PRESS REPORTS INDEX

For background information on this issue, please see the news story -
Senate Appropriations Bill Directs BLM to Sell Wild Horses and Burros for Slaughter,
KBR Wild Horse & Burro News, updated 12/12/04.

Report Says Keeping Public Lands Open for Grazing Costs $123 Million a Year
Environmental Network News 11/01/05
Ranchers continue receive huge subsidies while school lunches for the poor are cut.

Wild and Free
Boston Globe 7/4/05
A thought piece by Deanne Stillman

Horse plan draws ire
Los Angeles Daily News
A response from major horse and humane groups to the latest wild horse "protection" scheme

Land Study on Grazing Denounced
Los Angeles Times 6/18/05
Retired scientists allege grazing report "doctored" to favor public lands ranchers

(Related Story)

Government eases rules for livestock that graze on federal land
USA Today 6/18/05
Range and wildlife advocates charge that rules make stopping range degradation impossible

BLM orders sales of wild horses halted
Las Vegas Review-Journal 4/26/05
Sales suspended when known slaughter reaches a total of 41 horses

(Follow-up Article)

To Protect Mustangs, BLM Imposes New Rules on Animal Sales
Washington Post 5/26/05
BLM Director attempts to "tighten up" sale authority

Stop Killing Wild Horses
Las Vegas Sun 5/10/05
Editorial that explains the situation and expresses outrage.

• A related Nevada Editorial in May:
  Wild-horse Debate should be Open to All
  Nevada Appeal, 5/4/05
  Very sensible position by the state capitol newspaper's Editoral Board

Don't Allow Slaughter of Wild Horses
Reno Gazette-Journal 4/23/05
Northern Nevada's largest paper weighs in.

Tale of the Rolex Ranchers and the Living Legends
Manes and Tails Organization, 3/17/05
Who really does use our western public lands?

Reprieve for mustangs
Contra Costa (CA) Times, 2/15/05
This "tell it like it is" piece is our editorial pick for February!

Seeing America in a Wild Mustang
Laramie Boomerang, 3/13/05
Story of WY corporation who intends to breed mustangs for export

Nevada mustangs sold under new rules
Reno Gazette-Journal, 3/2/05

New law on wild horses met with kicks, snorts
AP via Sierra Times, 3/24/05

Horse Slaughtering Law Alarms Activists
AP via Yahoo! News, 2/25/05

Bill introduced to halt wild horse slaughter; horse lovers rally
Animal People, 1/26/05

Animal rights group wants to give doomed horses to tribes
Native American Times, 1/26/05

Government-Approved Slaughter
OpEd News, 3/805
An interesting piece that opens with the burros of Oatman, AZ.

Bush's proposed BLM cuts could hurt Nevada
Las Vegas Sun, 2/07/05

Can America's wild horses survive another four years of Bush?
By Deanne Stillman
Slate, 2/16/05

BLM puts focus on wild horse adoption
Casper Star-Tribune, 2/6/04

Wild horse patrons appeal to the public,
Reno Gazette-Journal, 1/03/05

Wild-horse advocates continue political struggle,
Nevada Appeal, 1/12/05

Thousands of America's wild horses will be slaughtered!
USANews Network, 11/27/04

Save the wild horses
Washington Times, 12/06/04

Burns amendment riles some animal lovers
Great Falls Tribune (online), 12/10/04

Grim provision shows lack of horse sense
The Missoulian (Senator Burns' home newspaper), 12/12/04

They shoot horses, don't they?
New Dem On-Line, 12/13/04

Senator, BLM conspire to destroy wild horse herds
Las Vegas Mercury, 12/16/04

Wild horses and burros could face slaughter
The Union (Nevada City, CA), 12/19/04

Wild Horse supporters buck at contentions by Preston Wright
The Illinois Leader, 12/21/04

Worst No-Show in Montana Politics: U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns
Missoula Independent, 12/27/04

Congress ends federal protection of wild horses
MSNBC webcast of NBC Nightly News story, 12/30/04

While off the record comments by concerned BLM employees may differ, here is BLM's Official Statement

In media appearances spokespeople for the beef industry have supported Senator Burns and it is widely believed that this legislation, surreptitiously slipped into the omnibus spending bill by the Senator, was done as a favor to beef cattle ranchers. Many ranchers enjoy very favorable lease rates to put grazing cattle on public rangelands, however some of those lands are also legally occupied by wild free-roaming horses under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Some ranchers would like to see all the horses removed.

Please see the news story - Nevada Cattlemen back measure to sell BLM's surplus wild horses, Nevada Appeal, 12/3/04.

Many wild horse advocates have endorsed putting economic pressure on the beef industry in order for the industry to pressure Senator Burns to repeal his measure and produce a more reasonable and humane approach to deal with the wild horse population situation. Others are also calling for a complete review of private grazing leases on public lands.

The effort has been dubbed, "Eat Something Else!!!" A story on this effort can be viewed here.

This feature will be updated as additional news links are received.