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| A helicopter being used to roundup wild horses on BLM lands in Colorado, photo courtesy and © Richard Durnan |
Spring Creek Horses Still Need Help
Of the horses that were rounded up last weekend, 16 remain
unclaimed and in Canon City awaiting a horrible fate unless adopted.
Members of our community have formed our own band to rescue these souls, and we
need help. We are asking for help in the form of money, time, resources,
adoption, or sponsoring. We have filed a lawsuit against the BLM and Department
of Interior; part of the relief we seek is for them to put the gathered horses
back on the land, and to give the horses back the original 122,000 acres they
were given in 1971, instead of the 22,000 acres they now occupy. So, we
hope to put these horses back on their own land if we prevail. Meantime,
they have given us years of immeasurable pleasure. We feel we owe it to
them to help them, because we can.
We also have people who are considering putting many of these
horses on their land for sanctuary, but we have not had adequate time to work
these options out. Our first and most immediate need is to save them from
the killer buyers.
We have 8 of the 16 horses spoken for by people willing to adopt
them. Several of our community have already adopted from the Cortez
adoption, where many of our youngsters and babies went, to help this
cause. We need for people to adopt or sponsor the remaining 8 horses, or
donate so that we can pay for their care. The adoption cost is minimal:
$75 for a sale; $125 for an adoption. An adoption is required for the
younger horses. For older (10 years +, which in my mind is not old at
all) horses, they can just be sold. Please contact me asap if you want to
buy or adopt a horse, and I will guide you through the forms and requirements.
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| Wild horses corralled on BLM lands in Colorado, photo courtesy and © Richard Durnan |
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We
estimate that it will cost $25,000 to keep 15-17 horses through the
winter: that includes pens, labor, hay, some gentling, purchase price,
and vet bills. Also, if we get hay donated,
it will be cheaper. By summer, it will be cheaper and we may have a
sanctuary that will take them all, or we may have their (our) land back
as a
result of the lawsuit. But, none of these things may become reality, so
we are planning for a commitment to make sure they are safe.
We need to buy panels for corrals, a couple of water
troughs, gates for the pipe corrals, solar heater for 3-4 water troughs for
this winter, and hay. We have an opportunity to buy 900 bales of hay for
$5/bale; and 6’ panels and gates in a bulk sale: 74 panels; 3 gates; rubber
stops etc for a bid. They are asking $150/panel; we hope to get them
cheaper.
If anyone has 6’ panels; gates; or any other items we need and can
donate, please do. If you want 3-4 people to go in to sponsor a horse,
please do. Contact: Susannah Smith: 728-5234; 708-0740; shas14@gmail.com.
Thank you. Susannah
The Rio Grand Southern Railroad RGSR is the railway that once came into Ridgway from Montrose and put us on the map. In fact before the railroad Ridgway did not exist. Until the RGSR shut down in the 1950's, the tracks that came into town down what is now named Railroad Street (the other side of Hwy 62 form us) there was a fully equipped rail yard and turntable that serviced the RGSR on this site and the land behind us and Mountain Market. 
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