Cattlemen who fought against the USDA’s National Animal Identification System (NAIS) and thought they squelched it until the USDA revived it as Animal Disease Traceability (ADT) , are donating money to the United Horsemen and the International Equine Business Association (IEBA), which, ironically, seem to be bringing in NAIS/ADT through the back door.
A creative passion for the horse as a child and rebirthed with an affection for the wild mustangs of North America fine art painter Melody Perez relocated to the west two years ago with a vision to get back to her artistic roots only to discover the plight of wild horses and burros as she researched for painting equine subjects. Her painting technique is vivid and realistic as she re-creates on canvas the spirit of these living legends and the land they dwell upon.
HOUSTON, (Horseback) – The tin ear of the federal Bureau of Land Management is clearly so out of tune to the desires of the American public and so in tune with the wants of corporate agriculture, hunting interests, and natural resource exploitation that the agency, and its titular head, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, has made appointments’ that not only mock public opinion but create a fetid cesspool of criticism where it now wallows – a pool of its own making.
When I was mayor of a city with a horse slaughter plant, the support, information and backing of horse advocates encouraged me, strengthened my convictions— you were essential to me and frankly kept me going. I want to thank you for your advocacy for horses. It is because of you that elected officials feel compelled or wise to support a ban on horse slaughter.
It is rare that we can look back over a week that has passed and find more good news than bad but in reviewing the past week, there have been a lot of good things that have occurred for the wild horse and burro advocacy that should not go recognized.
The BLM recently appointed Callie Hendrickson to the BLM National Advisory Board. The American public opposes and rejects this appointment. Tom Gorey, spokesman for the BLM, chose to attack and insult the public over its concerns rather than convey the extremist thinking of Callie Henrickson to which the public takes exception.(See the Atlantic Monthly article: The Lasso Tightens Around America’s Wild Horses by Andrew Cohen) Callie Henrickson is to assume the position of “General Public” advocate on the BLM National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board, but do her views represent the opinions of the public or for that matter, of the Congress, BLM employees and contracted employees?
A few years ago, when I was still serving in the Senate, I was asked to support legislation that would ban the practice of slaughtering horses for human consumption. My initial reaction was cool to the notion that the federal government should be mandating or telling owners of these horses what they can or cannot do with their animals. However, my initial instincts on such a policy were outweighed by the personal and practical experience that horse owners brought to my attention, including my son, Chet.
COLO. SPRINGS, CO (Feb. 16, 2012) – The Obama Administration proposal to increase public land grazing fees from the regulatory minimum will do little to match the administrative costs of the program according to the Colorado-based, Cloud Foundation (TCF). The fee would increase by $1.00 per month for a cow/calf pair or five head of sheep. TCF has long advocated for a dramatic increase in the fees for “welfare” livestock ranching on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service lands.
To wild horse advocates, the ones who fret daily over the worsening plight of the American mustang, Montana’s Republican former senator Conrad Burns holds a special spot in the pantheon of enablers, cynics, scoundrels and villains who have conspired for generations to endanger the health and safety of the herds. In November 2004, at the last minute, it was then-Senator Burns who inserted into a 3,300-page budget appropriations bill a single-paged rider that amended the 1971 Wild Horse Protection Act so it was legal, once again, to slaughter wild horses.
“Facts that Refute the 7 Most Common Myths about Horse Slaughter” is a powerful new tool released by Wild for Life Foundation for the protection of equines from cruelty in the U.S. “The report provides dynamic talking points that directly counter the onslaught of misinformation triggered by the lifting of the defunded USDA horse slaughter inspections in November 2011”, says Katia Louise, Founder and President Wild for Life Foundation.
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