Euthenasia, have you got questions?

[desperatehorsewife]

I've got an article coming up and will be sitting down with one of the guys from the OR BLM next week to talk about all sorts of things...but of course the whole euthanasia issue will be number one.

Has anyone got an questions they'd like me to ask for them?

[JoanMRK]

Thanks for offering Tracey. I'd like to know if there will be a "rhyme or reason" behind their decision on which horse gets euthanized. Such as if a horse is lame, would it be higher on the list or are they going to do a "gate cut" so to speak?

[fantasykiger]

I to am curious just how they will decide who gets put down. Will there be a age number or will the length of stay in the holding facility determine whether that horse is put down. Much like how it done with Pound animals. Those that been there the longest without adoption going first. If they are going out to the wild herd to euthenize horses I guess my questions would be the same as JoanMRK.

By "gate cut" did you mean if there is 200 horses and you can only have 100, you just pick 100 that look good to you on that day and the other 100 get put down?

[JoanMRK]

By "gate cut" did you mean if there is 200 horses and you can only have 100, you just pick 100 that look good to you on that day and the other 100 get put down?

Tiffany, I wasn't sure if this was directed at me or not but yes, that's exactly what I am wondering. Whoever is left after the gate is closed, so to speak.

[prizmbluekigers]

Guess I can post this here. I received this yesterday afternoon from Ginger and the Cloud Foundation. it was sen to the director of operations for BLM.

DON YOUNG. AI(
NICK J. RAHALL II. WV
RANKING REPUBUCAN MEMBER
CHAIRMAN
JIM SAXTON, NJ
DALE E. KILDEE. MI
ELTON GALlEGLY. CA
ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA. AS
JOHN J. DUNCAN. JR.. TN
NEIL ABERCROMBIE. HI
WAYNE T. GILCHREST. MD
SOLOMON P. ORTIZ. TX CHRIS CANNON. UT
FAANK PALLONE. JR" NJ THOMAS G. T/INCREDO. CO OONNA M. CHRISTENSEN. VI JEFF FLAKE, AZ
it.~. )louse of fRepresentatiues
GRACE F. NAPOLITANO. CA STEV/IN PEARCE. NM RUStl O. HOLT. NJ HENRY E. BROWN. JR.. SC
RAOL M. GRIJALVA. AZ LUIS G. FOAT\JF.iO. PA
MAOELEINE Z. BOADALLO. GU
QI:ommittu on Natural iRt.alturct.a
CATHY McMORRIS RODGERS, W/I JIM COSTA. CA LOUIE GOHMERT. TX
OAN BOREN. OK TOM COLE. OK
JOHN P. SARBANES. MD ROB BISHOP, UT
.s.al,ingtnu. iat 211515
GEORGE MILiER. CA BILL SHUSTER. PA
EDWARD J. MARKEY. MA BILL SALI.ID
PETER A. DEFAZIO, OR DOUG LAMBORN. CO
MAURICE D. HINCHEY. NY MARY FALUN. OK
PATRICK J. KENNEDY. RI ADRIAN SMITH. NE
RON KINO. W1 ROBERT J. WITTMAN. VA
LOIS CAPPS. CA JAYINSLEE. WA MARK UDALl, CO JOE BACA, CA
CHRISTOPHER N. FLUHR HILDA L. SOLIS. CA
REPUBUCAN CHIEF OF STAFF
STEPHANIE HERSETH. SO HEATH SHULER, NC
July 9, 2008
JAMES H. ZOIA
CHIEF OFSTAFF


Mr. Henri Bisson
Deputy Director of Operations
Bureau of Land Management
Department ofthe Interior
1849 CSt, NW
Washington, DC 20240
Deputy Director Bisson:
It has come to our attention that you recently advised the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board that BLM is considering two options to deal with populations of wild horses on the range and in holding pens -euthanasia or stopping the roundups of wild horses -in an effort to moderate agency expenditures under the program. It is also our understanding that the Board will consider these options at its next meeting in September.
As you know, in June of 2007 we requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conduct a comprehensive review ofthe BLM's management ofwild horse and burros on public lands. We did this because ofcontinued concern that this program is being mismanaged, because we felt the BLM did little to address concerns raised by a 1990 GAO report, and because of recent changes to the Act in 2004.
The report is due to be completed in September of2008. In the interim we strongly urge you to refrain from any further action until the report is released and the BLM, the Advisory Board and the Congress has time to review the GAO's findings.
You may be aware that the BLM's inability to administer the budget ofthe Wild Horses and Burros program with any trace of fiscal accountability is a long-standing concern and must not be used as a death sentence upon these celebrated symbols of the American West. For instance, the 1990 GAO report "
Rangeland Management: Improvements Needed in Federal Wild Horse Program "(GAO/RCED-90-11 0) found
that the BLM lacked the data to even determine the number ofwild horses that the range can support and thus the number to be removed.
resourcescommittee.house.gov
Mr. Henri Bisson
July 9, 2008
Page 2
Yet, the BLM continued with an aggressive roundup regime that has now placed almost onehalf
of the wild horse population in holding pens.
Pending the completion ofthe latest GAO report, and prior to your taking any further actions regarding this program that could be viewed as arbitrary and capricious, we would ask the BLM to respond to the following:
1) The BLM states that the "appropriate management level" (AMLs) of wild horses and burros on public rangelands is 27,300 horses. What scientific data is used to determine that number?
2) What are the actual numbers of wild horses and burros on public lands? How are those numbers determined, and what is the scientific basis for the census methods in use?
3) What is the total acreage managed by the BLM for wild horses and burros?
4) It has been reported that over 19 million acres ofland, on which wild horses and burros existed at the time of the passage of the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act in 1971, is no longer available for wild horse and burros. Is this figure accurate? If so, what is the justification for terminating wild horse and burro use of these lands?
5) Why has the BLM not reintroduced wild horses/burros to lands that previously were available to the animals in 1971, which have subsequently been closed to their use?
6) To what extent has the BLM pursued land acquisitions, exchanges, conservation easements and voluntary grazing buyouts in both checkerboard and non-checkerboard areas to accommodate the needs of wild horses?
7) A 1982 National Academy of Sciences report urged the BLM to use PZP immuno contraception (PZP), finding it to be an effective and proactive method for managing horse populations. A 2004 Interior Report by the US Geological Survey found PZP reduced the overall costs of wild horse management. In 2006, the BLM signed a Memorandumof*greementwiththe Humane Society ofUnitedStatestobeginworking together on promoting PZP. To what extent is PZP being used by the BLM? And what percentage of the BLM budget has been devoted to contraception in any given year or annually?
8) What is the ratio of horses the agency has contracepted and put back on the range versus those taken off for adoption or long term holding? Specifically, in which herds has contraception been administered? When was it used? What were the results?
Mr.Henri Bisson
July 9, 2008
Page 3
9) For at least the past five years, the BLM has been aware of the soft market for the adoptionofwildhorses,and ofitsinabilitytomeetitsadoptiongoals. Yet,theBLMstill continued to remove twice the number of horses then was conducive to finding adoptive homes --according to their own estimates. Knowing that the BLM was unlikely to receive a significant increase in its budget for this program, what was the management plan for disposing of these animals, absent euthanasia?
10) The BLM has relied heavily in the last eight years on long term holding facilities for horses which the BLM aggressively removed but could not adopt out; and the BLM continued to add to these facilities despite the fact that they were aware ofthe increasing costs and shrinking budgets. What was the long term plan for their care given rising costs, absent euthanasia?
11) The potential for wholesale killing ofthousands of healthy wild horses marks a complete turnaround in management policy. Although it is a legally available option, it has never been used in the history of this 37-year old Act. Shouldn't such a major action on the partofthe BLM warrant a NEPA decision-making process?
12) How would you intend to "euthanize" these horses if that option is chosen?
13) Would there be live transportation involved prior to the killing, or will horses be killed on the range or at the holding pens? Would the agency intend to allow for commercial sale of the carcasses?
14) Would the public be allowed to view the killings to ensure they are humane?
15) What is the cost of mass euthanasia, including disposal of the carcasses?
Again, we strongly urge you to refrain from any further action until we have important information on the BLM's implementation of the program in hand. Only then can we move forward in a more informed, open and deliberate way, and with input from all those concerned with the health, well being, and conservation of this venerable animal which embodies the spirit of our American West.
Sincerely,
~tUL£
NICK J. RAHALL, II
Chairman
Committee on Natural Resources

[dara]

interesting letter, lots of good questions and points.

[DianneC]

Very good questions being asked. The checkerboard land was land given to the railroad in a checkerboard pattern for putting in the railroads originally... Every other section along the rail line I think.
It would be wonderful to see some land exchanges if some could be just for the wild horses and native animals.
A note on gate cuts... that usually means NO selection process is used. If they have 130 horses and they are supposed to have 30 after the gather they take the first 100 they catch and leave whatever is left. Its cheaper than spending the extra money for the helicopters to round up all the horses, but results in poorer quality than gathering them all and putting the best back.

[DianneC]

I have a question for the OR BLM. I saw a lot more cattle on the Kiger HMA a couple years ago than I had seen previously. I noticed that there was very little left to eat for the Kigers over winter after the cattle were moved to fresh pastures in the Fall. What has the head count of cattle been on the Kiger HMA for the last 10 years by year and how have the numbers changed? How is it adjusted if there is a dry year? Or do the ranchers that lease the land decide that?

That fall we saw almost all of Mestano Flats covered in a weed that is inedible. From a distance it looks like dried grass, but looked to me to be a very degraded area and all the other vegetation had been eaten.

A few years ago there were plans to use contraceptives on the wild horses in different areas. Was that done and if not, why?

[desperatehorsewife]

At the moment, I don't believe there's anything planned in detail regarding who or how. It's just the idea that's been thrown out in order to get conversation started and alternative suggestions offered. That said, I don't believe it's the horses out on the range who are the target, but rather the aged horses in long term holding facilities as those are the ones that are eating up the budget (literally!) Most of those horses are 10 and over, although I know OR sent some recently that were 5-10 simply because they've got over 300 horses in the corrals right now and it's been such a poor year for adoptions.

I find it unfortunate that so many people have opted to use this as an opportunity to cuss out the BLM rather than try to understand the problem and help solve it. Pack mentality, I suppose. This is a very difficult situation for everyone.

[prizmbluekigers]

Good point about slamming BLM, but “pack mentality”? I feel the issue is generating opinions that have some validity, and if it seems as though we are voicing the same things, perhaps that is because we are all seeing the same holes in the statements put forth by BLM. I had a response from a BLM person to a letter I sent to Washington and it said “wild horses and burros in the west have virtually no natural predators and the herds can double in size about every four years”. So there are no cougars, bears, wolves, coyotes or snakes out there any more? No wonder I feel they have a credibility problem. My goodness, if we would quit meddling so much in wrong ways the balance might improve. Look what happened when they re-established wolves in the Yellowstone area. The ecology improved. The horses are the first species blamed for an imbalance and even though we know horses were on this continent 14,000 years age they are considered by some as an exotic species, not a naturally occurring one.

What is done is done, but perhaps they need to be held accountable finally. If the 1990 GAO report raised concerns that have not been addressed in a satisfactory manner 18 years later, then let’s hear from them. They can certainly explain without being defensive….. if they have an explanation.

It is not enough to slam them without someone offering a solution, but when you mix a government agency and public opinion it does not always work. I don’t have a solution. I do have some views and opinions, one of them being that BLM might need an independent neutral entity to assist them in making better choices. I really do what to hear their answers though. I don’t think they had a viable long term plan. maybe we can still sort all this out.

[desperatehorsewife]

Good point about slamming BLM, but “pack mentality”?

I belong to several different forums, and there is definitely a pack mentality out there. I wasn't referring to this forum. A lot of folks can't seem to do any thinking for themselves, but forward tons of emails then scream at anyone who disagrees or brings up a point that they don't wish to believe.

So there are no cougars, bears, wolves, coyotes or snakes out there any more?

Very few, really. I'm not sure where you live, but I live in the trees and we rarely see cougar or bear here. In deserts you really don't see them much at all. And coyotes don't really pose a huge threat unless a horse is down or it's a youngster who's gone off alone. Certainly not enough to keep population under control.

Dianne, I'll ask about the cattle. I know that they have specific grazing times that they're allowed to use, and that their contracts were in place before the Wild Horse and Burro Act , so that still needs to be honored. There are stiff fines and penalties, and the ranchers are not allowed back according to Andi, if they breach their contracts.

It would seem that, in OR at least, the lands are managed fairly well and most ranches are very cooperative. They're the ones who managed the water for the horses, not the BLM, and it behooves them to monitor the grazing lands as they can't feed cattle on dry land

We didn't see much in the way of cattle while we were there last spring, but we sure saw an awful lot of antelope out there!

[prizmbluekigers]

I live just east of Bend - so central oregon and we don't have much in the way of big cats and bears, but I know some of the HMAs higher in elevation and less densly populated do have at least some of these predators. I didn't take person offense to your remark about pack mentality, but I understand now what you mean and those are usually the folks who speak before they have all the facts anyway.

We were just on the Kiger HMA a few weeks ago and saw way more antelope than any other mammal. We are due back out there the first week in August so we'll pay attention to forage, water and living things and let you know what we see. We are staying overnight so we may get lucky. Ron Harding warned us to take a gun, just in case.

[desperatehorsewife]

We had an alpaca breeder who's animals were being killed not far from us a year or two back. It's the first time we'd had cougar attacking livestock in a long time around here; the game dept wasn't even sure that's what it was. There's been a cat that used to be spotted frequently every couple of years, but no one has seen it in quite some time.

Ironically, even though we're treed and know the cats and bear must be out there somewhere, we only tend to see or hear coyote. I've got a small flock of sheep that stays out all summer with no dog or anything else guarding, and I've never lost a single one. I guess I figure if those predators, which have a lot more cover here, aren't eating my sheep, then the horses out on the range are even a less likely target.

[nrly]

I just read an artical on another board i am on and a mustang mare was up for eu when a man making a documentary about these horses stepped in and saved her and 2 others, and she was pregnant at the time,she was up to be killed because she was passed over 3 times, who sets the numbers of pass overs. 3 seems low to me.

[desperatehorsewife]

Three strikes and over ten; that's the Burns Rider.