Dear Friends of Wild Horses,
� Attached is a press release and below are actions that you can take to save America's wild horses from slaughter. The following site will give you access to your Congressional members in your state. � http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html � What the current rider to the Appropriations law will do: Wild horses over the age of ten will automatically be sent to slaughter Wild horses aged ten and under will go to slaughter is they are not adopted in three adoptions BLM does not have to advertise adoptions Horses will be sold to the highest bidder ("killer buyers") Selling wild horses to slaughter will no longer be considered a crime. Facts about Wild Horses: In 1971, there were 303 herd areas designated for wild horses and burros Today there are only 186 herd areas left In 1974, there were 60,000 wild horses and burros on public lands Today there are less than 35,000 wild horses and burros on public lands according to BLM statistics BLM plans to bring the population down to 20,000 wild horses and burros At above levels, 70% of the herd areas will have less than 100 animals - meaning that populations will not be genetically viable with reduced levels. Currently, wild horses are far more genetically diverse compared to any breed of domestic horse in the US.� This means that wild horses are healthier and have little to no inbreeding in the herds. No age of wild horse is unadoptable.� Time and patience allows for a bonding between human and horse regardless of age. Because of nature's breeding program, wild horses have nearly perfect conformations and are extremely healthy and survival oriented.� They are by nature curious and form lasting human-animal bonds. Many of the herds have ancestry dating back to the Spanish Conquistadors. What will happen: Approximately 14,000 wild horses will go to slaughter immediately. The door is open for thousands of more horses to go to slaughter The great genetic diversity of wild horses will be diminished as BLM reduces populations to below viable levels. Why is this happening: Wild horses have had to fight for every blade of grass since the turn of the 20th century. Wild horses were driven out of plush ranges and survived in locations uninhabitable my cattle - hence the�birth of public lands. Many public lands ranchers would like to see wild horses eliminated on public lands. Only 2% of the beef eatin in the US comes from public lands ranching. More than 50% of leased public lands is leased by 3% of the permittees who comprise large corporations such as mining, oil, banks etc. Public lands ranching costs the taxpayers approximately 1/2 billion dollars per year while the Wild Horse and Burro program costs the taxpayers 11 million per year. Ranchers pay the BLM $1.43 per cow plus a calf per month (AUM) to graze on public lands.� Imagine feeding a 2,000 pound animal (cow and calf) for $1.43 per month.� It is unlikely that you could raise a hamster for that amount of money per month. According to the GAO report in 1990, wild horses were NOT the cause of declining rangelands but it was attributed to overgrazing by cattle. Private ranchers must pay at least $35.00 per month for their cows and must compete against public lands ranching while most of the beef eaten in the US comes from our private ranchers. Most wild horse herd areas have cattle grazing in the herd areas. There are millions of acres where there are no horses and cattle graze. There is a complacency amongst the American people who think wild horses are being protected because of the Wild Horse and Burro Act.� Few people know that we have less horses now than when the act passed in 1971. BLM has never really had a marketing plan or training program for staff and a business cannot produce without either. BLM originally was a grazing agency and were mandated by law to manage the wild horses.� Therefore, the wild horse and burro program never really had a fighting chance during those early years when the program was in its infancy because those who wanted to rid the public lands of wild horses were in charge of the program. BLM is under the false impression that wild horses over the age of ten are unadoptable.. Not true. This really could be the "White Hat" program of the BLM if they desired. What to do: Call your Representative and ask them to remove the Rider #142 from the Appropriation Bill.� House is due to meet on 12/6/04 Call Senator Conrad Burns�of Montana and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill.� 202-224-2644 or 1-800-344-1513. Call the President's comment line and tell him that you protest the slaughter of America's wild horses. 202-456-2461 Call Senator Reid of Nevada and ask him to remove the rider from the Appropriation Bill 202-224-3542. E-mail this letter to as many people as possible For further questions: Call the International Society for the Protection of Mustangs and Burros - 605-964-6866 or 605-365-6991 Future Plans: A delegation of Native American presidents, chiefs, and spiritual leaders will go to Washington to speak with the President and Secretary Norton of the Interior.��A press conference will be held in Washington.� Our goal is to ask that the wild horses not be slaughtered and offer a solution to take excess wild horses to different tribal lands to protect the horses on those lands. Introduce�legislation to�amend the Wild Horse and Burro Act to reinstitute protections in 109th Congress. Current Situation: ISPMB is the oldest wild horse and burro organization in the US and responsible for the passage of the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act that protected wild horses from slaughter. ISPMB is the only organization in the US that manages wild horse herds. ISPMB already manages three wild horse herds on the Cheyenne River Reservation.� The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe manages a fourth herd given to them by ISPMB. Plans are underway to give a fifth herd to the Osage Indians in OK. www.ispmb.org� or [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thank you for helping our wild horses Karen Sussman President ISPMB � PO Box 55 Lantry, SD� 57636 � 605-964-6866 605-365-6991 � � UPDATE: � Please stay in touch with ISPMB as we have the most current information on the legislation that will kill thousands of wild horses. �Correction - hot line for the White House� (202)456-1111 � Please flood your Representative's lines asking that they remove Rider #142 from the Appropriations Bill HR 4818. Tell them that you will not stand by while our wild horses are slaughtered.� The wild horses represent what our country stands for and that is FREEDOM. � Below is the Bill.� IT HAS NOT PASSED THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.� They meet on Monday at 2PM and work through Wednesday.� There is time to STOP THIS!!! � Here is the link to the H.Rpt. 108-792� Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 4818 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005.� Click on Division E which covers appropriations language for DOI, either the text version or the PDF version, whichever you prefer.� The amendment is under Sec. 142. The text is as follows: SEC. 142. SALE OF WILD FREE-ROAMING HORSES AND BURROS. (a) IN GENERAL.--Section 3 of Public Law 92-195 (16 U.S.C. 1333) is amended--��� (1) in subsection (d)(5), by striking ``this section'' and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting ``this section.''; and��� (2) by adding at the end the following:��� ``(e) SALE OF EXCESS ANIMALS.--��� ``(1) IN GENERAL.--Any excess animal or the remains of an excess animal shall be sold if--��� ``(A) the excess animal is more than 10 years of age; or��� ``(B) the excess animal has been offered unsuccessfully for adoption at least 3 times.��� ``(2) METHOD OF SALE.--An excess animal that meets either of the criteria in paragraph (1) shall be made available for sale without limitation, including through auction to the highest bidder, at local sale yards or other convenient livestock selling facilities, until such time as--��� ``(A) all excess animals offered for sale are sold; or��� ``(B) the appropriate management level, as determined by the Secretary, is attained in all areas occupied by wild free-roaming horses and burros. ``(3) DISPOSITION OF FUNDS.--Funds generated from the sale of excess animals under this subsection shall be--��� ``(A) credited as an offsetting collection to the Management of Lands and Resources appropriation for the Bureau of Land Management; and ��� ``(B) used for the costs relating to the adoption of wild free-roaming horses and burros, including the costs of marketing such adoption.��� '`(4) EFFECT OF SALE.--Any excess animal sold under this provision shall no longer be considered to be a wild free-roaming horse or burro for purposes of this Act.''. Sorry this took so long -- I've been swamped, needless to say.� Even though it is highly unlikely that we can get this amendment pulled before the President signs it, we are working Nancy Pelosi's office just in case,�if at the very least�she can make a statement on the House floor on Monday so it can be recorded in the Congressional Record.� � Below is how to access your Representatives and Senators.� Call and e-mail. � http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html � Call these numbers and e-mail � President Bush -� 202-456-1111��� [EMAIL PROTECTED] � VP Cheney��� -����� 202-456-2461��� [EMAIL PROTECTED] � Senator Harry Reid� -�202-224-3542 Senator Conrad Burns� 1-800-344-1513 or 202-224-2644 � For more information please contact ISPMB at [EMAIL PROTECTED] � Thankyou for your help! � Karen A. Sussman President, ISPMB � PO Box 55 Lantry, SD� 57636 � 605-964-6866 605-365-6991 � Yahoo! 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