By
Carol Schaye
The sun shone hot on the beige plain all day. Neither fly nor bug nor snake ventured out on the waste to molest the four horses tethered there, or the colt. … Toward evening the wind came up, and they backed into it and faced the mountains from which they had come. From time to time the stallion caught the smell of the pastures up there, and he started to walk toward the vaulted fields in which he had grazed; but the tire [to which he was tied] bent his neck around. … The cold of night raised the colt onto its legs, and it stood next to the mare for warmth and the other horses closed their eyes and slept. The colt settled again on the hard ground and lay under the mare. … When the first pink glow of another morning lit the sky the colt stood up, and as it had always done at dawn it walked waywardly for water. The mare shifted and her bone hoofs ticked the clay. The colt turned its head and returned to her and stood at her side with vacant eye, its nostrils sniffing the warming air. Later that day, the men would come back, and take the horses to the slaughterhouse.
Arthur Miller, Playwright, Writer, Pulitzer Prize winner, from “The Misfits”
Wild Spirit of Nevada: An Evening of Celebration of Wild Horses
On a lovely evening in July 2024, at the Nevada Museum of Art, Don Molde (founder of “Nevada Wildlife Alliance”, whose slogan is “Because all Wildlife Matters”), in association with, “American Wild Horse Conservation”, sponsored an event of equine art and advocacy, honoring wild horses and their historic place in the pale green tapestry of the sagebrush state.
The Event Was in Response
“The event was partly in response to an anti-wild horse panel sponsored by Nevada Lands Council at the Hidden Valley Country Club a few months ago. Nevada Lands Council, wants to see Nevada’s public lands moved into private hands; wild horses would obviously need to disappear if public lands become private property.
Their panel discussion was loaded with anti-wild horse folks… a rancher or two, an NDOW employee who undoubtedly parroted the anti-wild horse sentiment of NDOW and the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners, a BLM person, Ira Hansen, and Tina Nappe both the latter advocate for horse removal. The only pro-horse person was Scott Beckstat, AWA person.
Wild horses live on less than 1/3 of Nevada’s public lands. The BLM’s own records show that overgrazing by livestock is the major cause for many grazing allotments failing a ‘health’ test. Other things ruining Nevada’s lands: drought, climate change, cheat-grass, fires, mining.”
Don Molde, Nevada Wildlife Alliance
Nevada Lands Council
“The Nevada Lands Councils a non-profit organization that supports efforts to transfer public lands from federal to state ownership and management.” (Nevada Lands Council Facebook page)
Sen. Ira Hansen (R-Sparks) said “Appropriate funding needs to be allocated to state and federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) offices to increase the number of horses that are rounded up each year.”
Tina Nappe with the Coalition of Healthy Nevada Lands, Wildlife and Free-Roaming Horses, suggested, “Wild horse advocacy groups care for the excess horses that are in captivity.”
Travel Nevada (the official state tourism site), writes,” Watching a wild horse charge through a sea of sagebrush in all the unfenced glory, does it get any more freeing?
The patrons attending “Wild Spirit of Nevada”, at the museum, came for different reasons but many left with a better understanding, and sense of purpose, then when they arrived.
A man I spoke with said he felt, “Wild horses were not indigenous to this region, so he didn’t care”, and that he, “Came for the free food and drinks.” The atmosphere was so collegial, caring and gentle that I stopped myself from saying what I was thinking. ‘We aren’t indigenous to this area either. With that line of thinking should we give our houses and land back to Native Americans?’
Free-roaming horses could once be found throughout much of the American frontier west of the Mississippi River, and may have numbered as many as two million around 1850. However, no comprehensive estimate of free-roaming horse numbers was done until 1971, and thus early estimates are speculative. Horse numbers were in decline as domestic cattle and sheep competed with them for resources. Ranchers shot horses to leave more grazing land for other livestock, other horses were captured off the range for human use, and some were rounded up for slaughter.
After an hour of meet and greet, with various organizations (listed below) tabling with printouts, fabulous hors d’oeuvres and drinks, the attendees went into the auditorium to listen and then ask questions of several speakers.
The Speakers
Don Molde has been known to say, “If you listen you might learn somethings.”
John “J.T. “Humphrey, wildlife photographer, remarked that folks from all over the world have contacted him wanting to know which places are best to see Nevada’s wild horses.
Erick Lundgren, Feral Earth Researcher, walked us through the evolution of the horse and it’s arrival in North America ( not what you might think). “If we study wild horses like we would any other wildlife, and drop the emotional and biased language of invasion biology, we find that they have nuanced ecological impacts on ecosystems- including facilitating other species”
Samatha Szesciorka, Nevada Discovery Ride, shared tales of riding her two adopted tamed mustangs across Nevada.
Nicole Hayes, Conservation scientists, AWHC‘ provided an evolutionary history of the wild horse, including its disappearance and reintroduction to North America
Congresswoman Dina Titus, discussed her efforts in congress to address the cruelty of roundups including restricting the use of helicopters.
I Listened and I learned somethings
That many folks are quoting inaccurate numbers of wild horses in Nevada. There are currently 33,338 wild horses,4685 wild burros. In 1971 when the “Wild and Free Roaming Wild Horse and Burros Act”, was passed by the U.S. Congress, there were at most 30,000 of these animals left in the west. Domestic livestock-cattle and sheep, using public lands for at least part of the year estimate from BLM forage allocation: 300,000 currently.
Wild horses have been out west since the 1500s.
The event at the museum was an attempt to educate folks about wild horses, their positive effects on the land and their value as a symbol and tourist attraction as well.
Horseman and rancher James Dexter says “I do love seeing that there are programs that focus on the horses and keeping Nevada lands wild and undeveloped”
To discuss Wild Horses further you may contact:
- Wild Horse Connection, Correna Vance, correna@wildhorseconnection.org
- Wild Horse Preservation League, Rae Hanna, rae.hnn@gmail.com
- Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association,: Lilian Henry, president@vrwpa.com
- Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund: Shannon Windle, hiddnevalleywildhorses@gmail.com
- Pine Nut Wild Horse Advocates: Mary Cioffi, mary@interonv.com
- LRTC Large Animal Rescue: Larry Whitney, ldwhitney53@gmail.com
- Terri Farley: Terrisfarley@gmail.com
- Craig Downer: cdowner@icloud.com
- Nevada Wildlife Alliance, Facebook, Nvwildlifealliance.org , Don Molde: skyshrink@aol.com
Carol Schaye has had several short stories published by McFadden’s Women’s Group, Sierra Nevada Ally and other publications. Carol has written for two west coast newspapers and has worked extensively in television. A fan of Flannery O’Connor, Carol studied acting with Lee Strasberg and Austin Pendleton and writing with Salem Ludwig. She attended Marymount College majoring in theater.
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