BLM Faces Questions Over Missing Records For Dead Foals | The Animal Rescue Site
Matthew Russell
Wild horses and burros are not ordinary livestock in federal hands. Congress declared them living symbols of the West and said they must be protected from harassment and death under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The Bureau of Land Management manages them on and off the range, including in holding facilities after removals. BLM’s compiled text of the law and the agency’s program data page both make clear that off-range animals remain under federal protection and care.
That is why new allegations about foals born in BLM holding facilities are so disturbing. According to Animals’ Angels, records tied to dead foals at several off-range facilities do not appear to line up with what the public can easily find in agency reporting. The concern is simple and serious: foals may be born, die, and be disposed of without a full public accounting of how many lived or were lost.
Every foal birth in BLM care should be documented.
Pregnant Mares Enter A System That Must Track Every Outcome
The problem starts before birth. Mares are captured during gathers and sent into short-term or off-range facilities, sometimes while pregnant. Once that happens, the federal government has total control over the conditions those mares and foals face. If a mare gives birth in holding, that foal should enter a documented chain of care. If a foal is stillborn or dies later, the loss should be recorded in a way the public can verify.
That expectation is not extreme. It follows from the government’s own role. BLM program materials state that off-range horses and burros remain protected. The agency’s Wild Horses and Burros Management Handbook also recognizes how vulnerable foals are, noting that helicopter capture of wild horses is generally prohibited during the foaling period so young foals are mature enough to remain with their band.
Incomplete records block accountability.
Transparency Is The Minimum The Public Should Expect
Without a clear count of pregnant mares captured, foals born, stillborn foals, and foal deaths, the public cannot measure welfare outcomes inside these facilities. It cannot compare mortality records with rendering or disposal records. It cannot know whether losses were isolated, systemic, or preventable.
This is why the demand now should be direct. The BLM and the Department of the Interior must publicly report how many pregnant mares enter holding, consistently document every foal birth and stillbirth, and maintain mortality records that can be independently verified. Wild horses in federal custody should not disappear into administrative silence. Sign the petition and demand a full accounting for every foal.
Click below to make a difference!
Read more articles by Matthew Russell.