The horses who live on the Great Basin Desert of western Utah, known as the Onaqui herd, are beloved by horse lovers all over the world. These amazing creatures are living icons who symbolize our nation’s love of freedom and family. Descended from horses used for the pony express during frontier times, the Onaquis are known for their rugged beauty and their supreme adaptation to their harsh desert environment.
Fierce band stallions with names like Charger, Goliath, Buck and Gandalf wage battles with each other and are committed to defending their families and turf. The horses are an important economic force for the small rural economies of that part of the state, attracting photographers and tourists who spend their dollars at gas stations, hotels, restaurants and other businesses.
Sadly, the Bureau of Land Management has planned to use helicopters to chase down, trap, and remove 75 percent of the roughly 400 Onaqui horses in July. The BLM claims there are too many horses for the available forage, yet the agency allows thousands upon thousands of cattle and sheep that vastly outnumber the horses to graze in the same area. Instead of cruel and expensive helicopter roundups, the BLM should use proven fertility control to manage their population so they can continue to live wild and free on our public lands where they belong.
If you agree the wild Onaqui horses deserve to live wild and free, send an email to Gus Warr at the Utah BLM office and urge him to cancel the Onaqui roundup and manage the horses humanely on the range. Mr. Warr’s email is gwarr@blm.gov.
Emily Creer AhYou, Sandy