The Year of The Horse Begins With Victory
An Animal Rights Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM

Return to Freedom
February 2014

[Ed. Note: Take action - Tell Your Members of Congress to Pass the SAFE Act]

Congress passed the 2014 federal budget bill that de-funded horse slaughter facility inspections, making it impossible for horse slaughter plants to operate legally in this country this year.

There is work to be done to help pass the SAFE Act, which would provide a permanent ban on horse slaughter in the US and facilitate humane and responsible solutions for America’s wild and domestic horses.

We begin this New Year – The Year of the Horse – inspired and prepared to meet the daunting challenges of the coming months. Only weeks into the new year and we already have a great victory for America’s wild and domestic horses. Congress passed the 2014 federal budget bill that de-funded horse slaughter facility inspections, making it impossible for horse slaughter plants to operate legally in this country this year.

That is a great way to start the year, but we cannot rest there! Until legislation is passed, America's horses are still at risk for being sold and transported to Canada and Mexico to be butchered for European markets.

There is work to be done to help pass the SAFE Act, which would provide a permanent ban on horse slaughter in the US and facilitate humane and responsible solutions for America’s wild and domestic horses.

There is work to be done to overhaul antiquated and misguided policies that threaten, rather than protect, our wild horses, wildlife and wilderness areas.

There is work to be done to ensure that the historic Virginia Range horses, loved by generations of families in Nevada, do not fall victim to competing interests and local politics. Read more about that below.

And today, on the 4 year anniversary of the end of the deadly Calico roundup, we are reminded why we must continue to work to keep the helicopters grounded and our wild horses in their rightful home on America’s western landscape.

As we prepare for the year ahead, I want to take a moment to express my deep appreciation for your ongoing support. Your active participation is vital and means so much as our staff continues to fight to preserve the last of America’s wild horses and the open spaces that serve as their habitat.

Thanks to your past generosity, Return to Freedom is widely recognized as one of the most effective defenders of wild horses in the world. We get the job done!

So as we look ahead at 2014 we see a year that will bring more press conferences and policy debates while we work to keep our promise to some 400 wild horses and burros that are now safe, cared for and free in the safety of the sanctuary. And, we will be there to fight for the 30,000 wild horses on the range - who face the threat of capture each day - and the 50,000 captured wild horses living in government holding facilities at great taxpayer expense.

This year, Hollywood heavyweights like Robert Redford have joined with Return to Freedom and stand with us to help spread the news to the American people – as many as we can reach – that there are viable solutions and alternatives to roundups and the stockpiling of wild horses in government holding facilities; and that there are alternatives to the cruel, foreign driven horse slaughter industry.

RTF has been a voice for change and has always pointed the way to a new direction. The 2013 National Academy of Sciences Report was released and said what we have been saying and DOING all along. The Bureau of Land Management has the technology to manage wild horses on the range which would save millions of tax dollars a year!

We hope friends like you will stand by us like never before. There is much to do – here at the sanctuary and out in the public arena. None of it is possible without you- your support is vital to the success of our mission, educational programs and sanctuary efforts!

Below, you will read about the work we're doing to protect Nevada's Virginia Range horses. We also ask you to join us in remembering the Calico horses. Over 80 wild horses died as a result of that tragic roundup.

Thank you for your steadfast friendship and support. Without you, our work would not be possible. Please continue to stand with Return to Freedom and let’s truly make this The Year of the Horse!

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