NEVADA GLOBE (Aug. 29, 2022) — The Bureau of Land Management completed a roundup of nearly 1,900 wild horses designed to reduce overpopulation in Elko and White Pine counties [last] Thursday, killing 23 of them.
The agency reported on Friday that 1,897 wild horses were rounded up from public lands in an area about 60 miles north of Ely, with 50 mares expected to be treated with a population suppression vaccine and then released. The release date and location will be announced, according to the agency.
In addition, 50 stallions from the July 15 roundup will be released.
According to a news release, the gather not only reduces population in an area with insufficient water and forage for the herd, but it also prevents “further degradation” of public lands associated with excess wild horses and restores “a thriving natural ecological balance.”
“The gather was critical to ensuring public land health as well as horse health. Both remain vulnerable due to herd overpopulation and exceptional drought conditions,” said Robbie McAboy, the agency’s Ely district manager.
The animals were taken to the Indian Lakes Off-Range Wild Horse and Burro Corral in Fallon and the Sutherland Off-Range Corrals in Sutherland, Utah, to be prepared for the Bureau of Land Management’s wild horse and burro adoption and sale program.
Wild horses that are not adopted or sold will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be cared for humanely while maintaining their “wild” status and protection under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971.
According to the agency, 17 of the deaths were caused by pre-existing or chronic conditions, such as fractured legs, blindness, or congenital tendon issues.
A 6-year-old Palomino stallion and a 7-year-old bay mare that died suddenly from broken necks, as well as a sorrel foal with colic, were among the six fatalities referred to in the report as acute/sudden.
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Opinion
None of the ranges where wild horses and burros freely roam are overpopulated. Not a single one. Liars. Instead, we could actually do with repopulating virtually every single range. Many are close to being or already zeroed out, according to who you talk to. Naturally, this news does not make or hit the headlines.
In the meantime, have you noticed that America’s wild horses and burros have not a single supporter of any weight or worth in Washington DC? How is that? We have watched this go on for more than 20 years. It is shameful.
How about wild horse and burro advocacy groups? Not all of them are corrupt. There are a few, but most of them are not. The crooked ones, naturally, have what seems like an endless supply of money, but none of it is spent on the horses. This is hardly news of course.
It has always been part of the dynamic that is DC. It is difficult to learn and harder to watch. The key question is this. They say what comes around, goes around. And that is true. But when is it our turn? What do we do so that the pendulum swings in favor of the wild horses and burros for a change? It is long, very long overdue. —Editor.
Tuesday’s Horse
Official Blog of The Fund for Horses
Tuesday's Horse 
There is no overpopulation of a species (except temporarily, often due to human interference) where there is insufficient water and forage. Regarding “environmental degradation”, that accusation is moot where livestock are being permitted to graze. Get the livestock off our public lands and see what they look like in a decade. We are being lied to; there is no wild equine overpopulation. Only industry that wants unfettered access to OUR (every taxpayer’s) resources.
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1900 wild horses off the land! What a high number! Not right or is this fair! And 23 died for no reason but greed! This must stop! Cattle ranchers don’t need that much land! How disgusting!!!!
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The federal government is continually violating its own law, no matter who is in power. Public Lands are so vast. There is absolutely no reason for removing and destroying our wild horses so the land can be used by someone else.
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Aren’t wild horses in our country supposed to be protected by FEDERAL LAW ? What happened to obeying the law BLM? Huh? You know the “adoption program” is a scam. Your SCAM. you pay the person $1,000.00 to adopt the horse and he goes right to the KILL AUCTION and sells the poor animal for more money. Tell me where the justice is in this.And the helicopter round up so hare brained. Have any of you people any experience with horses? I sincerely doubt it. This is so very very sad. You need to step down and get people in there that really know what they’re doing before more animals break their necks and legs and whatever else. This is abusive and totally disgusting. Shame on you people.
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Thank you. All so depressingly true.
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