Running Wild
What Everyone Needs To Know About Nevada’s Wild Horses

     ACCOUNTABILITY -- Hats are tipped to hide frowns of frustration and fingers are tapped in anticipation whenever Nevada’s wild horse issue blazes the headlines. Yet, agreeing on a resolution seems as far in the distance as the dust these four-footed, feral fl ocks kick up as they gallop into the Nevada sunset.

Northern Nevada is blessed and cursed, depending on whom you talk to, with the largest continuous herd in the United States. Supporters say every descendant of the original herd has its niche on Nevada’s open range. In just the Virginia Range, the Comstock National Historic District, and the Flowery Range, an estimated 1200 to 1400 horses roam. Their ancestors were domestic horses or Indian ponies that pulled covered wagons to the goldfi elds in the 1800s.

The Department of Agriculture continually falls short of funding to humanely manage the herd. Wild horse advocates presently cover the costs of emergency feeding, open range water, orphan foal rescue, and sending horses through the Inmate Training Program at Northern Nevada’s Correctional Center. Groups strive to keep the wild herd wild, yet try to ensure the best outcome for those removed from the range.

Do-gooders who feed the wild herd by attracting them to civilized neighborhoods and highways actually hinder the efforts of keeping them wild. Agencies must use precious tax dollars to round up the horses, incurring costs for corrals, staff, feed, and shelter. Private property owners who are willing to share their land in exchange for a suggested deferred or exempt tax reap the benefi ts of wild-grass control to prevent fire danger and the opportunity of having these historically beautiful beasts roam their land.

Currently, many horses range primarily on private property where much of the region is in transition from contiguous open space (private and public ranges) to an array of planned developments. Many of these planned developments are designed to preserve open space, including wildlife and wild horse habitat.

SUSTAINABILITY

Lacy J. Dalton, best known for her country music career, co-founded the Let ‘Em Run Foundation. It promotes ecotourism and provides fi nancial assistance to rescue groups and horse habitats. Dalton, a Virginia City Highlands resident, and Stagecoach resident, Willis Lamm, are spearheading a special legislative effort with the support of many Nevada residents, including the Nevada Farm Bureau and the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association.
“To preserve the herd at a reasonable cost, agencies and the private sector must align,” suggests Willis Lamm.

Dalton and Lamm’s legislative bill provides reasonable incentives to large property owners who participate in the program. This is not a giveaway but compensation for providing primary grazing for the Virginia Range horses, for preserving Nevada open space, and for reducing the need for the State to gather and hold horses at taxpayers’ expense.

By providing dedicated grazing areas for the wild horses, the Nevada Department of Agriculture can better predict changing land uses and more proactively manage the Virginia Range herd in a way that is less costly and more compatible with the wishes of citizens in the region. Dalton pointed out that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is developing a program that will pay private landowners to allow BLM horses to graze on appropriate private rangelands.