The Blue Wing roundup began on July 8 during an intense heatwave. BLM refused to postpone this operation with devastating consequences including deaths simply during transport. Extended Heat Index rises correlate with high death rates. This one of the points of data WHE has collected over the last 16 years as we amassed the largest collection of roundup documentation in the world. We have not been able to find a single avenue to address our finding to prevent continuation of suffering and death. BLM has just dug in their heels and refuses to change.

We are in court, right now, trying to gain an enforceable welfare policy. BLM does not apply standards equally across all states and districts. BLM does not even know what to call their “policy, protocol, standards, memo” on welfare.

While we are battling this out in the courts, you can help.

Please make a call. Our wild ones desperately need an enforceable welfare policy that is crafted with transparency, public participation and complies with current welfare standards for equines.

The phone number for Congress is: (202) 224-3121. You should put it in your speed dial. Call the number tell the operator who your representative is (or where you live if you do not know) and you will be connected to an aide in the office. Ask to register your concerns and request. Ask that an amendment to the funding bill for the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program be crafted to simply create a line item for funding for “Rulemaking to create an enforceable welfare policy.”

You can follow our team daily commentary from the Blue Wing Complex roundup by clicking HERE.

Operations continued in the Shawave HMA. (You can see footage from another day at Shawave where BLM pushed operations when the Air Quality Index hit over 350, the dark purple zone where you are told not to even go outside, click HERE).

BLM NV has said they will not update numbers until noon the following day. This is another way BLM NV is different than other states. At North Lander in Wyoming, BLM updates by 9 p.m. the same night. BLM NV logs the highest death rates in the nation during capture, does not give observers any information about what happened (roping, injury, orphans) and does not have a BLM employee at the end of any “escort” to make sure observers do not get lost or crash.

Updated numbers:

5 more have died: 12-year-old, Bay stallion due to lameness, BLM said “previous injury to right rear hock.” 20-year-old, Roan mare killed due to heart disease-failure (our commentary if you look for the old roan w/foal in video: if she had issues with her heart, it was probably capture stress). 9-year-old, Sorrel stallion killed due to lameness, BLM said “previous injury to front right knee.” 25-plus-year-old, Gray stallion put down BLM said “due to poor body condition (BCS 1) with a poor chance of recovery (this is a body score 1 horse, A body score “1” would not have the energy needed to run from the chopper. We saw no body score “1”. 12-year-old, Bay mare put down due to broken left hind leg. (As usual, BLM NV is NOT documenting deaths according to the requirements of the CAWP “policy, protocol. whatever they call it that day.” We have always had serious concerns with certain personnel when they are “in charge” of determining who lives and who dies.)

BLM NV continues to log the highest death rates at trap with a total of 21 so far. The death rate at Blue Wing is four times, four times, the death rate at North Lander in Wyoming. 

Captured 7/18: 112 (41 Stallions, 49 Mares, and 22 Foals)

Note: When BLM NV says “released,” they mean escaped. One horse escaped even though trapping continued in the area today, BLM will count the two escapees as “left on range” even though they were probably recaptured.

We will update as soon as BLM provides their official count. 

Below: The first run of the day saw a beautiful band captured.

Below: You can see foals comfort each other in the confusion. Wild horses are extremely intelligent beings with strong family bonds.

Below: These 3 put up a fight and were let go. As opposed to most days during this operation where pursuit even continued on the last run as temperatures soared in the heat. This type of pursuit even applied to a single burro that dared to make a last bid for freedom. 

Below: 2 mares and 2 little foals were brought into the trap. One mare tries a desperate escape and falls hard.

Our team remains onsite.

The battle go gain fair management for wild horses and burros at the 2.2 million acre Blue Wing Complex, where BLM claims only 333-555 wild horses and 55-90 wild burros can be sustained (because they set the numbers in an agreement with county and livestock permittees back in the 80s).

You can follow our team daily commentary from the Blue Wing Complex roundup by clicking HERE.

We are in the field, at the table and in the courts to preserve our wild ones in the wild and protect them from abuse.

Thank you for keeping WHE on the frontline in the fight!