Wild horse advocates are again seething at the Bureau of Land Management over a famous member of the McCullough Peaks herd.
This time, the anger is over a 6-month-old filly named Thora, which was recently trapped and removed in the BLM’s ongoing efforts to thin the herd.
She was among several young horses taken from the herd, advocates claim.
“It’s unnecessary to be taking these foals early. They’re still nursing, they still need to be with their moms,” mustang advocate Angelique Rea of Thermopolis told Cowboy State Daily.
Despite the claims of wild horse advocates, no horses too young to wean have been separated from their mothers, said Sarah Beckwith, spokeswoman for the BLM Wind River/Bighorn Basin.
Any mares with offspring younger than 4 months old are kept together during roundups and removals, she said.
The BLM is trying to trim the herd down from about 180 horses to what the agency says is a more manageable number of about 140.
The BLM is trapping the horses in baited corrals, then removing them and putting them up for adoption. The McCollough Peaks Herd Management Area encompasses 109,814 acres east of Cody.
There was outrage among wild horse advocates in January when another famous horse from the herd, a year-old sorrel mare called Kat Ballou, died from head trauma she suffered running into a metal post in a BLM holding corral.
Popular Filly
The McCullough Peaks herd has a huge fanbase across the country and even internationally. The horses are colorful and frequently in easily accessible spots, mustang advocate Carol Walker of Longmont, Colorado, told Cowboy State Daily.
Thora is the offspring of a stallion named Thor, who is popular in his own right, she said.
Thora looks just like her father, “A faded-grey pinto with blue eyes, and people just love those colorful horses,” Walker said.
“She has been an incredible favorite with everybody since she was born and she’s just a sweet little, spunky thing,” Walker added.
Taken Too Young?
Walker and Rea said they worry about foals being taken from their mothers when they’re too young.
In the wild, mustangs might nurse off their mothers until they’re nearly a year old, Rea said. But when foals are captured, they’re forced to stop nursing.
“When foals are taken from their mothers too young they will sometimes nurse on other foals, for comfort,” she said.
Rea has three adopted mustangs of her own and said the best prime ages for adoption are about 1-5 years old.
She said that “there are plenty of horses in that age range available” for the BLM to remove from McCullough Peaks.
So, she doesn’t understand why the BLM is taking foals, including some that allegedly haven’t weaned from their mothers.
Walker said removing young horses from the herd could damage its genetics. Many of the McCullough Peaks horses are old, 20 years or more.
Six of the elderly horses have died so far this winter, and another five are missing.
“They don’t have to take babies away from this herd,” Walker said. “This is one of the most popular herds in the world, but it’s a small herd with an old, aging population.”
Thora Was Old Enough To Go
At 6 months old, Thora was old enough to be safely weaned from her mother, Beckwith said.
“Mares with foals younger than 4 months old, if targeted for removal from the herd, would be removed together and kept together at the Rock Springs Wild Horse Holding Facility until old enough for weaning,” she said.
A 6-month-old female, which is “old enough to be safely weaned,” was among four horses gathered from the McCullough Peaks herd Feb. 22, she said.
“The four horses were transported together to the BLM wild horse corral in Rock Springs, where they are being closely monitored and are doing well,” Beckwith said. “They will eventually be prepared for adoption to qualified homes.”
Consideration For Young Horses
When gathering younger horses, the BLM takes special precautions, Beckwith said.
“With the McCullough Peaks horses, mature stallions are being kept in separate corrals. Mares and younger horses are together in familiar groups. This is the least stressful scenario for the horses,” she said.
“The horses are being inspected multiple times daily by facility personnel to look for signs of sickness or injuries, Beckwith said. “In general at BLM wild horse holding facilities, wild horses are sorted according to sex, age, temperament, health status or physical conditions as needed. All wild horses and burros are closely monitored by BLM staff and routinely checked by a veterinarian.”
The chances are good that Thora and the other young horses will be adopted, she said.
“Younger horses are generally easier to find homes for,” she said. “They are considered gentler and easier to train than older horses.”
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
