Hello and Happy Tuesday to everyone! We have a short update for you on the Devil’s Garden roundup.

Our friend Mary spent a few days witnessing the Devil’s Garden roundup last week. She has provided the report below.

We will be speaking with members of Congress about this herd when we are in Washington DC this month. Please take a moment to send an email to your members of Congress to speak up for the Devil’s Garden herd: https://secure.everyaction.com/TUGd9WmX4EqyNwsH08Wnww2

We are also meeting with Senator Hoeven to discuss the Theodore Roosevelt National Park wild horses. Also on our agenda is to meet with members of Congress to discuss the sterilization funding in the BLM budget and the zeroing out of some of our wild horse herds. I went over this in detail and shared some important Calls to Action in our last blog. Please take a moment to check out the Calls to Action and please take a moment to take action and ask your friends and family to as well! You can read the blog here: https://chwha.org/2024/11/03/andwe-are-off/

Thank you to our friend Mary for this report!

Friday, November 1, 2024

Four mares, four stallions, and two foals were removed. Four horses were also captured in bait traps.

Because of heavy morning fog, the helicopter didn’t take off until almost noon.  

Saturday, November 2, 2024

Six mares, five stallions, and one foal lost their freedom.

Sunday, November 3, 2024

Although at least 5 horses escaped from the helicopter, 22 horses – 11 mares, 7 stallions, and 4 foals – were rounded up and removed.

Total Number of Horses Removed to Date: 107

Of note:

·        For six of the past seven days, the trap site has been located at Emigrants Springs, which just happens to be the grazing allotment that permits Alturas Ranches to turn out 379 cow/calf pairs for five months a year.  Alturas Ranches is owned by Barry Swenson, a multimillion-dollar real estate developer in San Jose, CA, and his family.

·        CD Warner Livestock LLC was awarded a $749,500 contract for the 30-day roundup, meaning that each day costs almost $25,000, and the price tag for each horse removed, either by helicopter or bait trap, so far is about $1,635.  And that’s just the beginning – Other expenses are processing and care of the horses at the Double Devil Corrals, overtime for MNF staff, veterinary care, and the list goes on and on, all paid for by American taxpayers.   Compare that against the savings of a humane and sustainable management plan that includes PZP fertility control and  rangeland improvements.

·        The MNF has reported no injuries or deaths and assigned all horses a Body Condition Score of 5, which means they are in good weight,

·        The MNF staff acknowledged that radio collared mares were captured and are being held at the Double Devil Corrals for a research project on growth rates and movement trends.  However, she did not mention that GonaCon is part of this study.  They will be released back to the Territory when weather and access permits. 

·        Observation continues to be obscured by trees and offers no view of the trap pen.

Please don’t forget to take action!

Thank you for your support and have a great night!

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