Great meeting with BLM Advisory Board Meeting

Hi all,

Just a quick update.   Just got back to Reno after spending yesterday and today at the Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board meeting in Salt Lake City.  I want to thank Julie for getting me there.  (You are amazing and this was an awesome and extremely important meeting. )  

Wow  I can't believe how expensive everything out in the real world is.  Will feel so great to be back in our little cabin in the woods!!!!!  It really reminded me of why we eat at home, or take our cooler for picnics.   Hmmmmmmm I bet if everyone who eats out at least once or twice a week wanted to save a horse, they would probably have enough funds to actually sponsor one of the wild ones that need a home.  

I have to say that although emotions ran high, I have definitely found that working together on a seemingly hopeless issue far exceeds the benefits of fighting with people.  Not everyone is going to agree with everyone else.  But having respect for each other certainly gets you a lot farther than fighting.

No matter what the reasons, everyone seems to want 1) better range conditions    2) the horses to be managed appropriately, (although people's ideas definitely differ on that issue) 3) to not have thousands upon thousands of horses standing in holding pens.

We need to think about what is best for the horses overall.  There was an excellent suggestion from Callie about the horses in long and short term holding.  IF EVERYONE ON THE COMPUTER WHO SITS AND WRITES EVERYDAY ABOUT SAVING THE HORSES.......WELL - if even half of them put their money where their mouth is, we could have a giant step towards a solution.  Instead of sitting on the computer everyday and yakking about it, start skipping that meal out, or that coffee, and ACTUALLY SAVE A HORSE!   If we had enough people step up, and there are plenty of them out there who purport to want to "save the horses", well - do it!!  I know lots of advocates who cannot "have a horse at their home", but who have found ranches or sanctuaries where they can put their "saved horse"  

I will update more later, just wanted to let y'all know that it was a very successful meeting and that I made it back and wanted to once again tell Julie thank you!  Love you girl!

p

I am sorry, but I think it is plain cruel to leave stallions intact and keep them separate from the mares.  The 11 years that I have spent working with the wild ones, (in a hands on, there nearly every single day situation) PROVE BEYOND A DOUBT THAT in the MAJORITY OF CASES, GELDING A STALLION DOES NOT TAKE AWAY IT'S DESIRE TO PROTECT IT'S MARES.   Even geldings that never got to "be a stallion" will often start acting like one when they get age appropriate.  They fight to protect "their mares", often injuring others who don't take no for an answer.  They FULLY  COVER their mares to the fullest extent, and the only difference is that they are non-reproducing.  I cannot imagine leaving stallions intact and keeping them separate from the mares.  Talk about torture.  The family bands need to remain intact if at all possible.