The Onaqui wild horses near Salt Lake City, Utah, are among the most famous and widely-photographed wild horses in the world. These horses have been protected for 48 years, but now the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is planning a brutal roundup and removal of nearly 80% of these horses. Our nation would lose a priceless natural wonder, and these horses would lose their freedom and family bands forever.
We have to stop this:
- Utah would lose an important ecotourism resource. Several of these horses have become so well-known, they've been given names - like the beloved “Old Man”, a 28-year-old stallion enjoying his elder years with the herd.
- The roundups are devastating and cruel -- using helicopters to run horses and sometimes even foals (babies) for miles until they're exhausted. Many break limbs, crash into fences, and die of exhaustion.
- Taxpayers shouldn't spend millions on this unnecessary abuse. Proven, humane, and cost-effective management solutions already exist. In fact, the American Wild Horse Campaign has offered to work with the BLM to create and fund a proven fertility control program.
- Tell the BLM to stop the roundup and removal of the Onaqui horses. We want them protected and preserved on our public lands now and for generations to come.
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Interior Secretary and BLM Director:
We the undersigned citizens object to your plan to decimate the unique and beloved population of wild horses living in the Onaqui Mountains in Utah. These horses are protected under a unanimously passed act of Congress that declares them to be “living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West” that “enrich the lives of the American people.”
The BLM is proposing to destroy this most visited wild horse herd in the West -- and remove 80% of the horses. The plan would destroy the herds, destroy a vital part of Utah's eco-tourism economy, and waste taxpayer money.
As a taxpayer and citizen, I urge you to cancel the plan to round up the Onaqui wild horses and to work instead with non-profit organizations to implement a comprehensive fertility control program to keep these icons of the American West wild and free on our public lands.