By Paul Joncich, of Las Vegas Channel 8 News
“We have got a phenomenal tourist attraction…”
Terry Fitch of Wild Horse Freedom Federation photographing members of the Cold Creek Herd, Sept. 2012 ~ photo by R.T. Fitch
LAS VEGAS — Those who live in Cold Creek know how majestic and friendly southern Nevada’s wild horses can be.
But the majority of the wild horses left here are on the schedule to end up in federal holding pens. They are mostly in two spots Cold Creek, which is about 50 minutes north of Las Vegas off highway 95 and the west flank of the mountain just northeast of Pahrump.
The Bureau of Land Management plans to roundup 80 percent of the horses in the winter. One group of wild horse advocates showed up at Thursday’s BLM advisory meeting in Las Vegas to oppose the idea.
They think the government is missing a big opportunity, if they go forward with the roundup.
Right now, there are between 500 and 600 horses in the Spring Mountains. This winter the BLM plans to only leave 63 to 93 of them there.
“We have got a phenomenal tourist attraction. And if Las Vegas learned anything in 2008, we need to diversify our tourist draw,” President of the Spring Mountain Alliance Arelene Gawne said.
Gawne wants to gather and sterilize most of the horses then release them back.
Advocates want the BLM to use them as a potential tourist attraction, creating trail rides and backpack trips for tourists.
“A half-day trip, to see wild horses and burros behaving naturally,” Gawne said.
Members of the Spring Mountain Alliance said people from as far away as Japan and Europe come to see the horses. They think making it an official eco-tourism draw would bring tourists from places like China as well.
The proposed roundup would leave just one horse for every 10,000 acres.
“I have talked with many of the big tourist companies like Pink Jeeps. They will not invest the tens of thousands it will cost to have tour guides etc. unless they know those horses will remain intact on the range naturally,” Gawne said.
In June of last year, wild horse advocates showed up in droves at Cold Creek to tell the government they want the wild horses to stay.
The Spring Mountain Alliance’s plan would require the BLM to engage in an experimental management program…(CONTINUED)
The roundup would cost hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars. For more information, go to springmountainalliance.org/the-state-of-nevadas-wild-horses
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Categories: Horse News, Wild Burros, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
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Doesn,t the BLM have anything else to do???
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Dear Bonnie,The BLM doesnt know how to do anything else!!!!!!! Thjey are a complete FAIL
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AGREED!! Possibly some additional schooling on what the words “protect” and “manage” actually mean.
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Talk about a Win- Win!!!! This would be managing for the good of all and isn’t that what everyone wants, or should want?! Besides, enjoying the majestic beauty of wild horses with their families, would truly be a setting to behold. Our country has been blessed with these magnificent creatures and it’s time to do right by them and all those willing to help in preserving their freedom.
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I dont believe in sterlizing any Mustangs, we pay for their PRESERVATION< sterilizing them is not PRESERVATION, have we lost sight of why we are here??????????????????????? No COMPROMISES on this, what steriling means and give s is only the end of the Mustangs !!!!!!! WHERES THE FREEDOM TO ROAM IN THIS ??????????????????
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If tourism is wanted show them REAL MUSTANGS< and their THRIVING VIABLE HERDS!!!!! Not Mustangs that in 10 yrs down the ROAD, will die OUT and be no more because they cannot reproduce………………….. Am I reading the Main Post wrong?????????????? I hope I am, cause i havent been devoting the last 20 years for that have I??????/
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“Amen Arlene”
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I read it as you read it and am having EXACTLY the same response.
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Sorry folks, there was a mistake in the typing of the main text – the Spring Mountain Alliance (SMA) is NOT advocating for sterilization of the wild horses or burros around Las Vegas and Pahrump. That should have read CONTRACEPTION. For details of our plan please read http://springmountainalliance.org/projects/
In a limited portion of the Spring Mountain Complex – an Experimental Management Area – SMA volunteers propose to annually dart all mares (except those allowed to have one foal for genetic diversity) with the proven contraceptive and reversible vaccine PZP, (ZonaSat-H), to maintain a detailed wild horse/burro data base, and to conduct range improvement projects in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) & U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to assist in their land management mission in a period of dwindling public agency resources.
The darting program would be modeled after the successful programs on Assateague Island, Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range, and Little Book Cliffs and follow standardized protocol. After the initial application of primer and booster doses in the first year, the annual booster darting could be staggered so that each mare would have one opportunity to add a foal to the gene pool.
To reduce the detrimental high cost of helicopter roundups, long-distance transportation of, and long-term storage of wild horses and burros in holding facilities, the Alliance proposes to assist in selective removal of the most adoptable, easily trainable 2 to 4-year-old horses and burros. Removal would be by bait-capture of family bands at staggered intervals so local adoption demand will not be overwhelmed. The Alliance would aggressively promote local adoption.
After treating all bait-captured mares with PZP, intact family bands would be released back onto the range to retain social stability. Scientific observation has shown that stable family bands can prevent early pregnancy of young mares, 3-years of age and under. Older horses and burros would be returned to the range so their knowledge of local water and food sources is not lost in times of drought, fire or inhospitable conditions.
The relatively compact Experimental Management Area close to Las Vegas is an ideal area to conduct trials of innovative, scientific methods for improving population estimates and assessing range management practices in order to maintain genetically diverse, healthy populations and accurately estimate the productivity of the range as recommended in the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council’s 2013 report, Using Science to Improve the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program: a Way Forward (ISBN 978-0-309-26494-5).
SMA supports scientifically-sound management of a healthy range for recreation, wildlife and the last free-roaming bands of wild horses and burros in the in the Spring Mountains, west of Las Vegas. The Alliance’s ultimate goal is to increase wild horse and burro viewing opportunities for future generations of horse and wildlife enthusiasts, photographers, American and foreign visitors.
Unfortunately the Environmental Assessment process by USFS/BLM to decide what management alternative to follow in the Spring Mountains has been repeatedly delayed and now is said to come out in November or December 2014.
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So glad to hear the article misprinted your comment! Sounds like you have a real good plan for the horses – now if the BLM will “allow” it!
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Yes, Contraception sure is a better description !!! Thanks. Bonnie Wagner
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I agree with you 110%, Arlene. NO sterilization. Even PZP if given 5 years or so in a roll will cause sterilization BTW.
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I agree – “sterilizing most of the horses” is not the answer! If you want to have horses around to draw people out there to see them – how long before there are too few horses left? Seems to me that sterilized animals are not going to have the normal herd behavior. Might as well go to Madeleine Pickens eco-sanctuary! BUT I guess not many of us could afford to do that, could we?
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Noticed that it didn’t say anywhere in this article why the BLM is rounding up these horses. Who is it that wants this land; welfare ranchers or frackers? Some selective birth control would be a much better option than this across the board sterilization to control the population if that is needed. Damn! Leave the horses alone.
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This is like a typical BLM answer. They think the wild horses can still maintain their wild behavior in LTH when they are seperated by gender, stallions castrated and the foals seperated from the mares. I think most people that really want to pay to see wild horses would want to see them in their family bands the way it is suppose to be. I definitely would. This train of thought is what will eventually lead to the extinction of our wild horses and burros uness it is changed and fast.
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That’s the Million $ Question….WHO wants this land and WHY?
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Reblogged this on hocuspocus13 and commented:
jinxx xoxo
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Our request for the Mustangs is simple read the ROAM ACT of 1971, want them back on the range where they belong !!!!!!!! To be protected and preserved, and to ROAM FREE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> and given help when needed !!!!!! Not Maimed , chased Harrassed or murdered !!!!!!! They are not for the folly of demented as—es, getting off on hurting the Mustangs !!!!!!! They are Living breathing Beauties to be enjoyed and treasured by all forever !!!!! Anything short of that is criminal……………………………………
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Group in Wyoming planning civil disobedience protest for Sept 22 http://wyo4news.com/news/animals-rights-group-plans-civil-disobendience-protest-wild-horse-roundup-sept-22
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http://friendsofanimals.org/news/2014/september/foa%E2%80%99s-civil-disobedience-action-wild-horses
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Went on the FOA site & read the comments. One of them said she had been visited by the BLM & DOI reps due to her comments on THIS site! So I guess they DO read it, right? Too bad they don’t comprehend…
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Life is a negotiation
I read the comments and some got stuck on one word “sterilization” rather than see the big picture of a tourist attraction
And if you read the retraction it’s contraception not sterilization
Let’s take a step down a different path for the horses away from round ups and helicopters
Sit down and talk Tourist attraction and the rest can be “negotiated”
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Right after the wild horses are gone and theres no one else to blame. I am certain there will be a revelation that its the cattle sucking the land dry then there should be a complete sudden cattle removal
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