Slaughter Summit Exit Survey Could Spell Doom for America’s Wild Horses and Burros
COLORADO SPRINGS, Co – September 27, 2017 - From the cherry-picked picture of an emaciated horse on their cover page, to the depiction of an emaciated wild horse and burro in the logo, the agenda of the National Wild Horse and Burro Summit was set from before it was announced: the BLM has failed, these animals are suffering, and must be put out of their misery. Trouble is, that narrative is completely 100% false. Since the passage of the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro act, wild horses and burros have lost millions of acres of rangeland to ranching interests, and in the herd areas that remain livestock are allocated 82% of the available forage as a matter of policy. But industry groups would have the American public, and more importantly our representatives in congress, believe that there simply isn't enough good food and water on the range for Free Roaming Wild Horses and Burros to survive. They cherry pick photos like the one in their exit survey to try to convey this falsehood. Animals that are likely very old and or sick, are a perfectly natural part of a healthy free herd. In fact if you look closely at that picture you will notice that all the horses in the background look fat and happy. But the Slaughter Summit attendees want to spread the message that nearly all our wild horses and burros are on the brink of starvation.
Dozens of boots-on-the-ground testimonies tell the real truth: Horses are NOT starving. Pictures are endlessly taken by advocates throughout all the HMAs, whereas none of the pictures shown at the slaughter-summit were taken by those that see these horses on a regular basis. Pictures are taken by advocates that have no financial stake in the horses, whereas attendees of the summit generally have fortunes to be made on the death of these horses.
So they held their conference for the ranching industry and anti wild horse politicians and patted each other on the back while trying to get their story straight to present a united front of lies to the American public and our representatives in congress. The goal being to eliminate wild horses and burros from the American west. And the evidence for their insidious agenda is crystal clear in the exit survey they conducted, not only in the disturbing results, but equally in their choice of questions asked. Here are a few of the most disturbing highlights:
96% of respondents completely oppose the current status quo situation
Highly-supported options:
• 99% Commercial use of horses of protein for pet food (86% complete sup, 13% moderate sup)
• 96% Commercial use of horses of protein for zoo animals (78% complete sup, 18% moderate sup)
• 96% Euthanizing unadoptable horses for population control (81% complete sup, 15% mod. sup)
• 92% Allowing sale without restrictions (69% complete sup, 23% moderate sup)
• 93% Reducing the age of “sale without restrictions” from 10+ years old to 5+ years old (67% complete sup, 26% moderate sup)
• 92% Commercial use of horses of protein for human consumption (67% complete sup, 25% moderate sup)
Well-supported options:
• 89% Permanent sterilization of mares by spaying (71% completely sup, 18% moderately sup)
• 88% Allowing private organizations to acquire/adopt large numbers of horses (57% completely sup, 31% moderately sup)
• 88% Adding additional contraceptives as management tools (50% completely sup, 33% moderately sup)
• 87% Developing additional adoption opportunities outside the U.S. (58% completely sup, 29% moderately sup)
• 85% Developing additional adoption opportunities within the U.S. (67% completely sup, 18% moderately sup)
• 80% Creating coordination committees or working groups at appropriate local scales (43% completely sup, 37% moderately sup)
• 76% Allowing individual states to manage horses within their boundaries without federal restrictions (55% completely sup, 21% moderately sup)
Taken together these questions and results indicate a plan on the part of industry interests and politicians to whom they donate, to eliminate the Wild Horse and Burro from the American west, and further to eliminate public lands from the American landscape. This is perhaps the most dangerous time Wild Horses and Burros have faced since the passage of the act meant to protect and enshrine them into the American landscape. The 2018 budget will ultimately be decided in the US Senate.
The Cloud Foundation urges readers to call and write their Senators and members of the Senate Subcommittee on the Interior and tell them that any action that would allow their slaughter, euthanasia or the stripping of their federal protections is TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!
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AGRICULTURAL PRICES RECEIVED
Prices Received – Mountain Region States and United States: August 2017 with Comparisons State August 2016 July 2017 August 2017 Barley, All (dollars per bushel) (dollars per bushel) (dollars per bushel) Colorado ............................. 4.67 4.28 4.46 Montana .............................. 5.28 4.48 4.63 Wyoming ............................ 5.47 (D) 4.68 United States ....................... 4.89 4.54 4.52 Corn Colorado ............................. 3.43 3.72 3.26 United States ....................... 3.21 3.49 3.27 Wheat, All Arizona ............................... (D) (D) (D) Colorado ............................. 3.09 4.08 3.63 Montana .............................. 4.05 5.00 5.13 United States ....................... 3.68 4.77 4.83 Cotton, Upland (dollars per pound) (dollars per pound) (dollars per pound) Arizona ............................... (S) (S) (S) United States ....................... 0.671 0.714 0.647 Hay, Alfalfa (dollars per ton) (dollars per ton) (dollars per ton) Arizona ............................... 140.00 170.00 165.00 Colorado ............................. 150.00 170.00 165.00 Montana .............................. 135.00 135.00 145.00 New Mexico ....................... 165.00 180.00 175.00 Utah .................................... 130.00 125.00 125.00 Wyoming ............................ 130.00 130.00 135.00 United States ....................... 137.00 152.00 147.00 Hay, Other Arizona ............................... 160.00 180.00 175.00 Colorado ............................. 160.00 175.00 175.00 Montana .............................. 125.00 135.00 140.00 New Mexico ....................... 130.00 165.00 160.00 Utah .................................... 100.00 110.00 110.00 Wyoming ............................ 110.00 120.00 125.00 United States ....................... 116.00 126.00 116.00 Milk, All (dollars per hundredweight) (dollars per hundredweight) (dollars per hundredweight) Arizona ............................... 16.20 17.20 17.70 Colorado ............................. 17.20 17.70 18.30 New Mexico ....................... 16.60 16.20 16.80 Utah .................................... 16.50 17.00 17.60 United States ....................... 17.20 17.30 18.00 (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. (S) Insufficient number of reports to establish an estimate.
UNITED STATES
August Prices Received Index Decreased 2.0 Percent
The August Prices Received Index (Agricultural Production), at 93.4, decreased 2.0 percent from July 2017. At 87.5, the Crop Production Index increased 1.4 percent. The Livestock Production Index, at 98.5, decreased 5.3 percent. Producers received lower prices for broilers, cattle, hogs, and corn but higher prices for milk, apples, strawberries, and broccoli. Compared with a year earlier, the Prices Received Index is up 4.1 percent. The Crop Production Index increased 3.4 percent and the Livestock Production Index 4.9 percent from August 2016. In addition to prices, the indexes are influenced by the monthly mix of commodities producers market. Increased monthly movement of cattle, grapes, calves, and potatoes offset the decreased marketing of wheat, corn, soybeans, and hay. The Food Commodities Index, at 98.0, decreased 2.5 percent from the previous month but is up 4.9 percent from August 2016.
August Prices Paid Index Down 0.6 Percent
The August Prices Paid Index for Commodities and Services, Interest, Taxes, and Farm Wage Rates (PPITW), at 106.4, is down 0.6 percent from July 2017 but is up 1.4 percent from August 2016. Lower prices in August for feeder cattle, feeder pigs, nitrogen, and hay & forages more than offset higher prices for LP gas, diesel, mixed fertilizer, and feed concentrates.
For a full copy of the Agricultural Prices report please visit www.nass.usda.gov. For state specific questions please contact:
Arizona – Dave DeWalt 1-800-645-7286 Colorado – William R. Meyer 1-800-392-3202 Montana – Eric Sommer 1-800-835-2612 New Mexico – Longino Bustillos 1-800-530-8810 Utah – John Hilton 1-800-747-8522 Wyoming – Rhonda Brandt 1-800-892-1660
