Sulphur
Springs, Utah, 2006
An AWHPC report
On July 18th 2006, BLM started rounding up about 275 horses from the Sulphur Springs Herd Management Area in Utah. The following report is based on an eye-witness account of events that took place at the round-up site.
- The trap was set up without any holding pens, only a horse trailer that all of the horses were directly run into, including young foals. As additional horses were brought in, they were jammed in with the horses already in the trailer, despite the fact that horses from different family bands will tend to fight when held together in close quarters. The lack of proper holding pens is highly unusual and very disturbing, causing unnecessary stress and discomfort on the horses. (Note: as documented in the pictures below, the same procedure was observed at a round-up conducted by that same contractor a couple of months later in East Douglas, CO.)
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- The horses were left in the trailers until the end of the day, when they were taken off-site to holding pens. The temperature was in the high 90s and no water was provided while horses waited all day in the trailers after enduring a helicopter chase. This careless and inhumane treatment is a clear violation of BLM rules that state that “Animals shall not be allowed to remain standing on trucks while not in transport for a combined period of greater than three (3) hours.”
- About a dozen lactating mares were brought in with their foals nowhere in sight, likely left behind on the range because they were too young to keep up with the herd. Some foals were retrieved later and indiscriminately turned in with the adults; one of the babies was kicked by another horse and killed. A panicked mare ran into a panel and broke her neck.
- Another
mare seemed to be having difficulty breathing and drinking as a result
of roping injuries on her neck and throat. The next day she was found
down on the ground and thrashing, trying to keep other horses from stepping
on her. When alerted to this, the contractor and his crew refused to help
and just walked away.
All along the contractor made it very clear that he did not want members of the public to be allowed to watch the proceedings, and threatened to quit if onlookers were not asked to leave.
The public must rely on BLM to act on their behalf to manage and protect wild horses. BLM's refusal to stop inhumane and careless treatment to wild horses during a round-up amounts to a violation of public trust and sanctions the contractor's callousness.
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