Horse News

A Win! ~ Twin Peaks Roundup on hold ~ Keep the Pressure On

By on • ( 21 Comments )

Cross Post from Protect Mustangs

Valid and Tangible WIN brought about by Working Together

Twin Peaks wild horses counting on your help (Photo of “Magic” © G. Gregg)

California-based Protect Mustangs has been working hard to stop the Twin Peaks roundup once we brought you the news of the Rush Fire last summer. We are grateful several wonderful advocates such as Craig Downer, Grandma Gregg, Jesica Johnston, Barbara Clarke, Carla Bowers, Monika Courtney, Jetara Sehart, Mar Wargo, R.T Fitch, Debbie Coffey and many others have joined the fight to protect the Twin Peaks wild horses on the range.

“We oppose rounding up and removing native wild horses from the Twin Peaks HMA especially now that they can play a key role in restoring the land. It’s time the BLM use good science and cut down on invasive techniques that cause global warming. Wild horses and burros can heal and reseed the range after the wildfire so let them do it.”

Keep contacting your elected officials across the country to educate them about how the Twin Peaks wild horses can heal the land after the fire. Let them know these federally protected wild horses deserve to remain on their range. Tell them removals are cruel and costly–warehousing them for decades is not sustainable. Request the Twin Peaks roundup be cancelled. Thank you for helping California’s wild horses and burros.

Please continue to support the Orgs and people who have spearheaded this effort.

More to come…

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21 replies »

  1. Thanks RT for the good news…but is a hold NOT a permanent ban. Thanks to all the great people who are fighting for these horses’ lives. Surely there is a God and he must be looking down on these horses and their protectors (not the BLM for sure). I hope that this reprieve can be turned into a permanent ban. Thank you guys n gals for all you do to preserve the wild free roaming mustang herds.

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    • Thanks RT for the good news…but is a hold NOT a permanent ban. Thanks to all the great people who are fighting for these horses’ lives. Surely there is a God and he must be looking down on these horses and their protectors (not the BLM for sure). I hope that this reprieve can be turned into a permanent ban. Thank you guys n gals for all you do to preserve the wild free roaming mustang herds.

      Doesn’t California have anti slaughter language about transport to slaughter? Watch em close..Another violation would be trying to remove them to a pro slaughter state where they could be shipped for slaughter…just an after thought..

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  2. Thank You RT for delivering this great News !!!!! Now we need to turn this into a huge WIN for Our Mustangs , a forever hold will DO !!!! Thank you God Also a prayer answered !!!!!! Also Thanks to every advocate who are dedicated and gives there time to this absolutely necessary QUEST………………

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  3. Thank you RT for the good news. The wild horses and burros protectors can never let their guard down. Thank you for all involved to save this special band of wild horses. Let the wild horses and burros run wild and free forever!

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  5. email received from :

    There will be no imminent roundup operation in the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area (HMA). The situation will be re-evaluated this January.

    HMA population information obtained from September’s aerial inventory will be available soon.

    Ken Collum

    Field Manager

    Eagle Lake Field Office

    2950 Riverside Dr.

    Susanville, CA. 96130

    Ph: 530 252 5374

    Cell: 530 260 0158

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  8. Dear Ken,

    I suspect you may be pressured by the boys in Lassen County and possibly others, and the continuous demands of big ranchers add to the bad taste. Yet, this is a time where the agency can prove this is still a democracy and you listen to our input and concerns. I hope you will act on behalf of the mustangs and not cave in to political pressure agendas. Enough is enough. We want to see BLM deliver results as promised, not hypocrisy, chaos, diminish and unfixable consequences on the range at Twin Peaks.

    Where is the justification (aerial photos/data) and scientific bases leading to this proposal ? Please note the attached Twin Peaks Flight Report of October 4, 2012 in said area. We have gone the route of inflated numbers and double vision outdated counting measures by the agency in the past in an attempt to justify round ups. I hope you will make your decision by including below input (aerial report) by some very qualified individuals who care to assist in your determining the fate of this herd.

    Please reject the proposal below. With all due respect please consider the attached aerial report of Oct. 2012. If the agency is truly committed to not remove all horses as I was told in Salt Lake City, please leave this herd to live in peace and not evict them under “emergency” protocol as so many have been. The drought presentation during the meeting was interesting, but cannot possibly warrant all gathers as droughts were always in existence for centuries.
    Also to consider is the fact that small animals such as squirrels, chipmunks and rabbits have proven to reestablish growth for forage in heavily burned areas such as in the Mount St. Helens, WA., volcano area after the eruption. I spoke to a park staff member after the slide show. Digging thru layers of burnt soil they have successfully “replanted” vegetation by mixing layers of ashes and soils resulting in quick renewal of growth of forage and plants. Craig Downer submitted plenty of evidence how wild horses assist in this range recovery after burns.

    I welcomed the short conversations I had with several Board members in Salt Lake City and would like to see a positive direction with the belief that transparency, our input and voices, and the herds’ non-disruptive management -not actions to unsustainable numbers – is the focus.

    Please deliver the promises and nurture the trust the Board has encompassed towards the public at this latest BLM Advisory Board meeting.

    Thank you for your time. I hope we have something to be thankful for soon – please help make that happen.

    Respectfully,

    Monika Courtney

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  9. THANK YOU to ALL of you who have hung in and not ever given up. There is much work to be done, but there has never been a better or more dedicated group of people who are willing to work hard for what they love:

    Twin Peaks Wild Horses

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  10. Ken,

    Glad to hear BLM will re-evaluate the situation. Thank you. From several reliable sources we know that populations in actuality on the HMA Twin Peaks may not match those stated by your agency. I do hope you will consider the aerial report we submitted to you for consideration as well.
    Ed Roberson made comments during the BLM Advisory Board Meeting in Salt Lake, that due to fires and burnt HMA’s in the West, herds could be moved until landscapes (seed/land) are restored, then come back to graze but being held only temporarily somewhere until doing so. Would this apply here ? Range improvements if applicable are not in the budget 2013 – nor planned – and according to Ed Roberson money will be spent on fire suppression; with that in mind the input by Craig Downer attached below on how wild horses restore fire damaged ecosystems is noteworthy and a vital alternative for your decision of said area of Twin Peaks. Also to note is the fact that mustangs help prevent wild fires.

    Since we have to face the uncertainty of weather leading to droughts we also have the prediction of an average winter, with hopes of El Nino bringing spring moisture (Jan Curtis, NRCS, Portland, OR). To counteract the impact of wildfire, consequential limited forage or other serious situations it is imperative to include/consider all options/measures available. The primary factor to influence your assessment in January ought to be to establish accurate numbers of population.
    Since the Board discussed dynamic changes entailing new components to be phased in, one such step could be the embracing of groups and volunteers’ participation to enhance BLM image (Board discussion). Studies such as Carla Bowers’ (Massacre Lake), is one model that can be replicated and encourage BLM to customize and step away from “one size fits all” concepts to remove more animals from the range to holding, which is not what we want to see, nor do some in the Board (input Tim Harvey). The Massacre Lake study proposal is an example of advocates doing great work; the true concept of what works without human interference to create a natural balance is what makes sense and as an example to be followed deserves BLM’s consideration (Tim Harvey of Board supports this).

    Volunteer resources are available. As Paul Durbin, Wildlife Management appointee of the Board, expressed his “citizen’s view point on wildlife management” – he has extensive experience in wildlife maintenance and rounded up volunteers to collect seeds and restore range and grasslands. I ask that you apply a collaborated effort to include that and all the following aspects in your decision making, such as :

    1) – Craig Downer’s input of natural reseeding restoration done by wild horses in said area (see below)

    2) – Implement this available eco-system recovery as a study model for burnt areas such as Twin Peaks
    by identifying such probable remedies. They are not a burden on budgets (as round ups
    are) as they are already an occurring element in the recovery management present on range.

    3) – Include work groups / citizen volunteers to establish accurate and honest census to enhance
    public trust and ensure accountability: collaborative efforts to include citizen volunteers in population
    survey class training (such as Ft. Collins) to assist with counting methods for accuracy (Jeff Manning).

    4) – To deter ever unnecessary costs and reduce costly overhead to tax payers – halt this round up and
    imply above criteria to establish a new direction within the program by tapping into all potential and
    available options that would reflect the progress that BLM and the Advisory Board has
    promised.

    A temporary post bone of this round up is encouraging. With the overwhelming interest and collective input submitted by the public for your agency to consider, we do hope you will take the challenge to implement new policies, deliver reform and protect this herd, its genetic viability and its presence at Twin Peaks. With an improved process and to facilitate partnerships; with Joan Guilfoyle’s (Division Chief) recommendation during the Board meeting that BLM is “all about tools” and that the public’s fear of whole herds being wiped out is unfounded…. we would welcome a crucial new direction in the program.
    When 2013 comes around, you indeed have tools available to assist you in the assessment of this situation. BLM has repeatedly told me they value input, here is mine and I am sure others submit theirs.

    We, the public, would want the New Year to roll around with a new shift in your program and finally see some of the long discussed challenges / problems being handled with a different approach. That includes delivery of reform on all fronts as specified above and discussed in Salt Lake. It is high times BLM figures out what the law intended. Time is of the essence. With the busy holiday season ahead, we will stay tuned. Please give Twin Peaks a chance to become a reality for change.

    Respectfully,

    Monika Courtney

    Wild horses can restore fire damaged ecosystems

    Statement from Craig Downer, Wildlife Biologist, Wild Horse & Burro Expert

    SAN FRANCISCO (November 6, 2011)–Esteemed wildlife biologist and wild horse and burro expert has given Protect Mustangs a statement explaining how wild horses help reseed the land after a wildfire. The preservation group urges the Bureau of Land Management to keep all the wild horses on the Twin Peaks Herd Management Area (HMA) to assist in healing and reseeding the land after this summer’s Rush Fire.

    “We oppose rounding up and removing wild horses from the Twin Peaks HMA especially now that they can play a key role in restoring the land,” states Anne Novak, executive director for Protect Mustangs. “It’s time the BLM use good science and cut down on invasive techniques that cause global warming. Wild horses and burros can heal the range after the wildfire so let them do it.”

    Statement from Craig Downer, acclaimed wildlife biologist:

    Wild Horses as restorers of a fire-damaged ecosystem

    The wild horses would be the perfect restorers of an ecosystem after an extensive fire, since they would disperse many intact seeds in their feces which would form well-fertilized bed for their germination. The feces of the wild horses more greatly feeds the ecosystem and creates the vital humus component of the soils to a greater degree than is the case with most ruminants, such as cows, sheep, and deer. Also, after passing through the post-gastric digestive tract of horses and burros, many seeds are perfectly conditioned for germination, as they have their coats made softer and more penetrable by the tender shoots. Many of these same seeds are killed after passing through a ruminant’s digestive tract. In the Twin Peaks, the wild horses and burros would be the perfect, for natural, agents for ecosystem restoration for the above reasons and also because of their great mobility. They do not camp on wet meadows and around and in water sources as do cattle, for example. Also most of the Twin Peaks HMA ecosystem did not burn and the wild horses and burros who survived the fire could subsist here then go reoccupying the recently burned areas as they are restored, all the while aiding in this process.

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  15. Thank You to all here who dedicate themselves to Saving thr Mustangs and Stopping Horse Slaughter I dont have to mention your Names , we all know who we are !! The time spent on emails , letters. faxes, seem to be done effortlessly when the Quest for lives and freedom are involved !!!! I am proud to work each and everyone of you !!!!! Today is the Happiest Thanksgiving we all have had in many years, Today while enjoying Dinner , Think of the 600 horses who are FREE because we all cared !!!!! And never forget the Mustangs who perished in the Hands of Greed !!!!!! And Think of the ones we will never desert and we will not rest until they are all FREE again , to ROAM as we Promised to them !!!!!!!!

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  16. Beautiful horses – certainly look healthy! Not scruffy-thin or debilitated!
    Thanks for those videos, Louie – love seeing the horses – free.

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  18. Pingback: Straight from the Wild Horse’s Mouth: A Letter to Santa – Straight from the Horse's Heart

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