Sand Wash Basin Roundup Continues Outside Herd Management Area
50 captured horses to be released as 6th orphaned foal confirmed
- 8 wild horses were captured yesterday on private land outside the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area(HMA), Including 2 families and a lone stallion, bringing the capture total to 649 with 2 deaths. Of those, 529 were captured within the HMA, and 220 captured outside the HMA boundaries. (Roundup report here.)
- 50 captured horses (25 mares/25 stallions) within the HMA scheduled for release today, bringing total net removals from within the HMA to 479, down from the original removal target of 633.
- Roundup continues today outside the HMA. Observers must choose whether to witness today's helicopter roundup or the release of 50 horses within the HMA.
- Another foal (baby horse) confirmed to have been orphaned in the roundup. This is the 6th confirmed foal left alone on the range without their mother. (See post.)
- Operations within the HMA were halted early thanks to intervention of Colorado Governor Jared Polis, allowing 154 additional wild horses to remain free..
- Governor Polis posts a public statement hailing public outpouring against the roundup and pledging to work to “chart a new course for humane management for the state’s beloved wild horses.” First Gentleman Marlon Reis posts a statement as well.
- American Wild Horse Campaign files formal complaint on animal welfare violations at the roundup and calls for oversight hearing on BLM roundup abuses and mismanagement of wild horses/burros and public lands.
About AWHC
The American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) is the nation's leading wild horse protection organization, with more than 700,000 supporters and followers nationwide. AWHC is dedicated to preserving the American wild horse and burros in viable, free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage. In addition to advocating for the protection and preservation of America's wild herds, AWHC implements the largest wild horse fertility control program in the world through a partnership with the State of Nevada for wild horses that live in the Virginia Range near Reno.
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