Wild Horse Advocates Praise Agreement

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“They will be in a good quality home to be 30 years old or more.”

The wild horses up on the Virginia Range are taking it easy this afternoon.

Just above DaMonte Ranch High School, wild horse advocates say their ranks are 30 horses lighter than a year ago.

“They run the risk of being hit by vehicles or picked up by the Department of Agriculture, either way they are gone,” says Shannon Windle, president of the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund.

Horses may still continue to wander into neighborhoods.

The Department of Agriculture, if it sees a safety hazard, will pick them up.

But what happens next has wild horse advocates and the department elated.

“We end up contacting the organization we have the agreement letting them know we have horses. We will exchange horses for 100-dollars per horse with them. At that point they will contact whoever they are going to work with. Whether they work with cooperatives in this area– or out of this area as well–and place the horse at that time,” says Ed Foster with the Department of Agriculture.

Under the agreement, the horses will not be allowed to be set free on the range again, but wild horse advocates say they can offer another alternative.

“They will be in a good quality home to be 30 years old or more. They could be trained to be ridden that’s all the better. The young ones stand the best chance and we realize some of the older horses they may stay with us forever, and we are more than happy to take care of them and provide them with a quality of life that will ensure safety and health,” says Windle.

The contract, signed on March 12 will be renewed on a yearly basis, provided both parties want to continue with the agreement.

Click (HERE) to visit KOLO TV 8 and watch the video report

Baby Diamond was rescued!

 

Cruel way to drag foal by pulling bailing twine around their neck (Photo © Bo Rodriguez)

Cruel way to drag foal by pulling bailing twine around their neck (Photo © Bo Rodriguez)

 

Good News! Baby Diamond (pictured above) and her Mama were rescued from the auction by our friends at Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund. The pair has found an adopter.

“Thank you to everyone who protested, networked and donated to help save the 41 Virginia Range wild horses from probable slaughter,” said Anne Novak, executive director of California-based Protect Mustangs.

“It goes to show the love and respect that not only Nevadans have for the Virginia Range horses, but also the people across the country and around the world who contributed money needed to purchase these horses back from the state of Nevada,” said Shannon Windle, director of the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund.

Members of the public around the world are encouraged to contact Governor Sandoval and tell him you don’t want native wild horses sold at auctions where kill buyers shop. Ask him to give the horses to local advocacy groups rather than sell them into the slaughter pipeline.

Call, email and/or fax Nevada’s Governor Brian Sandoval,
http://gov.nv.gov/contact/governor/

Office Phone: (775) 684-5670

Office Fax: (775) 684-5683

Tweet ©GOVSandoval  Use #NEVADA to let the Governor know you want them protected!

Let the Nevada Bureau of Tourism know you don’t like this! @TravelNevada on Twitter and

Mailing Address

Nevada Commission on Tourism
401 North Carson Street
Carson City, NV 89701


Call Us

  • Direct: (775) 687-4322
  • Toll-free: 1-800-NEVADA-8
  • Fax: (775) 687-6779

 

 

Breaking News: Historic Virginia City wild horses going to auction October 24

Protect Mustangs (Photo by Cat Kindsfather)

Iconic wild horses will need adopters

Famous for the classic TV series, Bonzanza, Virginia City’s wild horses have been trapped and are being processed to be sold at an auction frequented by kill-buyers.

On Oct 24th, twenty-nine Virginia Range wild horses are going to be sold by the State of Nevada at the Fallon Livestock Auction.

Historic Virginia Range wild horses are loosing their freedom due to urban sprawl. Wild horses create biodiversity on the range and reduce fuel for wildfires.

“Nevada has a four legged goldmine but they don’t realize it,” states Anne Novak, executive director of Protect Mustangs. “These native grazers reduce the fuel for multimillion dollar wildfires. Tourists from around the world love taking photographs of historic wild horses living in freedom–living symbols of the wild West. We hope Nevada will get hip to their assets on the range and stop selling them off to the highest bidder.”

Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund will spearhead the rescue lead by Shannon Windle. Protect Mustangs will lend their support to help save the historic wild horses from going to slaughter for human consumption.

Last month 53 Virginia Range wild horses were trapped and sent to the auction. All the horses were rescued thanks to a huge team effort Lead by Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund with Protect Mustangs, Let ‘Em Run, American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign, Least Resistance Training Concepts, HorsePower, Starlight Sanctuary, other groups and individuals around the world.

Read about it in New Zealand’s Horsetalk and Australia’s HorseYard.

Adoption information is here. Contact Anne@ProtectMustangs.org if you want to adopt a wild horse or two.

Contact Governor Sandoval if you don’t like Nevada removing indigenous wild horses and selling them at an auction with kill-buyers. Let them know if you are from out of state or out of the country because Nevada seems to care about tourism.

Politely ask Governor Sandoval to step in–to stop the removals and the sales. Ask him to RELOCATE all the wild horses who have been trapped already by the Nevada Department of Agriculture (NDOA) and bring them food and water if needed on the range.

Contact the Governor here:

Governor Sandoval
Tel: 775-684-5670
fax: 775-6845683

Emails can be sent via this link.
http://gov.nv.gov/contact/governor/

Donations may be sent directly to Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund.

Links of interest:

Horsetalk reports: Charities pay three times the going rate for wild horses

HorseYard reports: Horse lovers unite to save Nevada’s wild horses from kill buyers

Notice of sale from the Nevada Department of Agriculture:

29 VIRGINIA RANGE HORSES from Virginia City, Nevada

NOTICE OF ESTRAY ANIMALS

AS PER N.R.S. 569.070 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the following described animal(s) have been taken up as an Estray Animal(s) VRE Horses #1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, and 1926. The

Estray Horses were captured in Virgina City, in Storey County. The described animals are being held at The Nevada Prison Ranch, 5500 Synder Ave., Carson City, Nv. The Estray Stallions 1 year and older will be gelded prior to placement.Estray #1898 VRE Bay Stud
5 years

Estray # 1899 VRE Bay Stud
4 years

Estray #1900 VRE Bay Stud
Offset star
4 year

Estray #1901 VRE Bay Stud
2 years

Estray #1902 VRE Black Mare
5 year

Estray #1903 VRE Bay Stud
Star, LH & RH socks, LF pastern
6 months

Estray #1904 VRE Bay Mare
Star LH coronet
5 years

Estray #1905 VRE Bay Stud
Star, RH pastern, LF coronet
2 years

Estray #1906 VRE Bay Mare
RH coronet
8 years

Estray #1907 VRE Bay Stud
Large star and snip, RH &LH pastern
10 months

Estray #1908 VRE Black Mare
Small star and snip, RH & LH socks
10 years

Estray # 1909 VRE Bay Mare
Small star
7 years

Estray #1910 VRE Bay Stud
Small star, LH & RH pastern
5 years

Estray #1911 VRE Bay Mare
Star, RH stocking
8 years

Estray #1912 VRE Bay Stud
3 years

Estray #1913 VRE Bay Stud
2 years

Estray #1914 VRE Bay Mare
Star,short strip, large snip LH &RH stockings, LF coronet
4 years

Estray #1915 VRE Bay Mare
Star, RH pastern, LH coronet
5 years

Estray #1916 VRE Bay Mare
7 years

Estray #1917 VRE Sorrel Mare
Star, strip, and snip
10 years

Estray # 1918 Bay Stud
RH coronet
1 year

Estray #1919 Bay Filly
Strip
4 months

Estray #1920 VRE Bay Stud
Star, snip, RH sock
2 years

Estray #1921 VRE Bay Stud
Large star, offset snip
1 year

Estray #1922 VRE Appaloosa Mare
5 years

Estray #1923 VRE Bay Mare
2 years

Estray #1924 VRE Bay Stud
Snip
4 years

Estray #1925 VRE Bay Filly
4 months

Estray #1926 VRE Bay Stud
Star, RH pastern
1 year

AS PER N.R.S. 569.080, if an estray animal is not claimed within 5 working days after the last publication of the advertisement, as required before sale or placement, said animal (s) will be available for sale or placement by the Division of Livestock Identification on Wednesday, October 24, 2012, at the Nevada Livestock Market, Fallon, NV.

NEVADA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
4780 East Idaho Street
Elko, Nevada 89801
1-775-738-8076

Urgent donations, foster homes and adopters needed for historic mustangs or kill buyers will get them

Captured wild horses Nevada Jan 2012 (Photo © Anne Novak, all rights reserved.)

Wild Horse Annie’s horses are being pushed through the livestock auction again next Wednesday September 26th in Fallon, Nevada.

Update 10:30 p.m.

“Miracles are happening. Hidden Valley has found a large pasture for the 25 wild horses for tomorrow as a very, very temporary holding area. Thank heavens.” ~Anne Novak

 

Update 6:00 p.m.

News 4 Reno aired Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund’s call for help here.

Update at 5:50 p.m. Tuesday September 25, 2012:

“I just got off the phone with Shannon Windle, President of Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund. She’s still at her 9-5 job and told me that only $13,000 has been raised so far to buy the horses but that’s not enough to house them.

She will look into other donations coming in when she gets home from her day job. I have heard other groups are raising money for this and we are so grateful that everyone is helping save these wild horses.

We have been looking for solutions because the foster care pens are maxed out and it’s hard to find people with 6 foot fencing to hold in the wild ones. She decided that getting panels to build more corrals is a good solution. So Hidden Valley is raising money for the corral panels and looking for horse people with extra space who are willing to foster Wild Horse Annie’s beloved Virginia Range horses. Hidden Valley will provide the corrals, feed and is responsible for vet care, etc.

Tomorrow is the auction. Hidden Valley cannot save the wild horses from the kill-buyers if they don’t have the money to purchase them and if they don’t have a place to put them. Pray for miracles and take action to save these historic wild horses.”

In gratitude,

Anne Novak

Executive Director for Protect Mustangs

 

Check back for upates

 

 

Wild War Horse (Photo © Cynthia Smalley, all rights reserved.)

Update from Sunday September 23, 2012

“It’s 10:30 p.m. Sunday night and I just finished talking with Shannon Windle, president of Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund. She told me they only have $3,300. in donations to buy the 25 wild horses next Wednesday September 26th. Last week they paid $11,000. for 23 wild horses. If the money isn’t raised they can’t buy the horses. Please help save these horses from the kill-buyers. Please donate and save a life.” ~Anne Novak, executive director of Protect Mustangs

Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund was prepared financially to save the first South Reno 23 but their funding and foster care is maxed out so here is what we need to do:

  1. Raise money for Hidden Valley to get the South Reno 25 horses at auction, pay for feed, care and transportation
  2. Find adopters in and out of state.
  3. Send the Sept 19th wild horses to adopters ASAP
  4. Recruit new foster care for the new load coming in Wednesday
  5. Line up adopters for the Sept 26th wild horses
  6. Get hay donations to feed all these horses
  7. Get 150 MUSTANG panels to house the Sept 26th load of horses

Because the livestock auction staff likes to bid against the wild horse advocates to jack up the price and their commission, the small wild horses are going for up to 3 times the market value of a heavier horse. A mare and foal pair sold for $1000 last week.

The foster-cares are full after last week’s rescue of 23 Virginia Range horses. So we need to create solutions and build more corrals with panels to hold 25 more horses until we can adopt them out.

Mustang panels are 6 ft high and must be made of sturdy steel. We found a bulk price of $126. a piece. Hidden Valley needs 150 panels.

Let’s all chip in whatever we can and hope the auction house will be compassionate this week and not bid against us.

Laura Bell filming the Reno 23 saved by Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund on September 19, 2012 (Photo © Cat Kindsfather)

Please send your donations to save Wild Horse Annie’s horses directly to Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund: http://hiddenvalleyhorses.com/main.php?c=donate

You can also send a check/money order to:

Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund
P.O. Box 20052
Reno, NV 89515-0052

For information about donating, fostering or adopting please call:

Shannon Windle: 775-297-2955

Anne Novak: 415-531-8454

Thank you for doing what you can to help save America’s wild horses from going to slaughter.

Protect Mustangs flag designed by Robin Warren

 

Breaking News: Horse lovers from around the world unite to save Nevada’s wild horses from kill-buyers

Advocates were bidding against auction house staff who kept raising the bids

Virginia Range Wild Horses @ Peace (Photo ©Anne Novak, all rights reserved.)

For immediate release:

RENO, Nevada (September 20, 2012) –Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund spearheaded and saved 23 historic Virginia Range wild horses from going to the kill-buyers last night. The herculean effort lead by Shannon Windle, president of Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund. Country singer Lacy Dalton’s non-profit, Let ‘Em Run Foundation, also raised funds for the rescue.

“We are very grateful everyone joined together to save the horses from Wild Horse Annie’s herd,” says Shannon Windle, president of Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund.

Last night many wild horse advocates and groups from the greater Reno area joined forces to help with transportation and foster care to make this rescue effort a success. The list includes the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund, Let ‘Em Run Foundation, Least Resistance Training Concepts (LRTC) Horse Power and The Starlight Sanctuary with support from many other groups in the West. The efforts were coordinated through the Alliance of Wild Horse Advocates.

California-based Protect Mustangs joined in to help with outreach, raise awareness about the issue and contact Nevada’s Governor Brian Sandoval to stop the sale.

Donors contributed from across the USA and abroad to save Nevada’s indigenous wild horses from being sold to kill-buyers who sell the horses to slaughter plants for human consumption in foreign countries.

A staff member of the auction house was bidding as well as a kill-buyer against the wild horse advocates. Is it legal for the house to drive up the bids?

“How much did the auction house make with the owner driving the price up? ” asks Windle “Is this illegal?”

During the auction, a thin Virginia Range wild horse mare sold for over $500. while a stocky domestic buckskin sold for $200. A wild mare and foal sold for $1000 which is grossly abnormal at a livestock auction frequented by kill-buyers.

Advocates paid more than $11K to save the 23 wild horses–more than three times above market value.

31 additional wild horses will arrive at the auction house next week. More than 60 wild horses have been rounded up and face a horrific end if more foster homes, adopters and donors are not found quickly.

Essential donations are also needed to feed the wild horses rescued last night who will live in foster care until they are adopted or accepted into a sanctuary.

Send donations to the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund here: http://hiddenvalleyhorses.com/main.php?c=donate

Governor Brian Sandoval ignored public outcry and took no action to save America’s iconic wild horses from going to an auction frequented by kill-buyers tonight.

“We hope Governor Sandoval realizes that outside of Nevada 80% of Americans are against horse slaughter,” explains Anne Novak, executive director of California-based Protect Mustangs. “This could be a pivotal point in his political career–the point where he tarnishes himself to the extent that he will never win the hearts of the 80%. He still has time to take action and become a hero and we hope he does.”

# # #

Follow Protect Mustangs on Facebook for updates

Media Contacts:

Anne Novak, 415-531-8454, Anne@ProtectMustangs.org

Kerry Becklund, 510-502-1913, Kerry@ProtectMustangs.org

Links of interest:

News 4 reported on the story last night: http://www.mynews4.com/news/local/default.aspx

News 4 reporting continues: http://www.mynews4.com/news/local/story/Wild-Horse-Advocacy-groups-go-through-bidding-war/k57ef-ffOkq2QbDJKkhPEg.cspx

Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund: http://hiddenvalleyhorses.com/main.php

Let ‘Em Run Foundation: http://www.letemrun.com/index.html

Lacy Dalton bio, president of Let ‘Em Run Foundation: http://www.letemrun.com/Lacy-Bio.htm

Least Resistance Training Concepts: http://www.whmentors.org/

Starlight Sanctuary http://thestarlightsanctuary.webs.com/

Governor Brian Sandoval: http://gov.nv.gov/

Plea to Governor Sandoval to stop Nevada from selling wild horses to killer-buyers at auctions: http://protectmustangs.org/?p=2459

Information on the Virginia Range wild horses: http://www.aowha.org/war/virginia_range0901.html

Protect Mustangs: http://www.ProtectMustangs.org