In the Wild

The only way to understand the challenges wild horses and burros face and to explore solutions for their preservation is to be out there with them, in the wild.

OPPORTUNITIES

Volunteer with Us

A major focus on fertility control.

We’re not just advocating for solutions, we’re implementing them. Our in-the-wild management program for Nevada’s historic Virginia Range is the largest fertility control program for wild horses in the world. 

The cornerstone of this program is the remote darting of wild mares with a scientifically-proven birth control vaccine, PZP, to humanely reduce population growth rates and decrease population numbers over time. 

This is a model for humanely managing large wild horse populations in expansive habitat areas and an alternative to costly and inhumane roundups and removals of wild horses from the wild.

In less than 6 months in 2019, volunteer teams delivered more fertility control treatments to wild mares than the entire Bureau of Land Management– with its $80-million-a-year wild horse management budget – did in all of 2018. The PZP fertility control program is proven effective with more than 30 years of utilization -- around the globe and in various species.

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Fertility control is working and we're expanding.

We provide assistance and support to community groups using this model of humane management for other populations of wild horses in the West. We were proud to sponsor Year 1 of the Salt River Wild Horse Management Group’s PZP fertility control program for a beloved herd in the Tonto National Forest near Phoenix. We’re also assisting the BLM Utah and the Wild Horses of America Foundation in Salt Lake City to expand a PZP darting program for the wild horses of the Onaqui Mountains HMA and are submitting proposals to expand fertility control programs in other Western herds.

Documentation drives accountability.

Wild horse and burros roundups occur out of the public eye in remote areas of the West. That's why we send representatives to observe and document the roundups. As the eyes and ears of the public, we work to hold the BLM accountable for its inhumane policies and to educate the public about the atrocities that are occurring on our public lands. 

The right to observe.

Even today, most Americans don’t know about the plight of wild horses and burros. Yet, it's our right as citizens to observe government activities. We observe, document and disseminate photos, video footage, and written accounts of the roundups to keep the public informed. On the ground, we assess the overall situation affecting wild horses and burros, including how commercial interests like livestock ranching, oil, and mining, are impacting wild herds and influencing federal policy regarding their management and treatment.

Watch our latest videos

Habitat Stewardship

We've launched the American Wild Horse Conservancy, a first-of-its-kind program that will focus on preserving and increasing habitat for America’s wild horses and burros. We partner with the federal government, and state governments and businesses where relevant, for the protection of wild herds.

This program promises to shift the paradigm of wild horse advocacy away from conflict and confrontation to collaboration and conservation.

We focus on these critical areas:

  • Purchasing critical habitat adjacent to a wild horse Herd Management Areas of Territories
  • Grazing lease buyouts (and compensation for reduced or non-use of grazing permits) to make more habitat available for wild horses
  • Range improvements to improve the quality and quantity of habitat available for wild horse

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Where to view wild horses and burros.

We've created an interactive map that shows all of the wild horse and burro Herd Management Areas (HMAs) managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the Western United States. We update the map quarterly with links to the work we're doing to help our wild horses in these areas.

Help us expand our data.

As part of our public lands education and ecotourism solution, we welcome your photos and updates (preferably as PDF or JPG files) to help expand our interactive map with interesting data and graphics. 

Send them to [email protected]