Triple B_ Day 5 Extended

By Laura Leigh on July 20, 2022

Video: Band with a newborn is run. Mare seems surprised that her baby did not stay hidden as she tries to draw off the chopper from her foal. It is actually foaling season. It is written that foaling season is against regulations. However, the agency designation of foaling season is not based on any herd data in this HMA; it is a designation used broadly to represent all HMAs. We wonder how many newborns “stay put” or are left behind?

Day 5 of the 2022 Triple B roundup (day 3 of trapping) saw 39 (14 Stallions, 17 Mares, and 8 Foals) wild horses captured on the first day at the new trap site.

We observed several very, very, young foals and heavily pregnant mares. The pace of runs has picked up at Triple B. Temperatures rise very quickly on the range. The day began around 60 degrees and rose to 98. BLM says because our gear is not as expensive as theirs, it only rose to 95. It appears there is a consistent 2-3 degree difference.between the two pieces of equipment. BLM will also repeatedly state that “the temperature at the trap” are the ones that count, not on the rises or the next valley where they were run. (Many of you are asking about temperatures. Just like everything else, it needs a bit of context.)

Video: run 2

BLM reported 3 deaths on the website, but did not inform onsite observers. They report: 20+ year-old sorrel stallion euthanized: pre-existing fractured right front leg. 5-year-old bay stallion euthanized: pre-existing, sway back. 5-year-old bay mare euthanized: pre-existing fractured back. We were aware the BLM was considering euthanizing one horse for a “pre-existing broken leg” yesterday, but were not informed onsite of the others.

Video: The 3rd run of the day; more youngsters. Possibly the first group.

Each day we document as much as we are able to see. This creates a lot of hours of footage.

This next series is for those of you looking for the “long story” of a full run. All of these videos are the same bands.

Video below: The beginning of our ability to document the run as wild horses come over a rise and down the hillside. Many young foals and pregnant mares can be viewed. Even though we have edited some of the clips for time (we have to load based on bandwidth) you can see the expanse of the valley they will be driven through, again and again.

Video: You can see the large groups fracture to try to protect the foals and escape. While you watch these drives you can see many valiant attempts by stallions (and lead mares) to try to draw off the predator (helicopter).

Video: The culmination of these drives does not result in a single run into the trap. Bands try to run home or hide as other bands get run into a trap… and then they, in turn, are run back across the valley. In the video below, you can see a very young foal fall back on the drive into trap and get covered, repeatedly, by the helicopter wash. It appears wranglers were able to simply grab the exhausted baby as the helicopter goes out to make another push to trap.

As our team member saw this brave stallion looking for his family after several attempts to draw off the helicopter, she knew he would become a target. Video below shows this wild stallion leave the world nature bred him to survive in and enter a system where he is now just a number in inventory. He will be trucked to an off-limits to public viewing facility, gelded and branded as unadoptable. He will be sale eligible, immediate title transfer to the buyer. His price will range from $5-$25 dollars. If he skirts the loophole into the slaughter pipeline, he will ship to a privately owned facility and remain off-limits to viewing. It is important to note that Congress is now debating/researching killing all of the horses in holding, again, due to the overcrowding of facilities as BLM enters into the third year of accelerated removals under the 2020 Plan (that incorporates the Path Forward lobby document).

As more video is readied for upload from Day 5, we will add additional footage.

Our team is back onsite today.

We work very hard to try to bring comprehensive coverage to you from the field. Roundups represent the consequence of a system run for the benefit of corporate interests; drowning in whitewashing, greenwashing and excuses. It is a lot of work to bring the roundup into your home from all the way out here.

Edited to answer questions: Several of you have said others are reporting that we did not go to temporary holding. Yes, we did. We just have not had time to load everything. This is a lot of work. We are moving as fast as possible.