(In My Humble and Outraged Opinion) by R.T. Fitch~author/Director of HfH Advisory Council
A Call to Action: Stop the Stampedes NOW
Obama Wild Horse Harvesting Machine ~ courtesy of John Holland
Recently, during the Antelope Complex stampede, the BLM reported that one of the horses that they had run for miles and miles in freezing temperatures had a gunshot wound to its upper left shoulder.
The mare was transferred to the holding facility and allegedly kept separate but according to the BLM the horse “spun around” and broke that same leg resulting in the horse being euthanized the following day.
This incident brings to light a bushel basket of questions; w as it a fresh wound, was it visibly bleeding, was the horse exhibiting signs of difficulty in movement, etc. etc.? But the biggest point that rushes to the forefront is the fact that here is another compromised wild horse, run inhumanly for miles and miles while being terrorized and assaulted by the BLM’s contractor stampede helicopter. Is this or is this not yet another clear cut case of not only incompetence on the part of the BLM but also raging, screaming animal cruelty, AGAIN?!
The BLM is “investigating” this incident just like they are “investigating” the documented acts of animal cruelty committed by their own contracted helicopter stampede pilot. The pilot that runs old mares into the ground and uses his aircraft as a battering ram on these terrified wild mustangs. Is the BLM also investigating why there are dozens of horse dying of illness at the secretive, locked Broken Arrow facility? Personally, I have had enough of the alleged internal investigations as it is time that a higher authority steps in and put the brakes on Obama’s Horse Harvesting Machine while we figure out exactly what the hell is going on.
I, personally, worry and fret over relaying bad and bloody news day after day to an audience of caring and compassionate souls. The fear is that it could drive many into sensory overload and the result would be good folks turning away, closing their eyes and switching off their hearts as for some it is just too much to bear. But the reality is that we need as many people as we can possibly wake up to see this news, to understand what is going on with our national icons and to speak in a loud and collective voice that we have simply “HAD ENOUGH”! And I, for one, feel exactly that way…I have had enough of the lies, sneaking, cheating, law twisting and excuse making.
Our Federal government is giving millions of our hard earned tax dollars to private citizens to do everything that the BLM and Congress says you cannot do to our federally protected wild horses, i.e. chase, harass and remove them from their rightful public lands. It is an affront to the intent of the law yet they do it day in and day out right before our very eyes and laugh at us as they do it. Remember, YOU are the enemy, YOU are the one under scrutiny and YOU are the one who is wrong in the eyes of the fat government employees who have held onto their useless and high paying government jobs for so long that they have lost touch with the truth, the American way and their very souls.
Like you, I have called, written, spoken to and debated with these elected and/or appointed public servants until I am blue in the face and I am not stopping now. It’s time to shut down the Wild Horse Eradication Program and put a moratorium on this bloody embarrassment so that we can get a team of educated and knowledgeable experts in the field to determine the exact number of horses, both in the wild and in holding, and also to investigate the gross disparity of the BLM’s private cattle grazing program. This welfare ranching is not in the best interest of the American people.
This week a data rich team of motivated and skilled advocates are going to D.C. to try to do just that; defund the BLM’s insane wild horse managed extinction program. I suggest and implore you to support them in their endeavors as many of us, due to outside influences, cannot attend. Listen to them, respond their requests and needs and stand with them by the fax or by the phone so that your voice will stand with theirs. We have to stop this, folks.
Also, support the legal efforts of Grass Roots Horse and HfH Advisory Council both of which are fighting, mostly with personal funds, the BLM behind the scenes with little fanfare. Grass Roots is fighting for our rights for access and the Advisory Council is fighting the bad math that is used to zero out wild horse herds. Both of these organizations are making progress but they need help to ensure that their kind attorneys can continue to be reimbursed for their efforts.
Grass Roots also has Laura Leigh in the field, this is no damn vacation for Laura and she depends upon outside support to keep her out there, to be a witness for the horses. Even the BLM has admitted that this year she has been to more stampedes than any BLM employee, that is a whole lot of heart, guts and soul. Let’s keep gas in her tank and food in her belly
And for those of you who like to plan into the future, put the dates of March 10th and 11th on your calendar as that is when the bogus and horse hating BLM Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board is planning to meet in Phoenix, AZ.
I know, we have been there before, traveled at our own expense, presented verified data and heartfelt pleas only to be insulted and flipped off by both the disengaged board members but by high ranking BLM officials. We won’t go for them, we will go for the horses and make stand. It’s a perfect time for US to gather and collectively bring this to the forefront of the American conciseness. The BLM has been kind enough to set a date, select the venue and alert the media, let’s grab this one by the horns and make it count. Thousands of outraged citizens making a stand before the puny self-interest group who have no more horse-sense than a shovel full of cow crap, sorry cows, it would be a day to remember.
So let’s get the show on the road and shut this down. I look forward to this upcoming week and spreading some good news for a change, let’s stop these bloody stampedes and let’s stop them know.
For all of you in the field and fighting the fight face to face I scream in my very loudest of voices,
“May the Force of the Horse© be with You and God bless!!!”
Video by Laura Leigh
Video by Laura Leigh
Video by the Cloud Foundation
Related Articles
- Obama’s BLM Wild Horse Helicopter Attacks and Contacts Horses AGAIN! (rtfitch.wordpress.com)
- Obama Wild Horse Stampede Contractor Rewrites the Truth (rtfitch.wordpress.com)
- Stop Cash Flow to Bloody BLM Wild Horse Stampedes (rtfitch.wordpress.com)
- Government Spin Machine Goes into Overdrive in Wild Horse Case (animals.change.org)
Categories: Horse News, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
The AP story about the BLM offering $10k reward for who shot the horse is strange. What kind of vets are they using out there anyway? Never mind, I think I already know the answer to that………
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BTW – isn’t there some kind of USDA coyote eradication program going on in the same area right now…….????
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Yes, they are removing/shooting Coyotes from a fixed wing plane from the Nevada Ag Dept. This should be solved quickly because of this other presence. There have been accusations from Madeleine having a helicopter out there to advocates having a plane scattering horses. BS mar
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Vogler, a sheep rancher is not wanting either coyotes or wild horses on his grazing allotments. He is one of the feral Horse Committee people. He may have been one of the former Mustangers… I am not sure tho’. mar
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Grazing allotments. On public land – which belongs to America as a whole?????
Oh, sorry, lost my HEAD for a second.
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Many of the same questions R.T. posed in the article came immediately to my mind, how old is the wound for example. Where was the mare in relation to whoever is busy eradicating coyotes from properties controlled by Mr. Volger? For that matter, where were each of volger’s employees? Has the idiot flying the chopper gotten too frustrated at the horses that don’t want to cooperate and be stampeded into prison? They need to look carefully in their own house, primarily meaning the contractor employees and what they do on their time off. What is happening out in the hills where no outside observer is allowed to tread? You can bet if it turns out to be one of their own or someone working for another government agency the whole thing will be quickly swept under the rug and white washed. If by one chance in a thousand it turns out to be anyone that could even remotely be categorized as some kind of advocate for the horses it will be blown clear out of proportion with the willing help of the media even though it would make no sense at all for someone who supports the horses to be shooting anywhere around in the general direction of any horses. WO
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R.T.- Don’t stop relaying the news. It needs to be put out there. Education, disgust and anger are the things we need to keep us going in our fight.
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RT, This is it and we are coming to Phoenix! How about a little street theater?? We need some good feedback. We also need people to come with ideas and questions so we can discuss them with each other. The wild ones and the advocacy are calling us… mar
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I wish I had something insightful to say, but I simply do not. I am just horrified by the continued odd, despicable behavior being perpetuated against our American icon, the wild Mustangs! Now a horse is shot, just unbelievable! Then this same horse is driven to exhaustion, further injury and then has to be euthanized, I am just in shock! Please the BLM needs to be stopped! Their incompetence has gone on far too long!
Keep the fight going, no matter what! Mr. Fitch keep on writing, no matter what the subject, we all need to be informed and you speak the truth, too often ignored!
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P.S. Another question just flitted across, born I am sure in the distrust I have for the BLM but could they be setting this up as a justification to deny access to everyone else in the supposed interest of the safety of their employees and the horses?
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That would be a stretch………..
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A stretch? Perhaps it is and I didn’t mean someone from BLM purposely went out and shot the mare. We don’t know who did that and I will be surprised if we ever find out. However, it would not be the first time a government agency used an event they did not initiate to create a smoke screen in order to cover a different goal it wanted to accomplish. In this case, the roundup and removal of horses out of the view of pesky independent observers that report on their conduct every day. Maybe I have just seen too much of the kinds of things people do. This whole cursed situation comprises enough to ‘stretch’ the mind to comprehend and accept that it could even be taking place here in the United States of America, Land of the free and Home of the Brave, under the auspice of a federal organization!
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Photos and videos show all. The American public can see that BLM is responsible for Equine Cruelty. BLM can’t hide or run from their charges forever, this will catch up to them. I just hope it can be stopped before it gets worse.
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R,T, I am just one that loves our beautiful horses. I only hope that we could do what has been shown on TV the last 18 days — defy the BLM and protest not only to the BLM, the Dept of Agriculture, and the Presiden of the United States for allowing this to continually happen, right in front of his eyes. I would hope that we could champion a movement like the Egyptians in front of: The White House, the BLM headquarters, and the Dept of Agriculture – DEMANDING THIS ATROCITY STOP IMMEDIATELY. We want all those associated with the roundups, the helicopter idiots, and all employees of the BLM FIRED IMMEDIATELY. We want all contracts for goverment range grazing to be cancelled immediately. We want all horses in corrals accounted for and we want to subpoena all records of horses that have headed to Canada and Mexico from the United States, thereby showing who sent them, who purchased them, who transported them, and all those involved – from the beginning to the end. I wish I was wealthy and I would front all costs for the above, but unfortunately, I am not. We need to mobilize and confront this before all our horses are GONE.
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The BLM Wild Horse and Burro Decimation Program is like a festering abscess that has to come to the surface in order to be lanced. The people who have come into this battle are not squemish nor are they prone to rash actions. There are many long-time, battle hardened veterans here that fully understand what they are up against and have come well prepared. They are people who love this country and everything it stands for. They will not stand for this.
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I hate to mention this but my understanding of the law is this…
A feral horse is a wild horse but one that has no Federal Protection. Mostly they are found on Forest Service Lands. Many of these allotments holders would love to have any and all wild horses designated feral as to remove their protection. They could be sent off to slaughter with no repercussions.
Obviously a wild horse supposedly has these protections. Sadly those protections are shoved in the toilet every chance BLM gets and then some.
If someone holds allotment rights–what happens to the multi-use portion of that allotment? Is it now placed in the toilet since BLM is getting money for the land? Because if the land still falls under multi-use that is being ignored.
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Having done real estate a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, that’s an excellent analogy, Laura!
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It is true, we are all on “grief overload”. Thank you for this article, RT and for keeping us going and fighting for the horses we love so much.
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Gunshot wound? Are they tired of missing a few in the round up? Maybe they can leave the dead ones for the coyotes to eat, then when all of the horses are gone, they will be able to expand their business to killing them too. I get a more angry every time I read your posts. I am buried in the Connecticut. We are insulated up here to these atrocities, and without folks like you, Laura, Tamara, Carol, Jess, and all of the other good hearted souls, we would be oblivious. For that my hat is of. You have educated me about things that I never thought to be issues. You have made me pray for karma. Believe me, I climb on my soapbox every chance I get now. As frustrating as it is, we must not give up the fight until the horses can claim victory. The horses wouldn’t.
God Bless,
Susan
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I am ready to scream RT and after the loss we had last week of the yearlings from pneumonia, I am really ready to scream!!!!!!!!!!!!! They need to get their hands off of OUR horses. They make me sick and I am ashamed to be living in a country that supports the preservation of wildlife in so many other aspects but yet will allow this government sponsored abuse and murder of the American Mustangs to go on and on just to satisfy the cattle ranchers who would love to see ALL of the Mustangs dead and gone forever!
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I think we need to pull an EGYPT on the White House!
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i agree!!
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R.T., , we may not like all that’s reported but with-out all of you telling us what’s going on out there, OUR MUSTANGS WOULDN’T HAVE OUR VOICES.
Thank you & please, never stop reporting.
I & others are in this for the long haul.
BJJ
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One of the most useful lessons to come out of Egypt is the fact that reporters like Anderson Cooper made statements about the importance of having journalists present to put eyes on the situation, to bear witness and tell the story. This reinforces the importance of the work that those of you who have been present at round-ups and at holding facilities have done. It underscores the importance of Laura’s First Amendment fight.
RT, you inspire us all. It is hard to look at, some days more so than others. It is tough to get the media’s attention when it seems we go from crisis to crisis. When I look in my mustang friend’s soft, brown eyes, I am poignantly reminded of the importance of what we are doing. This cruelty and abuse has gone on far too long.
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RT – don’t stop reporting! Without you putting it all together in one place for the rest of us we wouldn’t know the whole story. Laura, we all hold you and your safety in our prayers and thank both of you for being on the front lines of this. Just think of all of us as the LEIGH-FITCH ARMY (instead of Dumbledore’s Army) and know we’re all in this for the long haul – whatever that may be.
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Thanks, Jade…we will not stop, you can count on us through the long haul.
Terry and I will be joining Laura, soon.
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How right you are RT, thank for your truthful speaking. thank you for all your work to right this wrong, Thank you Laura and Maureen of grassroots horse and all who put in so many hours and dedication!! It is time for justice to be done, enough is enough!!! Love you all, were off to kick some congressional back sides!!!
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I wonder how many of the professional horse breeders in this country would allow their herds to be brought in from pasture by chasing them with a helicopter. None. Not one. There is no domestic horse alive who deserves to be treated with respect and care more than America’s wild horses. What BLM is doing to the wild horses and burros is an insult to them- and a slap in the face to all Americans. And not only is it insulting, it’s frightening. When government assumes this kind of power and exhibits this much disregard for the wishes of the people, we are all in trouble. This isn’t just about horses any more. This is US they’re abusing. I’ve never been more ashamed of my government.
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This is Obamas Needless, brainless Animal Holocaust !!!!!!!
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Whether it is the burro being knocked to the ground with the skid’s or the Mare being chased relentlessly or the sweet lil babes being run until their hooves wore off, it goes on and on and on. You sit back at your computer in a dead stare, thinking, thinking more and still confused and heartbroken that this continues. What and where are these people from, what planet? Then you forge on and yet again, completely dismissed, another horrific happening. I do not go to work and pay taxes to have one of my most precious creation’s treated like yesterday’s garbage. I too, have had enough but I said that last week, oh and the month before and last year and yet, here we are still thinking and doing what we can and still nothing..Sometimes a glimmer of hope and then again shot down by what I call plain and simply organized crime within our Gov’t, again with our $$$$. We say, well this needs to be done and it will work and again, nill, nothing. Frustrated and heartbroken we forge on. I am still learning all the ins and outs, like a sponge, I thirst for fact’s and look up to other’s that have been working at this for so many years more then I..I say I wish and I do wish that thousands upon thousands could make a show in DC, for the horses….For the Wild Mustang’s and to stop the Madness of Slaughtering our sweet horses in Mexico and Canada. Someone said to me, if that could happen, change would definitley be brought about..Power in numbers….vented
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Jeannie, We need to make good show in Phoenix March 10- 11… Not for the BLM but for all of the Advocates! For our strength in numbers…. I hope you will come?? mar
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I meant to thank all of you that are in the trenches…Thank you for all your heartfelt work..
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You all are our eyes and our ears out in the field…on the front…and tho the information you bring us is most often far from sunshine and rainbows, without it, our beloved Wild Ones would have no voice at all. I know you’ll never stop bringing us news, reports and videos, and I Thank You ALL with all my heart, and from the very bottom of it, for not giving up in the face of what is devastating daily.
Wear those ‘pointy shoes’ (or boots!) and make our stand clear to the bureaucrats and the mucky mucks that sit in comfy offices with pen in hand. We are all standing right there beside you…for the Horses…for the Burros…for their land, and for the very FREEDOM that escapes them now.
Thank you…and God Bless…
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If the vet has retrieved the bullet from the mares shoulder, the first place they should go is to the APHIS plane that was photographed hunting coyotes on the HMA at the start of the roundup, really this should be an FBI investigation, because it was breaking federal laws to be 1) pursing wild horses with a fixed wing airplane, 2) to sho0t a wild horse, and that shot eventually was the cause of her death-2 counts, if the bullet does not match those being used by the guns in the plane then go check VBoelgers guns, there is a possibility that he himself was in the plane shooting, after all he bragged to Laura about that time at the roundup..that they routinely used to shoot and kill wild horses back in the day, and yes I have read those accounts, it was done from fixed wing planes, sometimes to pick off the stallions or lead mares, who are making it more difficult to push the herd where they want them to go, sometimes they would try to ‘crease” a specific stallion they wanted to capture, it was very unsucessful, as most times they just killed the horse-given this sheep ranchers venomous comments, one could find it plausable.I would like to see the FBI investigating this, I hope that is what is happening
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I am so mad I could spit tacks!! (I don’t swear, so that’s the worst I can get – to spit tacks!)
Where is the “A Team” when we need them. Perhaps WE are the “A Team”… or better yet.. We are the “W.H. & B.D. Team” (Wild Horse and Burro Defense Team).
Someone compared what’s been going on for far too long – the annihilation, extermination, systematic destruction of the Wild Horses and Burros, to a Holocaust: that being defined as “any mass slaughter or reckless destruction of life”. That is an accurate description. AND, it HAS to STOP.
Rally the troops! It’s time!
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I’m not an American Citizen, nevertheless aware of what is happening to these horses and burros, thanks to your blog and other blogs, and photos and videos circulating on the internet.
How can a government express so much hatred toward an animal like a wild mustang, and all the people paying for them to be protected, waste all this money, and still lie about all the evil they do? Obviously, this is so predictable, but in 2011 this is really shocking to see no evolution knowing how much most people are hoping for a change and voted for it, and how this is not happening.
Blessings to all people supporting these noble animals. The more I see photos of mustangs on the internet, in their habitat, the more I love them and the more I am amazed at their beauty and the land they belong.
The photographs of the BLM holding facilities, with horses parked as though they had no value, although they are one of the most magestic animals on the planet, and the photographs showing how they are being rounding up, are really a disgrace, a disgrace to human kind. It is pitiful. Pitiful that these people can come up with such narrow minded and violent ideas concerning how to protect an endangered animal. I know my words are weak, and this has been said a thousand times, but this is just to let you know, that you are not alone, in your fight, people are aware of it and praying for these horses.
Horses have given so much throughout the centuries. They made our civilizations, they made history.
It is unbelievable and frustrating to be here, in front of a computer and see that dream being killed for money reasons, for inept reasons, for reasons that don’t explain the why they are mismanaging them.
God bless these heroic horses and loving people fighting for them. You are all going to win, and all these beautiful creatures will be normally protected, and loved for what they stand for and will be running free, in peace with no helicopter scaring them and leading them to nowhere. This day has to come soon. Soon !
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Thanks, RT for your many informative and encouraging articles, which we all enjoy and look forward to reading .We certainly are in a horrible fight for the future of our beautiful and innocent wild ones, but we must NEVER give up!! We know the actions by the BLM are wrong and even unlawful, but in my opinion,in order to be successful, it’s imperative the public becomes aware of what’s really happening, if we’re going to obtain freedom for these magnificent creatures. You, Jerry, Laura, Craig and the many others that have been so dedicated in helping bring out the truth to this horrible tragedy have my total respect and support. The cruelty put upon our wild ones is unjust and totaly inhumane. It’s’ time to say Enough is Enough and put an end to this terrible mismanagement of our wild horses and burros.
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First the animals. We are next. The pattern is clear.
Organize.
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Isn’t animal cruelty against the law in this country? The helicopter pilot and his company should all be arrested and thrown in jail. Who exempt them from this law, BLM?
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