THE ROUNDUP AND SALE ARE COMING

I am interrupting my visit to each of the bands to make an appeal to all the wild horse lovers reading this, to get the word out about these wonderful horses needing homes. I know some of you would rather have none of the horses coming out. You love the wild horses and do not see why they cannot be left alone to run free as their ancestors did. However, there are others who would tell the Park personnel that horses are not wild animals and therefore have no place in a national park. The Park personnel have to try to keep a balance between both of the extremes while dealing with numbers of species who live in the Park.

This blog is not a forum for arguing the various views on wild horses and national park policy. Having gotten to know some of the Park people well, I have come to understand the dilemma of dealing with the abundance of animals and all the emotion that their management evokes in the public. The people who have to make these decisions, do so with great care and consideration.

It is the hope of the Park and those of us who know the wild horses of TRNP, that the day will come when numbers can be kept under control without roundups. The study which will be going on for the next few years is a huge step in that direction, but until that day, they will still have to cull the herd to keep them from growing so large that they and the other species they share the Park with are in danger of overgrazing the Park and a future of starvation.

My position is not to argue about the decisions being made, but to appeal to horse lovers to help me find homes for these awesome horses who are going to be coming out. Over the years they have lived and survived in the Park; they have become strong and resilient. Well built, they have strong bones and feet and good teeth. The ones I am familiar with are quite mellow and have gentled easily with the right training. Their beautiful variety of colors make them unique in the wild horse world.

Park personnel are trying to make buying one of the horses as easy as possible. The Coggins testing will be done at the time of the roundup, so results should be back in time for the sale. Check with your state laws to see what other paperwork you may need to cross state lines. Dr. Rowe will be on sight to do any additional vetting you may need. Since this is a public auction, you can bid on any horse and take it home as soon as you have paid for it and gotten the necessary vetting done.

Please talk to your friends and neighbors to find enough buyers to give all the horses a home. Many who are handy at training will be buying horses to gentle and train and find homes for at a later date, so make that a consideration if you don't wish to keep them all. They will have a better chance of finding a forever home if they have been gentled. The sale is at

Stockmen's Livestock Exchange West in Dickinson, ND, October 23, at 2:00 MDT.

Look at little Jules at the top of the post; can you resist those eyes?

I don't think so!