Dear Friends of Cloud and his family;

Let me go over the main points in the EA:

-The EA calls for infertility drugs to continue on all mares 11 and older through 2010.

-BLM calls for a removal of horses in 2006, possibly in 2008 and 2010 to reach a genetically non-viable population of 100.

-Then BLM mentions that they are studying the possibility of importing wild horses from Utah if the herd falls into genetic decline as a result of low herd numbers.

Now, I know what many of you may be thinking. This is some kind of absurd fictional storyline. Surely such nonsensical reasoning will not determine the fate of Cloud’s herd. I wish I could tell you it just isn’t so. But it is.

The BLM in this document reveals that it has no respect for nature and natural ecosystems. Nor do they respect the precious horses in Cloud’s herd and their right to live free. This is a rare Spanish population living in balance with their wilderness home. The herd was at zero population growth and the population even declined a bit during 2004 when it is believed that a mother mountain lion had her sub-adult offspring hunting with her. Then “in 2004/2005 three adult mountain lions were successfully hunted”  (emphasis added--quote from the EA, page 14).

I’m certainly not the first person to observe that the Pryor Herd provides an experimental, living laboratory for BLM. This is one reason why BLM rarely discusses management of the herd through non-intrusive, natural methods.

 

Additional points in the EA:

-Last year BLM cited good forage on the range for the upcoming winter, presumably because of good moisture. Yet, in this document they say we are in the 6th year of the drought and they have to remove horses due to deteriorating range conditions. The data they use to support this claim was collected in 2002-2003 during the height of a 100-year drought.

-They say “there is no evidence to date that the use of fertility control extends the foaling season. . .” yet, they are well aware of the two foals born to PZPed mares in September. The BLM press release regarding the birth of one of the two foals haled the reversibility of the drug, ignoring the dangers of being born in September in Montana. (The program for young mares was stopped in 2004 due to a naturally declining population due to predation, and no births in the yearlings first given the drugs in 2001. Ironically, this unpredictable drug was billed as a one-year infertility dose. The 2001 yearlings are going to be six this year and one of them has foaled, and that foal was born in September. Cloud’s Grulla mare is six and his black mare is five. We believe both are barren again this year.

-The document states that “fences restrict the majority of horses to the designated range on an annual basis”. This is simply not true. Nearly all horses who travel to the mountaintop in summer trail out of the “designated range” into the higher elevations of the Custer National Forest in July through early Fall, depending on snow depth. Here, they are called trespassers. Yet they have been documented to use the Forest Service lands atop the mountain for at least 80 years. They have probably used their high meadows for centuries.

-BLM has opted for a “sealed bid adoption” this year and cite no reason for this change from the use of competitive bid auctions. Many years ago BLM used sealed bids and it was a mess. People did not know what to bid. A person who might have bid higher did not have the opportunity to bid higher as the highest sealed bid was taken.  Also, many people threw out bids on many horses just hoping to get one, and then they got several horses and could only take one.  Then the bidding had to start again on the horses they could not accept. Clearly, the best, fairest method is a silent auction or verbal auction

-The EA does not explain how “bait trap” sorting of animals would be carried out. Once a family group or bachelor band is caught, how will a yearling be separated from his or her family, or a young bachelor separated from older ones? Sorting can be the most dangerous time for wild horses according to a BLM official with whom I spoke. If a horse panics, they lower their heads and run head long into whatever is restricting their ability to flee. It is common for the horse to break its neck and die.

-BLM states that no new predators are anticipated in the next five years.

-The EA calls for the removal of 50% of the coming yearlings as well as 12 bachelors from 4 to 8 years old. Flint, Cloud’s step-son who was severely injured in the 2001 round up and may never be sound as a result, is in this age group so I hope you would fight for his right to live free along with all the animals targeted for removal.

As we see it, BLM must begin managing humanely, using non-intrusive techniques that enhance the wilderness values of the Pryors. They should make range improvements a priority (none have been made in over a decade). BLM managers and interns would have time to work on repairing broken water catchments and taking out interior barbed wired fences instead of planning the next removal or the next darting operation.

BLM needs to think like wildlife ecologists and set a goal of managing for a natural herd which does not require intrusive management. Then, they would have more time to focus on talking forcefully, but politely, with the Forest Service to convince them of the legal right of Cloud’s herd to live, not as trespassers but residents, on lands they have occupied in the Custer National Forest.

If BLM would focus on natural management, there would be no need for discussions of what constitutes a genetically viable minimum population. Rather the discussion could focus on the optimum number to maintain genetic viability. No wild horses would be removed from their home unless they really truly “excess” . . .and nature would decide which mares give birth and when.

Please do your part for Cloud’s herd. He is counting on us to preserve the freedom and integrity of his herd.

Please click the link below to a sample letter that you can send to the BLM in protest of this plan. You may modify this letter, use it and simply sign your name, or use it as a basis for your own writing.
May 5th is the deadline, so please take action now!

Happy Trails!

Ginger Kathrens