But the mule eluded capture, earning the name Flying Wind. This past Sunday, a team from In Defense of Animals (IDA), along with a team from Have A Heart Horse Rescue (HAHHR), a Mississippi horse welfare organization, finally accomplished the safe confinement of Flying Wind. IDA would like to especially thank Sheila Horton of HAHHR.

Flying Wind’s capture brings to a close the month-long ordeal that began with IDA being granted temporary custody of 15 horses and a mule found in various stages of malnourishment. Flying Wind’s ability to jump fences not only allowed him to stay nourished with generous access to hay, it also allowed him to freely roam on 70 acres. This made capture very difficult and he was obviously enjoying his freedom and newly discovered superiority.

Once a halter was slipped over Flying Wind’s head, IDA volunteer David Gray led him to a secure confinement area.  After helping Flying Wind calm down, David was able to lead and load him into a waiting trailer and he was finally on his way to Have A Heart Horse Rescue and Sanctuary in Coila, Mississippi to join the seven Yazoo County horses being rehabilitated at HAHHR.

Flying Wind is enjoying his new ‘temporary’ home where he will receive veterinary care and be evaluated for eventual adoption.

In other Hope Animal Sanctuary news, we also rescued a donkey named Percy from a guardian who no longer wanted to care for him. IDA-HAS had previously offered sanctuary for Percy when he was held at a Mississippi shelter. Instead, he was adopted to an individual. That person grew weary of caring for him, and the Drew, MS animal control officer contacted IDA-HAS to ask if haven was still an option for Percy. Members of the IDA-HAS rescue team brought Percy home on January 20.  Percy immediately took to his new home and companions.  He’s been playing with Arlin, the Barbados sheep who barely escaped becoming a trophy intended for a regional man’s wall.

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Debbie: “I’d been watching the news about starving horses five miles from my home. I had been told a few days earlier that the local humane society was working on either a seizure order or attempting to the get the keeper of the horses to voluntarily surrender them.

As of December 15, with at least 15 horses in various stages of malnourishment and several dead horses on the property in various stages of decomposition, the Yazoo County (Mississippi) Sheriff’s Department filed cruelty charges against Alvin Ross. Mr. Ross turned himself in and immediately posted bond. He then moved the horses to unknown locations. Now the horses wouldn’t even get the extra hay that was being thrown over the fence to them by concerned people.

On December 20, I received a call from a friend who was frantic because nothing was being done to take custody of the horses and get them the rehabilitative care they so desperately needed. It turned out the local humane society had decided NOT to proceed with seizure action, and the Sheriff’s Department was unable to take responsibility for the care of the horses.

I placed an urgent call to Doll Stanley of Hope Animal Sanctuary and her response was immediate. IDA would attempt to secure a seizure order for the horses. That afternoon, with a seizure order in hand thanks to IDA, I went to the Yazoo County Sheriff’s Department to request its assistance in processing the order. After some serious verbal wrangling, the investigator realized we weren’t going away. He instructed us to return early the next morning when the deputy who had been working the case would be on duty, and the Justice Court judge would be in court. After an extended wait, the deputy took us to Justice Court where a sympathetic clerk gave me the first ray of hope since this all began. Thanks to excellent television coverage regarding the case, she was aware of the condition of the horses and made sure the judge was shown all the accompanying photos. We had a signed seizure order that was served immediately.

Within hours, we took over the care of the first four horses. That night they were warm, with fresh hay, and a measured amount of senior horse feed to begin their long journey back to a healthy weight.

The Mississippi Board of Animal Health (MBAH) responded to a phone call regarding the dead horses on the property. The Board discovered five dead horses and four sets of skeletal remains. Mr. Ross had a “killing field” for horses. Mississippi law requires dead “livestock” be buried within 24 hours, so Mr. Ross was charged a $1,000 fine for each of the dead horses. He could not be fined for the skeletal remains since the time of death could not be accurately determined. He also faced fines for each horse he removed from the property without a verifiable Equine Infectious Anemia test. He was ordered to provide the location of the horses he had moved.

Thanks to the action of the MBAH, coupled with the issuing of the seizure order, Mr. Ross complied the next day with the remaining 11 horses. The lone mule is still on the property and being fed.

All of the horses suffer malnourishment ranging from moderate to severe. Their bodies are covered in thousands of blood-sucking ticks (the veteran rescuers agree they have never seen such infestation) and rain rot (bacteria) so bad it has gone through their skin. Two of the horses, both mares, suffer life-threatening conditions due to starvation and neglect but both are starting to show small signs of regaining their strength, and we are hopeful they will live to enjoy a life filled with love and comfort.

Have a Heart Horse Rescue graciously offered to take on some of the horses to help with their rehabilitation. Seven of the horses are in their care. All the others are in foster care at multiple locations and are doing as well as can be expected. Now that they are receiving life-saving nutrition, the ticks are being removed by brushing. The emaciated state of the horses makes it dangerous to use chemicals that will kill the ticks, so brushing is the safest remedy. The rain rot will be treated slowly with antibacterial shampoos as the weather allows.

I wish to thank Doll Stanley and In Defense of Animals for always being ready to take decisive action to help animals who have no voice. There are now fifteen horses in Mississippi who have food in their bellies and warmth from the cold. I am also so grateful to IDA supporters.”

Deborah L. Young

Stay tuned to IDA’s website and eNews for more news about the 15 horses as they fight their way back to health (and the mule), as well as the cruelty charges filed against Alvin Ross.

*UPDATE*

January 13, 2012 – IDA has been granted permanent custody of 15 starving horses and a mule seized after Yazoo County resident Alvin Ross was found guilty today in Yazoo County Justice Court, of nine counts of cruelty to animals. Charges were filed by the Sheriff’s Department on December 15, 2011, following the discovery of nine dead horses in varying stages of decomposition on the property. Ross was found guilty of confining the horses without sufficient quantity of wholesome food, a misdemeanor under Mississippi animal cruelty laws.  The remaining horses were seized under a court order issued by Justice Court Judge Pam May on December 21, 2011, and are now at various locations receiving much-needed rehabilitative foster care and veterinary treatment.  Judge May, who presided over the hearing today, offered to suspend the fines if Ross would surrender all rights to the seized horses.

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The plight of horses is worsening. Some blame the economy; others say banning horse slaughter in the U.S. meant “owners” who couldn’t sell their horses let them starve. I say it’s both selfishness and ignorance. Horses are being overbred just like other companion animals. Those who think they can make a buck breed and then find out there are no buyers, at least at the prices they want, and they don’t want to feed what they can’t make money off of and certainly don’t want to give away what they might someday sell. The glut of horses means you can buy a horse for $50, or get one from someone who wants to “unload.”  It’s cool to have a horse and to tell folks you have a horse. Horses are like “trophy brides”: they express status, and, of course, there are some who actually think they’ll ride. The question is how many of these people are caught up in a whim with no thought of how to actually care for horses.

Three weeks ago, I traveled to Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, to look at three horses, two on one property, and another nearby.  The mailbox to one of the properties was open so I couldn’t see the house number. As the numbers weren’t in a cohesive sequence, I’d passed the property by a mile and spotted two other horses at residences along the road. The majestic but thin black horse was chained in the back yard, without water. A neighbor had three horses, one who looked pretty good, one a bit slight, and one clearly needing attention. I left cards as no one was home, took pictures and video, and headed back to where I’d spotted emaciated pit bulls.

From the western direction I could now see a horse behind the mobile home. A young man was working on a truck in the yard and I got out and spoke with him.  He was working on the resident’s truck, who was at work. I gave him my card, told him the dogs seriously need to gain weight, and to ask the man to call me. I told him I wasn’t going to take pictures as I entered the property to speak with him and that I’d take the matter up with the resident.  At that point I could see the horse was tethered to a stake that was in the center of a pile of debris, metal, junk, you name it.  The horse couldn’t raise his head and he was severely malnourished. No water. The young man untangled him and untied the tether and moved the horse under a tree to which he tethered the horse. He got the horse some water and I thanked him, but told him the condition of the horse was grave and asked that he make certain the man understood to call me.

By the time I’d gone to look at the other two horses I’d heard about, I found nine horses in substandard to horrific conditions. The deputy I normally request aid from was in court but when I reached the sheriff’s office my deputy friend was there. He and another deputy listened to me relay the plight of the horse, and my friend jotted down the addresses of the horses and said he’d checked on a couple of them before. He also said he’d catch up with the “owners,” clearly not guardians of the horses, and advise them that IDA would be gaining custody if they didn’t care for them. A naïve stance at best.  How do you just tell someone to do what he clearly doesn’t know how to do, or care enough to do?  There are some animals a person can be given time to make provisions for, but not a delicate horse who’s already at the brink of no return.

I was just sick, but I knew the kindly deputy saw things his way and would have to see for himself. My urging immediate action was of no avail.

The deputy told me he’d tell the people I’d be back in two to three weeks. I was, and three of the nine horses had disappeared—the horribly pitiful horse among them. A woman in the yard said the “owner” had come to get him. I told her the man to whom I spoke who was in the yard said her husband was the “owner.” Finding the horse may be impossible, but the dogs are there, and I gave her advice on their care and two weeks to improve their condition.

The majestic black horse was in pasture now, and I had the blessing of giving his guardian a ride to pick up a lawn mower part down the road. We talked about his horse, and he assured me that he loved him and wouldn’t chain him anymore. He said he did it to let the horse eat some of the grass he’d been unable to cut without the mower part. We parted friends, and I told him I’d keep him to his word and check back.

I will be following up with my deputy to see what he can learn as to the disappearance of the three horses and ask for his aid in pressuring seizure or compliance on the other horses.

Yesterday I went on my own to see about a horse reported to be starving. The caller said two other horses had already died in the small pasture. This horse was also in Tallahatchie County. I found the horse and she was thin. A quick stop at a neighboring residence, and I learned the uncle of the man failing the horse lived just across the road.

Four big dogs greeted me. One wasn’t sure this stranger should come around, one smothered me in nail-gripping affection, and the other two were content to run beside me. I heard a whistle from the edge of the woods and saw two men approaching. They were imbibing in liquid libation. The men were polite, but the elder man, the uncle to the man I was looking for, clearly would have preferred to meet me under different circumstances. This man didn’t know I was informed that one of the horses who died was his. To be certain he covered himself, he told me he’d told his nephew to care for the horse and had told him he didn’t want to have “nothing” to do with horses anymore. I told him the horse was starving, and he needed to let his nephew know it would be better to speak with me than law enforcement. In less than an hour I got the call.

The younger man started with, “My uncle said I should call you.”  I told him his horse was malnourished and I new another horse had just been buried. He said, “I don’t know what’s wrong with that horse.” The conversation was pat, like a script from so many cases. “I’ll tell you what’s wrong with the horse—she’s starving,” I responded. “Well I don’t know what to feed her. Everybody keeps telling me something different to feed,” he said defensively. “Something would have been better than nothing,” I retorted.  “Well, what should I do.” “You’ve got two choices. You can grain her twice a day and provide quality hay, or you can surrender her to us. We don’t make any money off the horses we rescue.  We care for them until they can be placed with people who will care for them,” I concluded.  He already knew there was the threat of arrest. I wanted a “free will” surrender without the implication of threats. “Well then, just come and get her, “ he said.  And I did.

This morning I spoke with the Roger and Peggy Brister. Roger keeps our large horse trailer at his home until our pasture entry is widened, and he just put new tires on our double horse trailer.  He had a job to do, I had errands I needed to tend to, and as Elizabeth and I finished unloading supplies the Bristers drove up.

When we arrived at the pasture site we had to park on the small side road. The pasture was at the slope of a levy without any space for parking. We parked in front of a hedged yard where four women and a child sat enjoining the day on the porch. I called to the women to tell them we’d be parked for a brief time. We’d just come to remove the horse. I knew they were aware of the horse I spoke of.

Roger and Peggy found the opening in the fence where the wooded area met the back corner of the pasture. The horse was wearing a halter and came right to us. Roger clipped the lead rope on and led the gentle, trusting horse out of the opening. She hit the grass like a midnight raid on chocolate. Roger let her have a moment and then moved her along. She stooped to grab a mouthful of grass as she ground the green blades and swallowed them.

I might as well say I named the horse Glory yesterday. She’s such a glorious testimony to the profound innocence of an animal who has been abused and is still so trusting of us.

Glory climbed right into the back of the trailer and the entire rescue was swift and sweet.

One of the women on the porch raised her voice above the wind and asked if we were bringing the horse back. I pretended not to hear her so I could approach her for a genuine conversation about what was taking place. She repeated her question, and I told her, no, we wouldn’t be bringing the horse back. I went on to say the horse was starving, and we would take her to our sanctuary for care. Before I could say I knew another horse had recently died the women chimed in, each letting me know that two horses had died and it was just terrible. They said how much they wished we could have learned about the horses before they died and went on about how no one should keep an animal he or she isn’t going to care for. We had a moment of camaraderie; each of us expressing our beliefs about caring for animals and answering for not doing so.  The occasion would be indelibly marked. These women would tell the story of how the people from the animal place came to save the horse. The fact that law enforcement didn’t come allowed them an atmosphere free from intimidation and leveled the interaction to one of communion with kindred spirits and not law enforcers. I believe word of this event will be more powerful than a news article about just another person who was convicted of something. This was a concrete moment in a community of people who see, listen, and tell.

We arrived home with Glory and, as we pulled into our larger pasture, Everett and Buttercup approached to see who was in the trailer. Within minutes Glory was standing in the midst of horses, people, and our canine grazers, everyone curious to meet her and very excited about a new friend. Elizabeth began to examine her and was shocked when great wads of hair came loose from her back. Glory is thin and has some rain rot issues, but she will prosper and her Glory Days are just beginning.

By the amazing Dan Piraro

Of all the useless arguments I’ve heard to defend the carriage horse industry, none is more maddening than the argument of “tradition.” How can anyone think that honoring a tradition can be more important than basic compassion?

Don’t get me wrong. Traditions are important. They give us a feeling of security and connect us to our heritage. But blind adherence to tradition is a dangerous thing, and there are too many examples of traditions that perpetrated great suffering and oppression. These practices continued in the face of much criticism, shielded only by the argument of “tradition.”

For centuries girls in China endured a foot-binding ritual that literally broke their toes and crippled their bodies, but the practice was so ingrained that it continued. It was said that a woman with bound feet was more civilized, disciplined, and dutiful. This abomination continued for 1,000 years, affecting a billion women, before being banned in the 1900s.

In Europe, for over three centuries, hundreds of boys were castrated, many of them by the Catholic Church, so they could sing soprano as adults.  Efforts to ban this practice took 150 years because of concern by the Church that it would seriously harm attendance if there were no castrati in the choir.

Such examples are not just historical. In 2004, the British government banned the cruel practice of fox-hunting, even with loud opposition that it was an essential icon of British culture and must continue.

One only need look at those poor horses who are forced to pull carriages day-in, day-out, to see the deep despair in their eyes. What kind of existence is it for a horse to spend his days on the clogged streets of NYC pulling a carriage, followed by nights in a dark stall in a warehouse? Where is the chance to frolic, roll in the grass, or nuzzle another fellow horse?

The truth is, while traditions can be quaint, or comforting, or links to bygone era, there are probably many of them that belong in the dustbin of history. And that’s certainly where horse drawn carriages belong.

Wild horses gallop in the Rocky Hills HMA, southeast of Battle Mountain, Nevada. PHOTO CREDIT : USAToday

Despite tremendous public opposition and legal actions the Department of Interior is moving forward with the ill-conceived plan to remove more than 6,000 wild horses and burros from our public lands by October 2010. The Obama Administration’s policy has proven to be both deadly and devastating for wild horses. The Calico Complex roundup, which IDA fought in federal court, has to date taken the lives of 186 horses including 30 foals who have died and 40 spontaneous abortions as reported by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
On July 10, 2010 the BLM began this horrific roundup of wild horses in the summer desert heat in northeast Nevada – the Tuscarora Complex roundup. (See USA Today article.) The BLM reports, given the lack of public access to observe there is no way to verify any BLM-provided information, that 22 wild horses have been killed at the trap site and three have died at the holding facilities. After a lawsuit was filed by Nevada horse advocate Laura Leigh, the BLM began to claim the first part of the Tuscarora roundup (in the Owyhee herd management area) was a “rescue” operation – claiming there was not enough water on the range and that horses were dehydrating. Just last week, IDA had a representative on the ground in Owyhee and observed water, cows and plenty of fencing in and around the Owyhee area.

If dry conditions were so severe one would expect wildlife and cows to be suffering from the same dehydration – yet this was not the case. Rather only wild horses were in need of “rescue.” As one local rancher told IDA – antelope and other wildlife can get under and over fencing, but wild horses cannot. If a need to “rescue” horses occurred – it was clearly a BLM-created problem.

Indeed, in mid-May, the BLM conducted an on-the-ground observation at Owyhee; the promotional video resulting from it, actually titled “Extreme Terrain Requires Extreme Diligence,” stated among other things that “There is little water available to sustain more than 800 horses.” (Also see transcript.) Meanwhile, the BLM warned in its own Environmental Assessment that “Given the dry conditions and the expanding wild horse numbers, along with the limited perennial water sources in the Owyhee HMA, the BLM has a very strong concern that wild horses could suffer from dehydration and possible death in the Owyhee HMA this summer” to justify the disastrous July 10 roundup.

Clearly, the BLM should have taken actions (i.e. fence removal, water delivery, etc.) to mitigate any possible problems. The Tuscarora situation is a classic case whereby the BLM refuses to conduct on-the-range management and reverts to the roundup-removal practice which has already been acknowledged by the Interior Secretary to be an unsustainable practice.  In the case of the horses at Owhyee, just like the horses at Calico, the result is needless suffering and death. Thanks to this broken system, we have more wild horses in government holding facilities (36,000) than free on the range (33,000).

In addition to the BLM-created problem in Tuscarora, the BLM proceeded with using helicopters to roundup these horses in summer-desert temperatures while foals continue to be born. This means newborns and weeks-old foals and still-pregnant mares were run up to eight miles in desert heat. IDA has called for a moratorium on summer roundups and filed an administrative appeal to stop the Tuscarora roundup. We recently received the denial on the appeal and are reviewing our legal options.

We knew fighting the deeply-entrenched BLM would not be easy. We pledge to all the wild horses and burros who have lost their lives, families and freedom that we will continue to fight until these magnificent beings are truly protected and finally given their fair share of our public lands.

Stay tuned for our next action alert – another step in this long fight to bring about the change these animals deserve and need.

We’d like to clarify the outcome of this litigation, further explain why the judge dismissed the lawsuit, and describe why we believe that this groundbreaking case bodes very well for any future litigation.

Judge Friedman’s dismissal of the lawsuit (the ruling can be read here) was based on plaintiffs’ lack of standing – the legal right to issue a lawsuit.  Judge Friedman’s dismissal had nothing whatsoever to do with the merits of the case. In his December 23, 2009 opinion denying plaintiffs’ request for a Preliminary Injunction (decision is here), Judge Friedman did rule, pending further briefing, that BLM’s practice of holding wild horses in long-term holding was likely illegal. He stated that “BLM’s use of long-term holding facilities runs counter to the statute’s mandate that the agency’s management of wild horses occur at ‘the minimal feasible level.’ 16 U.S.C. § 1333(a). Long-term maintenance of thousands of horses in holding pens constitutes intensive management that was not contemplated by Congress when the Wild Horse Act was passed.”  The Judge further wrote, “BLM’s proposed confinement of hundreds or thousands of horses from the Calico Mountains Complex in long-term holding facilities in other states thus appears to contravene the unambiguous intent of Congress as expressed in statutory text and legislative history.” His opinion relied on the statute’s clear, unambiguous prohibition on relocating wild horses and burros to areas of the public lands where they did not exist in 1971 (the year the statute became law).

In light of this Judge Friedman wrote that “the agency’s best option might be to postpone the gather,” although he did go on to elucidate the potential problems with such a postponement. As we know, that postponement did not happen and today over 1,800 Calico wild horses are confined at a BLM facility in Fallon, Nevada. Over 100 horses have died as a result of the roundup and more than 40 heavily pregnant mares had spontaneous abortions – the vast majority died at the Fallon facility.

It’s important to note that Judge Friedman’s May 24, 2010 final ruling “assumes, without deciding, that plaintiffs’ rather conclusory allegations suffice” for legal standing in regards to the roundup and removal of the Calico horses, but that plaintiffs had not established standing with regards to the relocation to long-term holding of the horses. Because the Judge did not issue an injunction stopping the roundup and removal of the horses from Calico and that these actions had already occurred, he determined the roundup and removal issues were moot. The judge determined plaintiffs had not satisfactorily established standing regarding long-term holding, stating that “Their [plaintiffs’] asserted injury results from the removal of wild horses from the Complex, not from the placement of removed horses in long-term holding facilities.”  He further stated that “plaintiffs’ asserted injuries are not sufficiently connected or ‘traceable’ to the agency action in question,” which was the long-term holding issue. These are the reasons for the Judge’s decision to dismiss the case – mootness for a roundup that the Court refused to enjoin, and the Court’s finding that plaintiffs had probably established standing for roundup and removal, but not for relocation to long-term holding.

It is significant that the Court assumed that plaintiffs’ allegations were sufficient for legal standing on the roundup and removal aspects of the litigation. Because the Judge did not address the merits at all in his May 24, 2010 ruling, his preliminary finding in his December 23, 2009 opinion that relocation to long-term holding is likely illegal indicates that the arguments put forth by plaintiffs in this litigation will be successful in any future lawsuit – especially since we fervently believe that the additional briefing requested by the Judge greatly strengthened plaintiffs’ arguments. This case was filed pro bono and we remain extremely grateful for the tremendous generosity of lead attorney William Spriggs, his legal team and law firm Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney.

IDA is determined to continue to fight the BLM’s ill-conceived plans to continue removing wild horses from their homes on the range and stockpiling them in long-term holding

While this proposal awaits a response and approval from the BLM, the agency is sadly moving forward with plans to disperse the Calico horses around the country and sending the remainder to long-term holding – thus permanently separating family members for life.  We urge the BLM to stop these plans and to instead focus their time and energy into making this proposal a reality – a first step to reforming the broken and unsustainable program.

Last Thursday was the last public viewing of the Calico horses being held at the publicly-funded, short-term facility in Fallon, Nevada. IDA is opposed to the ending of public viewing of horses at this facility and urges the BLM to re-institute public access to this BLM-managed facility which holds more than 2,220 wild horses who belong to the American people.  It is ironic that the BLM uses tax dollars to fund this facility and prohibits tax payers from seeing their wild horses at this taxpayer-funded facility.

In the meantime, please be sure to voice your opposition to the unnecessary and inhumane proposed roundups of 2,000 horses and burros in the Reveille roundup of 200 horses (public comments due by June 25).

Last weekend the CBS Sunday Morning news program aired breathtaking video of “Wild Horses of Nevada” at the end of the program. Filmmaker and burro and wild horse advocate Carl Mrozek recently took this video of the beautiful, healthy mustangs in the wild. You can watch the video by clicking here.

Please take a few minutes to post a brief comment to urge CBS News to do a news segment on the wild horse issue.  We hope that if CBS gets a huge response it may trigger broader coverage of the mustang/ burro story. The response over the next several days will be key. This is a prime & rare opportunity for advocates to make their case directly to CBS producers, via the CBS website so please take full advantage of it.

To post a comment after the video:

1) Go to the link, find the mustang video right there, and watch the piece — it’s only about one minute.  It was mostly rough/tough macho mustang stuff, but it definitely shows the healthy, beautiful horses, and Charles Osgood says these are the “… vanishing mustangs…”

2) Directly under the video – click on “[number] Comments” or click on this webpage to add a comment.

3) Next, click on “Add a Comment” and then click on “Log in or Create An Account.”

Below are some ideas to that you may consider when writing your comments. Please write original comments as they will likely be more compelling to producers who read them.

• Great video on wild horses – would be interested why Charles Osgood said the wild horses are vanishing.
• I would like to learn more about these wild horses – could you please do a news story on what is happening to them?
• More information please.

Thank you.

Last week more than 100 citizen-delegates gathered for the “March on Washington” in our nation’s capital. It was wonderful to see more than one hundred citizen-delegates, representing millions of Americans, gathered in our nation’s capital to demand that President Obama and Congress change course and fix the broken wild horse and burro program. Wild horse and burro advocacy groups and animal protection organizations united to step up the pressure on the government. IDA is proud to be a part of this distinguished group. Below is the statement read at the White House rally on behalf of Dr. Katz, IDA’s founder and president.

Dr. Elliot Katz, founder and president of In Defense of Animals, wasn’t able to be here today. He asked that I read this message on his behalf.

On behalf of America’s wild horses and burros, and in honor of Wild Horse Annie and all who have gone before us in this long fight, thank you for your work.  We look forward anxiously to the day that, together, we finish this battle, and America’s wild horses and burros finally receive the protections they so desperately need and deserve.

I am sorry I am not able to be with you today as we express our solidarity and determination to protect the well-being and future of America’s wild horses and burros.

As a veterinarian who has seen first-hand the horrors that occur in slaughter houses and who has seen the videos over the years of the terrible mistreatment of America’s wild horses and burros, I am deeply gratified by your presence here today, and by the work that each and every one of you is doing to put an end to the cruel and unjust policies our government is following.

As one voice together, we ask for an immediate halt to the cruel, abusive and illegal roundups of these treasured beings. I am very pleased for the cooperative efforts of the groups represented here – it is through the combined work of wild horse and burro advocates, animal protection and animal rights advocates that we CAN achieve victory in this important fight.  These combined efforts are exemplified in the presence of everyone out here today, demonstrating that together we can make a significant impact on the well-being of other species.

I am proud that In Defense of Animals has initiated a lawsuit challenging the legality of BLM roundups and long-term holding facilities, and that we have championed this cause for the past few years. As our lawsuit continues in federal court, we are deeply grateful to our legal team from Buchanan, Ingersoll and Rooney — Mr. William Spriggs and his entire team – and we are gratified to have such wonderful co-plaintiffs in renowned ecologist Craig Downer and noted children’s author Terri Farley.

This blog was contributed by Deniz Bolbol, IDA’s Wild Horse and Burros Campaign.