facebook site and post how they feel about the way our tax dollars are being used in the brutal treatment of our wild horses and burros in the Roundups…there’s no excuse good enough to treat any living, feeling creature that way…their even breaking federal laws, and apparently doing it without any worry of repercussions for their cowardly, criminal acts.. Why bother making laws if not wi!long to enforce them? Makes our laws nothing than empty words on paper.
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all of you obviously love horses and are very commited to helping the mustangs safely but as I read all I see is anger and condemnation for what they are doing do you have any solutions to helping the mustangs a better way to manage them so they don’t starve or die from dehydration. I do love the mustangs and don’t want to see them wiped out i don’t want to see them stave to death or die from dehyration i have seen many horses gelded that should have been left as stallions and many mares that should have been left out to be mothers but I have no idea how to manage them safely there is good on both sides and bad on both sides lets work togeather to come up with a solution to help the mustangs live a healthy safe life
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Most of us would like to see these animals – Horses and Burros alike – be allowed to live and die on their own terms. As magnificent as they are, they are Wild, and being Wild comes with it’s own rules. We – I – don’t want to see them die for any reason. But, despite opinions to the contrary, they are a part of the Natural World.
They have survived and thrived, on their own, for hundreds of years. They only became ‘problematic’ because they occupied what humans wanted.
They have been ‘managed’ into the problems they are perceived to be. They don’t need or want us; they might be, if left to their own devices for any period of time, content to share the ranges with us.
If they are starving, it’s because they’ve been sequestered in ever-shrinking homes. If they are dying of thirst, it’s because their water sources are coveted and fenced away from them.These are not ignorant, reactionary creatures; they have a method to their lives, monarchies & heirarchies they adhere to that have served them well for longer than Caucasians have been here.
We – I – would like nothing more than for them to be left alone. There are few sights more breathtaking than the accidental discovery of a small herd or family band in the wild.
Except seeing them taken away.
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AMEN, the BLM has imployed a “shrink to fit” policy of shrinking the lands that legally are designated as HMA areas-to they have millions of other lands that industry energy mineing and cattle grazing could take place..they want the land the horses are on..there is NO shortage of water, there is NO shortage of forage, but they are shrinking the land available to the horses that they are entitled to..and since the amazing mustang still manages to thrive and do well, despite their worst efforts..they are mowing them down with- soon to be illegal polices developed in their RMPs…go WWP!!!
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R.T. is right on about anger and learning to focus it. A boxer in the ring learns that. If he let’s his anger control him, that is when his opponent can knock him out. When you get that angry–go for a walk, chop some wood, clean house–do whatever it takes to center you thoughts and FOCUS. THEN take aim and fire.
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Christy–WOW! Good for you for contacting your Congressman!
It seems that they all need to get over this idea of using OUR public lands for private and corporate ventures of ANY kind. These corporate entities (many are multi-national) can pay FULL DOLLAR VALUE for land that they purchase–and it doesn’t need to be the public land–some of which is the LAST of our WILDERNESS.
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This is what the BLM put up as their PDF answer to why the stallion died.
This is my opinion and my venting- Again BLM LIES and LIES, Hey BLM there are direct pictures of YOUR EMPLOYEES- contractor morons hanging on the fence waving plastic bags.. as the stallion over and over crashes into your stupid horse killing steel pipe fences! Then he lays there and suffers while the idiots THEN walk away after trying to hang burlap because they ‘remember’ they are being watched!! GET UP the freaking 24/7 webcams BLM! we want to WATCH and RECORD you always! your words are meaningless, your statements are direct lies! We demand 24/7 vid proof of your entire ‘operation’ would sure save a LOT of time and be more truthfull. Seems like your EMPLOYEES lie to you BLM desk-reporting-management also!
heres the BLMs again stupid horse-killer lie statement!
“Why/how did a horse die at the trap site on Saturday?
Unfortunately, a horse did perish at the trap site on Saturday, November 6. This horse came into the trap with 2 other horses and all were being moved into the crowding alley to create space for an additional group close behind. Two of the horses moved into the crowding alley with no problems; the third horse turned back into the receiving pen, made a lap or so in that area then ran into the panel fence, causing a terminal neck injury. The horse died instantly and was covered as soon as possible. Observers on site witnessed the incident and some were filming at the time. The APHIS vet observed the incident and stated the crew did not put any unnecessary pressure on the horse.”””
can someone with the Vid and pictures report that VET to APHIS for making a statement to his BLM ‘boss’ that was on tape a lie? please!!
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This is the “horse page” on the APHIS website.
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_welfare/hpa_info.shtml
“Contact Us” is at the upper right. I don’t know if their system will accept videos attached to emails, but maybe we could get an address to send DVDs along with the documentation. And it would have to be sent to the right PERSONS so our efforts don’t end up in the “circular file”.
P.S. – Does anyone know if video attachments to emails are blocked on government websites?
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i believe they can receive them, as Jana @ canon city facility used the pictures carol sent her to identify Grey Beard, the stallion from Adobe Town..She herself could not access those photos on facebook, gov. blocking on the computer
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God bless Blue Moon…
Thanks to all for the documentation..
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I wonder if in some of the Western states if a US Senator were to partner with a state Senator, could more be done to increase the AML’s and protect the land for the horses.
Some more research I did after I researched the President’s role in forming the Chicago Climate Exchange which is basically making money from trading carbon credits back and forth from companies that now voluntarily impose carbon limits on themselves. For example, if a company like Exxon (just an examply) was given an allotment of 90 credits, but only used 60, it could sell the 30 credits to a company that used more carbon credits than it was allowed. So in this case, say Massey Enery used 30 more carbon tons than it was supposed to, Massey could buy these credits from Exxon. This was Exxon can make even more money. In fact, some companies are closing down businesses that have a high carbon usage in one area, selling the carbon credits for big bucks, and then moving their business to areas where they can be bigger polluters for less carbon tax. That means that people that worked for the company in one country may lose their jobs while the company that they worked for makes big money by selling it, and moving the production somewhere else. Anyway, if Cap and Trade had passed the Chicago Climate Exchange founded by seed money by the President when he was on the board of a non-profit, The Joyce Foundation, would be hiring more people and making money in the Trillions. Al Gore founded his own business GIP in London and has already made millions from it. The point is not that green energy is good or bad or whether you believe that man is effecting climate change and how much, but just to say that the business of behaving as if man is causing irreparable damage to the climate, and to mitiagate this, the government must intervene in the form of requiring all utilities to get a certain percentage of their electricity from a renewable energy source. What has been less publicized is that at the current time, green energy sources such as solar and wind are not as efficient as coal, oil, gas, and other methods have been. Because of the lack of efficiency as well as other factors, these “renewable” sources are more expensive, and we will pay higher prices to use them in our monthly utility bills and definitely in the form of higher taxes (think of paying off the stimulus bill from which this money to lend to green energy sources is coming. The carbon tax is really a tax on air, our air. I understand the intent, but when you stand back and look at it, the Chicago Climate Exchange, was set up to make a profit through trading air credits.
At any rate, all of this leads me to the next point, which is that somewhere along the way with the wind tunnels, solar panels, and geothermal energy units created, the end result is to create electricity for which use you will pay your power company. Therefore, I find it more than interesting that GE owns NBC, MSNBC, Telemundo, and many, many media outlets in major cities throughout the United States. We wonder why the media is not giving this story more attention? Well, when the owner of one of the major networks stands to profit from the emptying of federal lands, so that they can increase their reach into the enery production fields, it should be no surprise that they are practically cheerleading the President and his policies to the American people. I don’t know if any of you watch Fox News or not, but tonight at 5:00 Glen Beck is going to do a show on George Sorros who also controls a lot of media, and is a close supporter of the President, has a relationship with Van Jones who was the President’s first green jobs Czar, but who holds some beliefs most of us would think are un-American.
Let me say this, lest I be understood. I see all of this through the lens of what is happening to wild and free roaming horses and burros right now. I was too busy working and raising a child to pay a lot of attention before 2008, so my concerns may sound partisan, but they are not. They are about what is happening to wils horses and burros right now, and the belief I have that if the President cared about the lives of wild horses and burros as the lives of the people who love them, he would stop the round-ups immediately.
Instead, I have come to believe that the President is determined to convert the West into a series of green energy experiments eating up the land and destroying wild-life habitats as he goes. Tragically, I believe he is completely emotionally removed from the beauty and the culture that he is destroying just as he was during the Gulf of Mexico destruction. He does not know what he does not know. But it appears that he may, and most certainly his cronies from Goldman Sachs and others whose names are not so familiar to us now other than Al Gore, stand to make an even greater forture if these green energy technologies take off and prosper regardless of their effects on the consumer.
Interestingly enough, the University of California was largest campaign contributor to President Obama’s 2008 campaign. Another large contributor was Stanford University. Both of these seemed like anomalies when I first read them, but I’d some green stuff that both of these research institutions stand to receives millions in grants and contracts through green energy related technologies. Another contributor was GE. Interestingly enough, the CEO of GE was prominently mentioned as a member of the President’s Indian entourage.
I share this with you because it all seems to me like the horses are swimming upstream against a tsumani, and every one of us who wants to see more green energy development is a part of it. Still, I maintain, there should be enough land for everyone, particularly if those people who have cattle grazing permits understand what is at stake for them. They are much more likely to retain at least some of their grazing rights by sharing the land with wild horses rather than working so hard to get rid of them. Once the horses are gone, they will be next. America has no need for their beef. They are as useless in the grand scheme as some people think the horses are.
As an informed public we are in a better position to insist that enough of our public lands be preserved and protected for America’s wild horses. Understand that a lot of the traditional media very much support this President’s agenda, so we are going to have to work extra hard to get our message out. CNN is owned by Time Warner. Time Warner donates heavily to democratic campaigns (not saying there is anything wrong with this; but it explains to me why someone like Anderson Cooper or some other nationally known reporter has not done more work on this story). The media who have done work on the story like George Klaus and Jane Valdez Mitchell have done well.
I believe the answer is to keep working. We just have to think our of the box for ways to inform people about the illegal travesty being carried out against our wild horses, who are the very embodiment of “green energy”, in the name of green energy and greed.
I hope I have not violated any one’s sense of keeping this just about the horses. It is all about the horses for me. If they were being able to live and roam freely on the lands they were given by Congress in 1971, I wouldn’t give a flip who had founded the Chicago Climate Exchange, or who standed to profit from selling air. I might even be bemused, but this is not the case and we are up against it.
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I would find it interesting if someone who calls themselves an advocate -put sensitivity to politics over the horses..I voted for Obama and have been severly critical of his performance and lack of intervention and have revised my opinon of green energy on public lands given my own deep investigation into the Ruby Pipeline.
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that was more political opinion and took it pretty far afield from the horses. That’s another blog, this is all about the horses. Most of us don’t even know the political affiliations or opinions of one party over another. I for one would be pretty happy to leave it that way. None of any of the administrations have been benevolent to the horses. I want to keep our focus to this ONE issue.
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There is the BLM version of how they killed that stallion and then there is the TRUTH:
sandra longley (10:36:01) :
On Saturday a stallion broke his neck on a fence panel. “The panel the stallion hit appeared to have been improperly set up since prior to the stallion breaking his neck, at least eight horses had a problem in that same corner and had contact with the panel. “The wranglers put a lot of pressure on with whips and bags and he jumped for it,” said Brogan Horton of Animal Rescue Unit. I think they all thought it was an exit, even a foal had attempted it earlier. After the stallion went down, a screen was put up but we could see him struggling and then we were asked to leave”.
Reports from eyewitnesses say a young colt of about 4 or 5 months would not go into the trap. Two wranglers on horseback, double lassoed the foal with two ropes around his neck and disappeared with him behind a bluff. The wranglers rode back without the foal, and according to video of the incident, 41 minutes had passed while the wranglers ate lunch and then went to retrieve the foal from behind the bluff. The foal walked into the trap clearly exhausted with his head hanging very low.
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The TRUTH bears repeating
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Andi Harmon has reported the BLM said the roan was a mare..which to me is even more horrendous..the foal crouched over her mothers body while having whips waved in her face..stomache turning..
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Horrifying. Sending to my list.
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No words other than : Is this the country I thought I moved to ? More than not this place resembles a land of alienated and scary shambles. I have difficulty to find pride in anything that ought to remind us of “freedom” and the American “way of life” which is moving into a nightmare when one pays attention to the current events, in each and all directions. With an aching heart I wish we lived in a time when people had the guts for a revolution and reached true change before it was too late. The way this country is sabotaged and ruined is mind-goggling. Had one ever thought such cruelty is possible here ?
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No, Monika, I would never have believed such things could be well documented and still be totally ignored by authorities local AND national. And, every time I think I’m beyond shock, something even worse – like this – happens and I am just flattened that it not only happened but that no one seems to care.
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As the tears run down my face,
another tragedy taking place.
What right do they have? This must stop!
We pray, call, and write, still no end in site.
What can we do?
Can’t run away,
Can’t bear to click
on the video to play.
Seen it all before, sadness and pain;
Asking daily, God make it stop!
Please show us a way.
I came and sufferred, too
I can hear Jesus say.
I hold each of your tears,
and his, hers and Moon’s too!
Every injustice, will be made right,
Believe this and wait.
Follow God’s path and love, not hate.
Hate will consume you and crowd out God’s love,
Then you too will be like them.
Murderers and thieves
with no hope. Amen
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I cannot believe this – am sick to my stomach! How long did Blue Moon have to suffer unnecessarily – disgusting people – hope they all spend a lot of time roasting in hell.
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Maybe all info and dvds and tapes all documented info should bwe sent also to the FBI ……………………………….. Like I said earlier they have been contacted several times ………………………… I am sure this info would benefit the wild Mustangs if we sent all info to the FBI !!
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Another waste of a beautiful wild stallion. This has to stop. There used to be millions of wild horses roaming the ranges accross this country. These animals need to be left alone as they law states and as they deserve. There needs to be more internet and television coverage of these things so the American public sees what’s going on, not just us “horselovers”. Almost everybody I work with, knows nothing of this stuff until I send it to them in emails. If the majority of the public saw this beautiful stallion killed, there would be an uproar, I am sure. I guess we can just keep trying to get the word out as best we can and hope somebody, somewhere pays attention.
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This is disgusting!!! Why the hell are these bastards still in business of rounding up horses? This is animal abuse at its finest! Charges should be brought against these sick weak men.
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How is it that the Senate can get so outraged that they will call in athletes to testify, under oath, if the professional player is just suspected of taking muscle enhancing stimulants, but cannot seem to take action and have a hearing on this brutal treatment of wild horses?
Helicopters are very expensive and very sensitive to problems. I’m having a hard time understanding the Return on Investment for the contractors and if they had more maintenance problems on their choppers, they probably could not afford to round-up in this way. Corrosion, nicks, dents in the blades, fuel issues, electronics, out of balance blades etc. Or is it that we are paying them sooo much that they can afford to operate and maintain those very expensive helicopters of the caliber in the video? I thought we were going through the worst federal budget crisis since the depression. Talk about a boondoggle!
Lastly but most importantly, it just hurts to see what happened to Blue Moon and his family and to realize this is why the public is not allowed to observe what’s happening. I remember Obama pledged to have a more open and transparent government. I am surprised that someone in the Whitehouse hasn’t receive a flood of complaints of what obviously is not an open nor transparent practice because it enrages us to see the brutality involved. And I hope we are upset about this. Because if we are not, it says something about ourselves and what we have become. Thank you for your efforts. Keep up the fight. Lets get more transparency and documentation on these
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What kind of answer is ‘there’s a two year old up there’? What is a 2 yr old doing there? If it’s not safe for the adult onlookers to be there, why is a partialy unsupervised 2 year old not in any danger being there?
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Dear morganlvr , Do you know what we have to be extremely proud of here, Its shows here people do care, everyday i read things about our Wild Mustangs that totally devastates me, i have cried many times for them, i have prayed for them, I have called and emailed everyone i can think of, to try to get them help, nothing yet , but in my soul i know that with all the caring people here i am not alone in what i feel for them… , and i know that all together we will find the ways and means to free them back to the land we gave to them………..unfortunately this it takes time , But have confidence in all here and with all of the American people, awareness is what is needed , America will stand up the Mustangs , and there are politicians with the brains to know what is happening here ………….. and will have the B s to help……….do not let up for 1 minute WE NEED MEDIA ATTENTION…..It is the BIG KEY HERE>>>>>>>>>>>
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We will stop the BLM, all their cruelty & corruption strengthens our resolve to stop BLM corrupt horse killing lying murdering, incompetent thugs !
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I can’t stand to read anymore. Look at that picture. Not one of those men are tending to the fatally injured horse. What can we do at this point to get visibility into this horrific instance and get someone to take some action?
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Wow, what courage it took for you to go there and to have to watch that. It was so hard for me to even read it, I cannot imagine what it was like for you to see it. I have a revolving adoption BLM horse. I love him dearly but he has problems from old injuries and I have the best home he’s probably going to have. But I know he belonged in the wild, there is no doubt in my mind…
An experience I had about how BLM seems to proliferate complacency with it’s gruesome activites beyond family..Well of course it is also politics with even citizens or groups I think. I mean pacify people and they stay quiet and don’t band together, right? Here is an example:
A representative of one of the mustang groups out here in the Midwest wrote to me in email to “take it easy” on a BLM representative who was coordinating some local publicity for an up and coming adoption a few years ago. I felt the BLM rep was teetering on being a “yes man” and was asking some tough questions and got some very canned, scrubbed reponses from him. Well, the representative of the mustang group told me in an email to “take it easy” on him, that they accept or get money from BLM to fund being in a local parade, Now I am sure they took the horses to the parade with good intentions to promote the mustang, of course, But I was appalled when I was told this. I mean really.. an influential mustang group accepting money from people like BLM that do and allow things like this? I am sure not united with them. So how do *we unite to take a stand on this? This is so corrupt and sickening. I have written congress representatives in Kansas and Missouri to no avail. I have written Salazar, I wrote Lummis in Wyoming~got a very rude insensitive good ole boy response from her. How do we not run into brick walls? or steel bars.. just like the stallion. I don’t know but THANK YOU so much for trying and risking your safety. I really appreciate and admire all of you.
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They also started doing foal round up breaking there own rule recently, sign the petition and stop foal roundup in Nevada! Its free to sign and we need 15,000 signatures, we only have 14,516 so far!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/753/146/988/
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Watching this was a deep gut punch.
I adopted a BLM stallion back in ’78…age, 15 per dental, from Oregon’s SE desert, Fish Fin Rim, Beatty’s Butte area. Mahogany Bay with star, strip and snip, two hind white socks. He died of old age (laid down and did not get up) at around age 42-44. Two days before he passed, I had a hard time catching him (as usual~I always needed to patiently trick him!).
In our life together, we had explored all over the mountains around Mt. Rainier, had done some dressage, some jumping, and heck, I even taught him how to drive. He was stout, proud and beautiful.
To honor him, and the place he came from, I took some of his forelock, mane and tail hair back to Fish Fin Rim. The BLM had said that they had just rounded up 100’s of horses just prior to my trip…and that they were thinking of “phasing out” this herd in favor of others.
En route, just less than a mile from Fish Fin Rim, I saw the body of a yearling filly, that had crashed over a rocky draw from being run across very difficult terrain. Most people who have been out this way know that the horses follow old worn smooth trails from point to point…they do not run thru the lava rocks. It was obvious by the freshness of the death, and the cracked scapula that she had been chased with a copter to her death. Her color markings: Mahogany bay, white star, strip and snip, two hind white socks. We photographed everything, went back to the BLM in Lakeview when we were done. They really could care less. These horses do not have value to them. They are simply a fiscal and management problem.
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Thank you for this story, Jana. Mustangs can be the best of horses. The filly who died is one of thousands. In the names of those who have died this will stop. mar
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BLM why do you do this to these beautiful creatures. You ar heartless souls. Whats the problem with letting them run free in the wild. Huh? Tell me? Why? If you have little children what would they say about your antics. Shame on you.
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This report makes me incredibly angry as ALL BLM Wild Horse roundups do!! I really feel that we need a Round Up Facebook page where dates and locations can be given to the public as well as YouTube video letting people know where to be and when. With airport and rental car locations. I completely realize these are remote areas! However I am one person that if I knew more information than just the name of the Round up or Basin it was in…I would get myself there! Like the one they did in San Miguel County near Telluride. I used to live there! If I had a heads up with an airport and who to meet up with I would be there and perhaps we could get more of the American public to be there to observe and protest this act of horror!
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Why have some of these videos been removed.
The public hasn’t seen what how wild horses and burros are treated.
I have seen most of the ones that have been removed and the public should and the right to what kind of animal abusers and criminals who are exempt from being held accountable for crimes against animals.
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