Leading horses to water

[Oak]

Almost forgot; my biggest concern with the situation in the article is that it sounds like water is being hauled to horses that are not in a recognized Horse Management Area (HMA). HMAs are delineated in land use plans with herd objectives and management plans spelled out. From this article this case appears to be outside that process as I would doubt that an area "not officially managed for wild horses " is within a designated HMA.

Yes.

Not only are they watering them, but they have closed the public lands in the area to the public. This is an area that takes 18 points to draw a non-resident 3rd season deer tag.

Congressional Briefing

.

 

[Dinkshooter]

"The BLM is committed to maintaining healthy wild horses in Colorado and may need to take additional steps to ensure the wild horses are cared for humanely".

 

[Oak]

Didn't take long for someone to find the most absurd sentence in the document.

 

[Khunter]

Oak,

Your real gripe is that the water is no longer available for fracking?

 

[Oak]

Oak,

Your real gripe is that the water is no longer available for fracking?

Sorry, are you a horse hugger?

 

[1_pointer]

Yes.

Not only are they watering them, but they have closed the public lands in the area to the public. This is an area that takes 18 points to draw a non-resident 3rd season deer tag.

Congressional Briefing

.

Glad I don't have 18points! Do you know if this was a "full force and effect" decision? I get that it might be from the briefing you posted. I've never heard of closing an area for horses, but it's not the first time I've seen closures for "emergencies".

Like I said before, politics, emotion, and litigation drive management of wild horses IME. Cattle and sheep are much easier on the ground and to manage...

 

[Oak]

1_p, here is the closure order.

Closure order

 

[Big Fin]

What a joke. An absolute joke. If anyone in Congress had some common sense and the stones, they would get on the BLM about this.

Congress is cutting almost every conservation program in the House Budget, eliminating some, yet we are spending money on feral NON-NATIVE species, such as feral horses, to keep their populations artificially high. They should not be on the landscape, at all. If they are allowed on the landscape, they should have to compete with the elements of nature, by themselves, with no helping hand from the BLM or any agency.

Imagine if we decided to help Spotted Knapweed flourish, because environmental conditions were causing it to be stressed. Non-native species, plant or animal, all need to be removed from the landscape, if native species are to have a chance in these times of extremely compromised habitat conditions.

These feral horses further compromise the habitat native species need to hang on during drought such as this. By softening the blow on non-native species, it only gives them more advantage over native species when the drought retreats.

Time for some phone calls.

I spend too much time hunting where these feral horses have taken over. Maybe I am tainted in my view of them, but I see no use for them on the western landscape. Anyone who argues otherwise has never spent a week at a waterhole, watching them control a waterhole and chasing off the mule deer and antelope, only to have the native species die. Or they have not seen what were once lush areas that held water even in the worst of droughts, get trampled into big mud flats that no longer hold any water to speak of and have removed all the native vegetation along the banks of those once lush water holes.

Horses are fine. Keep them where they belong - in the corrals and barns.

 

[Khunter]

Sorry, are you a horse hugger?

As Dinkshooter can attest, despite his several advances.....I am not much for hugging.

And that includes invasive species like horses. I was just kidding, poorly apparently. The water huggers are afraid hydraulic fracturing is going to dry up Colorado....

 

[Big Fin]

And then to close a few thousand acres of the best mule deer ground in CO, as a result. I looked at that map, and just noticed that when I had my Unit 21 3rd season tag, I shot my buck right in that area. For you poor guys who have tags this year, when the deer start migrating north toward Rangely, that is the main corridor you would have seen them travelling in past years.

Now, that few thousand acres is off limits. And, the area is closed until December 1st. Season is long since over.

After thinking about this more, I need a drink. And I don't even drink.

Idgits. Friggin' idgits.

 

[shoots-straight]

And then to close a few thousand acres of the best mule deer ground in CO, as a result. I looked at that map, and just noticed that when I had my Unit 21 3rd season tag, I shot my buck right in that area. For you poor guys who have tags this year, when the deer start migrating north toward Rangely, that is the main corridor you would have seen them travelling in past years.

Now, that few thousand acres is off limits. And, the area is closed until December 1st. Season is long since over.

After thinking about this more, I need a drink. And I don't even drink.

Idgits. Friggin' idgits.

Lets figure out who to bitch at and start a campaign.

 

[Big Fin]

Lets figure out who to bitch at and start a campaign.

Agreed.

Been on the phone and emails the last hour. I think some groups have the stomach for what 1_pointer correctly points out to be, a management issue driven by two letters - P and C. Others probably not.

Hard to argue that you advocate for native wildlife and habitats without speaking up on this one. Especially when so much Federal conservation budget is getting axed.

The PC part of feral equine gives the BLM a free pass and an open checkbook. Or maybe, forces such upon the BLM. Either way, it is a situation needing correction.

If anyone gets some contacts or links, post them here so hunters can weigh in on the issue.

 

[JoseCuervo]

What a joke. An absolute joke. If anyone in Congress had some common sense and the stones, they would get on the BLM about this.

Congress is cutting almost every conservation program in the House Budget, eliminating some, yet we are spending money on feral NON-NATIVE species, such as COWS AND DOMESTIC SHEEP feral horses, to keep their populations artificially high. They should not be on the landscape, at all. If they are allowed on the landscape, they should have to compete with the elements of nature, by themselves, with no helping hand from the BLM or any agency.

Imagine if we decided to help Spotted Knapweed flourish, because environmental conditions were causing it to be stressed. Non-native species, plant or animal, all need to be removed from the landscape, if native species are to have a chance in these times of extremely compromised habitat conditions.

These COWS AND DOMESTIC SHEEP feral horses further compromise the habitat native species need to hang on during drought such as this. By softening the blow on non-native species, it only gives them more advantage over native species when the drought retreats.

Time for some phone calls.

I spend too much time hunting where these COWS AND DOMESTIC SHEEP feral horses have taken over. Maybe I am tainted in my view of them, but I see no use for them on the western landscape. Anyone who argues otherwise has never spent a week at a waterhole, watching them control a waterhole and chasing off the mule deer and antelope, only to have the native species die. Or they have not seen what were once lush areas that held water even in the worst of droughts, get trampled into big mud flats that no longer hold any water to speak of and have removed all the native vegetation along the banks of those once lush water holes.

COWS AND DOMESTIC SHEEPHorses are fine. Keep them where they belong - in the corrals and barns.

Fin,

I did a bit of editing, it now looks like you should have enough outrage to justify the letters and phone calls.

 

[Battleborn]

I may be biased but I feel Nevada has been ground zero on the feral horse issue for as long as I can remember. There was even a petition put together at one point to change the state animal from the desert bighorn sheep to the “wild” horse!!!

It has always appeared to me through the years that BLM has wanted to control the populations at a level that is agreeable with the indigenous wildlife and habitat. The problem as I see it is they’re forced to work within constantly changing parameters driven by lawsuits originated by activists. They put together a plan to start castrating them, that’s halted due to a filed lawsuit. They put a plan together to round them up because it is the right thing to do for all wildlife and habitat, but that get’s put on hold (sometimes for years when there are already too many) due to a lawsuit. The helicopter used to round them up gets too close to the animals during a round up, lawsuit is filed. Too much cattle prodding during a round up, uh oh…………..now employees need to go through special training before anymore round ups can take place. They can’t be put down when there are too many so they have to be held in permanent holding facilities at the tax payers’ expense. The conditions at the holding facilities are not up to snuff, uh oh……….better spend some more money.

I don’t know about elsewhere, but in Nevada if a BLM employee even looks at a wild horse the wrong way there is an activist there to witness it (usually filming it) and likely file a lawsuit. And guess what, we all pay for the extra financial burden this small vocal group brings upon us via the media and our judicial system. The more you read up on this issue and the history of it, the more you come to realize common sense is nowhere to be found in the equation

 

[NVLongbow]

I may be biased but I feel Nevada has been ground zero on the feral horse issue for as long as I can remember. There was even a petition put together at one point to change the state animal from the desert bighorn sheep to the “wild” horse!!!

It has always appeared to me through the years that BLM has wanted to control the populations at a level that is agreeable with the indigenous wildlife and habitat. The problem as I see it is they’re forced to work within constantly changing parameters driven by lawsuits originated by activists. They put together a plan to start castrating them, that’s halted due to a filed lawsuit. They put a plan together to round them up because it is the right thing to do for all wildlife and habitat, but that get’s put on hold (sometimes for years when there are already too many) due to a lawsuit. The helicopter used to round them up gets too close to the animals during a round up, lawsuit is filed. Too much cattle prodding during a round up, uh oh…………..now employees need to go through special training before anymore round ups can take place. They can’t be put down when there are too many so they have to be held in permanent holding facilities at the tax payers’ expense. The conditions at the holding facilities are not up to snuff, uh oh……….better spend some more money.

I don’t know about elsewhere, but in Nevada if a BLM employee even looks at a wild horse the wrong way there is an activist there to witness it (usually filming it) and likely file a lawsuit. And guess what, we all pay for the extra financial burden this small vocal group brings upon us via the media and our judicial system. The more you read up on this issue and the history of it, the more you come to realize common sense is nowhere to be found in the equation

Ground zero for sure. Guess it is one of the draw backs to having all this land that is managed by the federal government. But sure like having the access that it affords.

Wonder if wolves could help control the feral horse population. Thinking not by watching the way my pack ponies chase our hunting dog around the pasture; but maybe that's not a good comparison.

We may find out the sum of wolves vs, feral horses sooner than I originally thought. Spoke with a gent from Elko while scouting last weekend. Claims a Nevada wolf picture was taken a few days back with a trail camera on a water hole. I won't believe that rumor is true until the picture is in hand but it sure is a juicy tale.

The supposed area was south of I80 in the same mountain range where Fin an I filmed the season one archery mule deer hunt. Feral horses out number elk and mule deer 3 - 1 in that spot.

Don't care to have a bunch of wolves in that area but a little West Nile Virus would help the situation.

 

[Summitthunting]

There rounding them up now. What a bunch of D-bags.

http://www.canoncitydailyrecord.com/ci_21070698/wild-horses-be-rounded-up-nw-colorado