Source: NBC News
The government says Davis, who paid just $10 per head, was the biggest buyer ever of wild horses
NBC News
The semis would rumble down country roads packed full of wild horses. Truckload after truckload, sometimes 36 horses at a time, all with the same destination: a ranch in the small town of La Jara, Colo.
Records show that for years, the Bureau of Land Management sold and shipped more than 1,700 wild horses from its animal holding facilities to just one rancher. Now federal investigators are trying to figure out: What did he do with all those mustangs? And did any of them ultimately end up being butchered in the slaughter plants of Mexico?
Wild horse advocates fear the worst. They want to know the truth about the fate of the horses and whether the U.S. government looked the other way as the federally protected animals seemingly disappeared…(CONTINUED)
Click (HERE) to read the story in it’s entirety and to Comment
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Categories: Horse News, Horse Slaughter, Wild Burros, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
of course BLM knows who they were selling these horses to & what would ultimately happen to them. Thank god for the “freedom of information act” and for the people who dig in to find the truth.
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Yes, Mo! Guilfoyle angers me and she is telling us the injuries and deaths from roundups and hauling and all the stress in holding and losing their families are “isolated incidents”! We all know this is false.
What Tom Davis did was with the full knowledge (collusion) of BLM!
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There wouldn’t be any “excess horses” in holding pens – if they’d just stop rounding them up in the first place – the BLM continues to create situations to “justify” their atrocities. A quick solution to the 50,000 they have now – SET THEM FREE
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After Lisa Myer’s segment on the Today Show this morning about the brutality of our BLM I think it’s safe to say that Joan Guilfoyle is an embarrassment. But then look at the leadership that proceeded her i.e. Bob Abby and Mike Poole as directors. None of them have had any positive affect on the lives of our Iconic Wild Horses!
The Wild Horse and Burro program is and has always been an expensive, embarrassing ‘experiment’ gone very wrong. And it’s leadership has lied repeatedly, manipulated scientific research, and rewritten the rules to assure only one thing…their own jobs.
It’s time for a major house cleaning. The BLM owes the American people an apology for it’s deceptions and denials. They owe a lot more to the animals they have maimed, terrorized and killed. The family’s that have been separated and to those sold to slaughter illegally.
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Dear Steve I am so glad you saw this morning, yes Guilfoyle is a embarrassment, she clearly lied , when she said the last round up their were no injuries to the Mustangs , this alone is enough, but she lied even more !!!!!! When they showed the little foal being tramppled to death in the trap !!!!! also the Stallion being chased into a wire fence and his leg got caught in it and he almost ripped it off trying to free himself, Carol king comment , Ginger also……. i am trying to get the video they aired and i will post it directly !!!!!! Every advocate should view this ……………… The lies were flying around by the BLM and a cattle rancher……..and they were clear present lies !!! that anyone could declare as such…………..
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Arlene – was the man in the segment who said that wild horses had no “use” and should be slaughtered Davis? If that wasn’t him, who was that?
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TY for showing .I cried last year about the foal who ran his feet off trying to stay with his mother.Was sick to my stomach for a long time .
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Thank you Arlene &Jim , I hope the public will be able to see the truth !
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Well said Steve and Arlene:
I watched this segment this am and what a liar you are Joan!!! Shame on you for being such a pathetic leader with the BLM…You are a Disgrace!!! And a Rat in this deceitful organization called the Bureau of Land Management!!!
Our Wild Horses have been sold out and sent off to prison all lies and more lies…..
We need a serious revolution against the BLM and the pathetic organization!!!!!!!
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Excellent comment to Arlene and Steve…. I had sh@t in it towards Joan.. awaiting moderation….
Today’s show was an excellent segment and BLM spokesperson telling the truth about them is a big Whoohoo….
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BLM Policy is illegal. The removals, branding, gelding and destruction of the herds is ILEGAL. The deaths and the long term stress and loss of foals is all criminal. Read the 71 Act and just list the offenses along side the words. It is overwhelming sorrow….
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Does Sally Jewel need a scientific study??? All which she needs to do, is read! Steve and Mo, have said it all!!! Our Government needs a “wake up call!”
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Maybe in a weird way it’s good that this story got delayed. Had it aired when it originally intended to, CO was still muddling over whether to prosecute Davis. Last I heard that is in the works. And that’s been since the original delay.
This story DEEPLY bothers me. It was covered up, good ole boy Ken was allowed to vacate Washington and was never held accountable. Joan is a mouthpiece.
Well my showing is about to air. I already saw this online. But I want to see.
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The BLM needs some major changes and wake-up calls. They need to be exposed for what and who they really represent. As for the cattle rancher and the such, you decided to run a cattle business which does not give you the right to claim and take land that does not belong to you and that you legally have no rights to. The land allocated for wild horses is just that, for wild horses. If, as you say, you would go broke without it, then I guess you have more cows than land and you need to down-size to what you yourself can manage on your own property or find other land to lease. That is the way other businesses would have to operate. What makes you any different.
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Well put Susan! I was thinking the same thing when watching the story on the today show.
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Yes, Susan. Won’t that cattle rancher be surprised when one morning he wakes up and the freedoms he has enjoyed his whole life are gone — wiped out by an imperialist government intent on removing every right Americans are given by their Constitution.
Every time a wild horse or burro loses his liberty — his right to just BE — it is not only tragic for that individual equine, but it presages a loss of freedom for the humans who are supposed to be his stewards. As the horses go, so go us humans.
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The hardest part of the NBC presentation aside from the pictures of the profound and extensive damage done to the Wild Horse Families and the Burros, was to watch this scum-of-the-earth rancher attempt to decide the fate of our WH&Bs. My primary reaction is to condemn him to Hell and I have been working all day on forgiveness, not for his sake, but for mine.
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So many people have been trying to expose this “American Travesty” for so long .The program has not only failed, but is grossly INHUMANE.It needs to be stopped ,it has out cries even from other countries .I was once told by a p.r. Person that I could attend 2013 meeting ,St Lois , was closed to public .Please America help us make it STOP !
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Prosecution is necessary… laws must be enforced! It
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This was a great eye-opener to the general public about what is really going on.
The video of the poor foal being trampled juxtaposed against Joan Guilfoyle lying about no injuries during these “safe” roundups was spot on! Sally Jewell can’t be pleased with this publicity for her new department.
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Everyone – take a moment and go to the today show website or the today show facebook page and make comments about the story. The comments indicate interest and hopefully, follow-up!
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The former BLM gentlement that was interviewed this am who said the BLM is lying…we all know this but on TV is a real serious Wake up call!
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Great eye opener today on Todays Show!!!!…Upsetting to them see rounded up and tortured,…Thank you Ginger Kathrens for your segment to show the world what is happening to our American’s ICONS….
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The BLM and the horse slaughter industry are so arrogant in that they think they can continue to hoodwink the American Public. Like RT says the wild horses are the canaries of what is wrong with our government. I spent this morning kicking some cow butt off of my grass pasture with my awesome Nevada mustang “Gracie” Then watched this video and feel so honored to have her in my string.
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Lyn your lucky to have one… my next horse is going to be a Mustang they need homes…..
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Cant say enough good things about mustangs and NO iamount of human training can replace what mother nature teaches them We adopted 6, homed 3, have 2 that we don’t ride – late captures that had a rough time of it, but they take care of “the band,” I have a Pryor mare and baby coming in June. It will be good for the band to have a youngster to look after.
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It was a GREAT show in that it literally SHOWED so much abuse, and caught Guilfoyle in her own web of lies, I mean you could see it feel it, loved it and then to actually have a welfare cattleman say that slaughter them what good are they now, oh my goodness, that actually was pretty stupid to say on his behalf but glad he did shows people who really don’t know about all that has been going on…
And also the former BLM man speaking up for the horses oh gosh I thought it was a fantastic segment FOR THE HORSES plight ……..
When one see’s all of this on TV it just really hits home even though all of us have tried very hard to fight for them when you actually SEE it, just makes it all so unbelievably sad, time for this to stop NOW I will go to the NBC web page and commit on facebook I agree, the more people that do the more they will stay interested……. I am so glad this aired maybe hopefully it will help, we will think positive….
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Yes Debbie I totally agree! Why can’t some people take just a few minutes to see a very important issue ? Just don’t understand .
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“That rancher” who said the horses need to go to slaughter is Fred Tolbert who not only runs his cattle on the Antelope grazing allotment in Utah at welfare ranching prices (normally about 1/10th – 1/20th of what he would pay to run those cattle if he had to rent property to graze) but he also received $20,153.00 in federal subsidies between 2002 – 2010. So like Susan said, if we ran a business that couldn’t support itself we would be out of business!
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Also view the video about mid-way on this site “It’s not just about the Mustangs: The battle over Burros”. From the impression I got from Joan G. – this doesn’t happen?!?!? grrrrrrrrrrr!
http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/wild-horses/
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Thank you NBC for showing the public what is going on with Americas’ Wild Horses. Let the truth be known.
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Are comments are needed at the end of this , pertaining to this mornings today show…………..http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/14/17588942-cruel-or-necessary-the-true-cost-of-wild-horse-roundups#.UZI56kYWwRk.email
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These poor animals. Rounded up and abused and hurt. The poor burro too who was hit and pulled by the ears and tail. That is abuse! All of this needs to stop now! These animals do not deserve this.
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The BLM fiscal and operational approach is Ken Salazar’s legacy as Secretary of the Interior. He sided with ranchers (of which his family business has vested interest, Energy companies for land rights, and has developed amnesia about his relationship to Tom Davis. Hoping Cowboy Ken ends up in the investigation too. Both surely colluded. The price of $10 a head is ludicrous given the taxpayers cost to round up, feed, and then sell them to a kill buyer. Relieved to see Ken replaced, Just hoping Sally Jewell is fair.
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Well said Laurie,…..your so right on all of it!!!
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The BLM is the worst they are lying straight to the public!!! I agree with The Cloud Foundation if I would rather die with my family then die not being happy!!! Mustangs have been just about as long as we have let them stay where they grew and evolved!! The rancher that said send the mustangs to slaughter how would he feel if people just took all his cows and kill them with paying or giving him anything!!! Mustangs are a symbol of the way the west used to be don’t take away one of our most beautiful parts of history!!!!!!!
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If we didn’t need to raise so many cattle to feed our multitudes. This is vile to treat our horses this way, hitting them with helicopters. Very, very inhumane and cold-blooded, only thinking in terms of dollars and cents. Keeping them in a state of limbo is no solution.
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So glad this finally aired. And Lisa Myers did a great job. The video part certainly put the lie to the BLM’s excuses. If anyone didn’t see the original show – which I didn’t – the American Wild Horse Preservation has the link on the “letter to Sally Jewell”. Certainly did show the cruelty & treatment that actually goes on – no matter what Joan G said. Lots of comments at the end, but as far as I read, but not exactly the reaction I would expect. That kind of disappointed me.
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FEAR THE WORST!!! THESE ANIMALS HAVE BEEN SLAUGHTERED!! THESE DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS HAVE STOLEN THESE MUSTANGS AND ARE HIDING THE TRUTH FROM THE PUBLIC!!! I BELIEVE THEY ARE DRIVEN BY MONEY AND GREED!! DON’T TRUST ANY OF THESE LIARS!
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Did Joan Guilfoyle lie there her teeth…..? OMG ,Really…I say commercials to really bring the truth! I was very disappointed
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And WHAT has happened to the other 19 Million Acres of Herd Area that has been zeroed out?
WHERE did it go? To WHO….for WHAT use?
http://americanherds.blogspot.com/2008/11/88-million-acres.html
88 Million Acres?
Since BLM announced they have captured so many wild horses and burros from public lands they can no longer afford to feed them and are looking into mass genocide or slaughter to solve the financial dilemma, the public has been asking in earnest; why has 19 million acres of habitat been zeroed out for wild horse and burro use and why can’t those now on death row be returned to their legally designated territories instead of killing them?
Recently, I have again asked BLM and USGS to address where are they getting “…88 million acres of public lands” from? Obviously, if USGS is reporting the accurate acreage versus BLM, we are looking at a loss of over 53 million acres since wild horses and burros became “protected”, not 19 million acres as currently believed.
So back to the 19 million acres in question that so many want to see our wild horses and burros returned to rather than warehoused, slaughtered or euthanized.
Currently, BLM reports 53.5 million Herd Area acres and 34.3 million Herd Management Area acres and the 19 million acres is the approximate difference between the two.
Herd Area Statistics FY 08 Data
Click to access HAHMA2008statsnoAML.pdf
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Some thoughts after reading comments.
First the horses got a big break today. NBC did a very favorable reporting job reporting this. Joan came off looking like she sold herself to the higher ups which I think she did when she got this “promotion”.
Second the rancher who suggested we send all the horses in holding to slaughter came off looking as bad as he sounded. I believe it’s one thing to think something like that but to speak it on national tv? don’t think he made too many friends.
Third the former BLM employee hopefully will make people start asking questions.
All the advocates that participated in this played a invaluable role today. They helped bring to light the wrongdoings of our government. Many thanks to one and all.
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I want to know what happened to over 120k plus wild equines since 1971???????
And that is a conservative estimate.
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Probably closer to 1 million that have been killed by government sanctioned policies, holding and sent to slaughter, considering it’s been over 40 years.
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Nice story but if that Guffoyle doesn’t take her blinders off and start telling the truth, in going to wash her lying mouth out. As for that fat ass rancher, let him get up off it and get a damned job instead of sitting around on his welfare. And GET OFF THE HORSES LAND.. It is cheaper turning them loose and leaving them the he’ll alone. Obviously the blm and the cattle ranchers don’t know the front end of a horse from the back end of a cow.
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I think by keeping them in long-term holding they… as in the BLM in their twisted way of thinking..figure that they have a better chance of swaying the general public to dispose of the horses, due to the high cost of them placing the horses there in the first place. Did ya follow that? lol! I guess what I mean to say is the BLM created this situatiojn in the first place and now are saying…”Look how much this costing you, you should get rid of them”
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Scroll back to 2008. BLM has simply been the agency used to remove Americans’ Wild Horses from their Public Lands….nothing has changed. It will take an informed public to put a stop to it. Keep posting and sharing information:
Click to access BLM.Team.Euth.FOIA_Cover.letter.pdf
Implementation Team Conference Call
July 29, 2008
“Sally had an e-mail from a person in Canada who wants 10,000 horses that he would slaughter the horses and send them to a third world country. Don is going to send the e-mail.”
“There may be a need to have counseling for employees and contractors that have to euthanize the healthy horses, because it is very stressful.”
“All correspondence that is generated by this team will be for in-house consumption and not for the public”
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I have never seen so many hateful remarks as are on the the main story at NBC. Overwelmingly people using cover names and not their own. Haters commenting for the sake of hate and a great deal of ignorance. I commented only under the Davis story. I don’t like to use a false identity.
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