We have often written about captive stallions and how they have lost all they were hard wired to be, a protector of family and freedom. Once captive, band stallions in their prime are generally not adopted and fall into the black hole of holding never to be seen again.
Last week, a special father and son we knew from the Surprise Complex took the ride to sanctuary. On Thursday morning we met Clare and Janelle at the Litchfield corrals as they loaded Spartacus and Gatsby. We followed them back to Skydog for the release.
Below: Skydog Instagram. You can see more on their Instagram and Facebook pages.
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We are truly grateful to see these two, that fought so hard, go to their new home. These two both escaped trap in 2021. Spartacus, as a baby, also escaped trap as his father led the way over a decade ago.
The saga of the Surprise Complex is truly a heartbreak. Surprise sits in an area conjoined with the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife (USFWS) agency. At Sheldon it became an experimental ground with spaying, gelding and vasectomies. The herd became the behaviorally stunted herd we have every seen as birthrates dropped below 4%, foal survival rates dropped as the few stallions (and those with vasectomies) vied aggressively for the few fertile mares on the range. The herds at Sheldon were virtually wiped out in 2014. It was really hard to get advocacy to pay attention and recognize what was happening at Sheldon and was the precursor of the plan for all herds.
At Surprise, in 2021, BLM hit Appropriate Management Level (AML) and used PZP. Without doing a census flight and under political pressure, in 2023 BLM did another roundup and switched to GonaCon in a two dose regime, primarily on older mares that will likely die before the vaccine wears off in 4-10 years. (You can read more about what happened in 2023 in what could be the end of the Surprise herds we once knew HERE You can also see video and images of Spartacus and Gatsby escapes in 2021 and capture in 2023)
The same happened at Calico, the last piece of the great herds of NW NV. Driving through that whole area is like driving through a place that has lost part of it’s soul…
Below: Gatsby peeks out of the trailer and the father and son duo at Litchfield right before loading.
For these two the journey took a twist. They were separated out and watched the rest of the stallions load to go to facilities and places unknown. They sat in these pens alone as Litchfield is readied to take in wild horses from the next set of roundups planned at Twin Peaks and elsewhere.
Then Skydog came. These truly wild horses, that do not know much of humans except the roundups, loaded and took the long drive to their new home.
We are still on the road and trying to process all that happened during the journey of father and son.
In the wild, a young colt will usually be kicked out of the family band by the age of two. He may spend a year following his family on the outskirts or join a band of bachelors. Gatsby followed his family and then began following another band trying to get a mare. He was still an “interloper” when he escaped in 2021, he had just gotten his first mares when captured in 2023.
Once captured, many of our readers see mares that try to regroup into as much of the family structure as they can when they are taken into facilities. If you visit a facility you may see a mare with a new foal surrounded by her mom and female band members.
What many of you do not realize is that studs try to do the same thing… but they have no mares. However, generations of boys (father, sons and grandfathers) will often join together for safety in holding facilities. Spartacus and Gatsby were inseparable.
We are forever grateful to Clare Staples, Skydog Sanctuary and all the amazing people that will care for these two now.
For months they have lived with the banging of chutes and metal bars, trucks coming and going, no trees or shelter in holding, nothing they know as natural.
That first night at Skydog, they could smell and hear the sounds of nature as the sun went down… surrounded by horses that have lived in peace.
Happy Father’s Day, Spartacus. May you and your son Gatsby know nothing but peace for the rest of your days at Skydog.
Our team is back to work and have much to share from home range at Surprise, many other herds across the West, litigation and more.
This Father’s day weekend… we celebrate all the links in the chain of people devoted to protecting our wild ones.
Thank you for helping to keep WHE working in field, breaking ground through litigation and educating the media and Congress during these dangerous times for all living beings on our public lands.
Categories: Wild Horse Education
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