Warm Springs Roundup Begins in Oregon
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) began the roundup and removal of wild horses from the Warm Springs Herd Management Area (HMA) in Oregon on October 2, 2018. The BLM intends to subject 100 of the captured mares to risky and invasive sterilization experiments that American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign), the Cloud Foundation, and the Animal Welfare Institute have filed suit against. Our motion for an injunction to stop the experiments is pending in Federal court.
Burros are also being captured and removed in this roundup, but will not be part of the surgical sterilization experiments.
Day 6: October 7, 2018
The roundup continued today with 34 horses captured and no deaths. The helicopter contractors pushed several small bands, including a beautiful band of blue roans. One pinto stud managed to escape being trapped today. A foal had to be roped after it gave up and stopped about a mile before the trap. Consistent with days prior, several horses tried to make a last attempt to escape once in the trap pens.
Due to the angle of observation, the helicopter appears to be much closer than it actually was to the horses.
Day 5: October 6, 2018
No helicopters flew because of the weather.
Day 4: October 5, 2018
Sixteen wild horses were rounded up and removed from the range at Warm Springs. There were no deaths. Our field representative was onsite for five hours, and only four horses were brought in, who then escaped. He left the operation and traveled to the BLM wild horse and burros corrals to document the condition of the horses and burros, who were in excellent condition.
Day 3: October 4, 2018
Sixty-nine horses were captured on the third day of the Warm Springs roundup. Documenting these roundups is a very hard job, made even more difficult by the cold temperatures and constant rain. Our representative documented beautiful bands of wild horses in excellent condition being stampeded by the helicopter contractors Sun J Livestock. Because of the weather conditions, he witnessed a few falls from the muddy terrain. He documented several horses attempting to escape the trap site—a heartbreaking reminder that these horses are losing the very thing that's most important to them—their freedom. As in the days prior, another two burros, one of those a foal, were also captured. Having evaded capture by helicopter, they were ultimately brought in by being roped.
We have been notified that a three-year-old black mare died of a broken neck after running into a panel while being sorted, and that the BLM also euthanized three other wild horses, including a 16-year-old mare, for preexisting conditions.
Day 2: October 3, 2018
Update: BLM has reported that a two-month-old filly died after suffering a head injury after being captured, and that a three-month-old filly died from capture myopathy—being run to death. They also euthanized an 18-year-old mare and a 14-year-old mare for preexisting conditions.
Our field representative was onsite for the second day of the Warm Springs roundup. He was the only member of the public in attendance, and watched again as the contractors of Sun J Livestock ran horses of all ages and color varieties. Just like yesterday, another two burros were also captured, first chased by helicopter and then roped, as well as a foal who had not entered the trap site. All horses and burros were in excellent body condition. The total for the day was 95 wild horses and two burros captured.
Day 1: October 2, 2018
The Warm Springs roundup began today in Oregon. Our field representative watched as the BLM helicopter contractor, Sun J Livestock, stampeded into the trap. Wild horses of every color variety were captured, including red roans, blue roans, palominos, pintos, and bays. Our representative reported that a few foals fell behind from the rest of their herd, before ultimately being roped and brought in by the contractors. The BLM's Comprehensive Animal Welfare Policy (CAWP) clearly states that contractors are to keep members of the same band together, the rate of movement of the animals should not exceed the natural rate of movement of the slowest animal in the band. Every effort shall be made to keep older, sick, and young animals together with their bands as they are moved into the trap.
Two burros, seemingly a jenny and her foal, were also seen being chased by the helicopter before being roped and brought into the trap. Ever vigilant and not easily “spooked,” burros react differently to government helicopter roundups than wild horses. Unlike wild horses, who generally panic and will follow other horses into a trap site to stay together in their family bands, wild burros often scatter in an attempt to avoid capture. As a result, roundups can be even more brutal for burros, as they are chased relentlessly by helicopters.
At the time of this post, the BLM had not released the numbers of wild horses and burros removed and has not acknowledged if there were any deaths. Sixty-two wild horses and two burros were removed after an extremely long day that lasted close to 12 hours. All horses and burros looked to be in excellent body condition, and there were no reported deaths.
Background:
Located in Hines, Oregon, the Warm Springs HMA, located just southwest of Burns, Oregon, encompasses 474,547 acres. The BLM has set an arbitrarily low Appropriate Management Level (AML) of 96-178 wild horses and 15-24 burros. The current wild horse population is estimated at 738 adult horses, 147 foals, and 49 burros (as of March 2018).
After the current roundup of 100% of the wild horses in the HMA and following the surgical sterilization of mares, the BLM intends to return 100 horses (50/50 mare/stallion ratio) to a fenced area of the range as the control group and 100 horses (50 stallions and 50 mares, 34 of whom will have undergone surgery to remove their ovaries) to an adjacent, fenced area as the study group. The remaining approximately 685 horses will be permanently removed from the range. The horses will be studied for four years, after which time they will be rounded up again and reduced to the low "appropriate" management level of 96. More info on the sterilization experiments can be found here.
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