Obama Horse Agency Has Some Explaining to Do
HOUSTON, (Horseback) – A California Congressman has either dropped the federal Bureau of Land Management in the grease for a cover-up of gargantuan proportions, or he has made a lulu of a mistake, or somebody has forged a letter on congretional stationary.
In a letter to a constituent, Rep. Elton Gallegly (R) of California implicated the bureau in the slaughter of North American Mustangs in the aftermath of their ongoing “gathers” which wild horse advocates claim will spell the end of the species.
In a letter dated February 10, Gallegly wrote, “I believe that the commercial sale and slaughter of free-roaming horses is a horrible and unnecessary practice. However, the BLM claims this slaughter is necessary due to overpopulation in holding pens and the rising cost of care for the animals.”
Despite repeated denials that the BLM sends horses to slaughter, advocates have long suspected the contrary is true. Others believe there is horse rustling on a massive scale by employees or outsiders occurring to serve the horsemeat processing industry. Repeated requests for an outside audit of the horses it is holding in captivity have are routinely ignored. To make matters worse, director Bob Abbey spoke to the pro slaughter Summit of the Horse gathering in Las Vegas in early January.
Horseback Magazine has often been informed of trailers loads of horses leaving holding facilities in the middle of the night. Access to those facilities is prohibited by the BLM except on rare press tours. The agency claims the horses are on private land and the owners will not allow the public to observe their taxpayer funded facilities which consume virtually all of the BLM Wild Horse and Burro program’s budget.
The BLM is increasingly under the watchful eye of several influential members of Congress including Indiana’s Rep. Dan Burton (R), and Sen. Mary Landrieu (LA).
Landrieu has threatened to take the horse and burro program away from BLM and move it to another federal agency.
Feb. 23, 2011
http://horsebackmagazine.com/hb/archives/6805