National Groups Unite to Save North Dakota Wild Horses from Slaughter
National organizations dedicated to saving mustangs are actively working to find caring homes for wild horses that will be rounded up at North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park and sold at auction. This initiative, known as Operation Badlands Mustang Rescue, involves volunteers spreading awareness about the auction of over 100 park horses on September 28, aiming to protect them from slaughter.
The Cloud Foundation and Legacy Mustang Preservation are two key groups in this effort. “We’re just trying to provide the safety net so none of these animals get bought by the kill buyers,” said Ginger Kathrens, executive director of The Cloud Foundation. These organizations have pledged to purchase up to 24 horses if no other private owners come forward, preventing their sale to slaughterhouses.
The Cloud Foundation, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, focuses on saving mustangs removed from public lands in Western states and has raised funds to transport the horses it acquires. Legacy Mustang Preservation, located in Louisa, Virginia, will train the horses and find adoptive homes on the East Coast.
Marylu Weber, who has monitored the horses in the park for nearly 15 years, noted the significant impact of the organizations' involvement. “It is a huge deal,” she said. “Ginger Kathrens is probably the face and the voice of wild horses in the world because of what she’s doing for wild horses.” Kathrens has produced several documentary films about a pale palomino stallion named Cloud from the Pryor Mountains of Montana, which aired on PBS Nature.
The Cloud Foundation aims to make the removal of horses from public lands unnecessary through improved management practices, including birth control, and by rescuing removed horses. Western mustangs are popular among horse enthusiasts on the East Coast due to their intelligence, sure-footedness, and hardiness, Kathrens explained. The horses from the badlands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, descendants of Plains Indian ponies and pioneer stock, also have a rich history.
Kathrens emphasized that the National Park Service should collaborate with wild horse supporters to prevent surplus horses from being sold to “kill buyers” for slaughterhouses. “Their responsibility doesn’t end with the rounding up of the horses,” she said, advocating for the exclusion of kill buyers from the auction.
The horses are scheduled for sale at the Wishek Livestock Sales in Wishek, North Dakota, starting at 11 a.m. on September 28. The community is hosting meals and events in conjunction with the sale.
How to help: Donations can be made to nonprofit groups like The Cloud Foundation and Legacy Mustang Preservation, working under Operation Badlands Mustang Rescue, to save wild horses from being sold to slaughterhouses.
Originally Posted By Grand Forks Herald