In an effort to control the population of wild horses and buros in the U.S. midwest, the federal government is offering an incentive to anyone who adopts a wild horse or burro. The Adoption Incentive Program allows adoptees of wild, untrained and unhandled horses and burros to collect $1000. The animal can be adopted through BLM facilities, off-site events and on the Online Corral but can’t have come through any training program such as the Mustang Heritage Foundation and training incentive program trainers are not eligible. Animals bought through sales events are also not eligible. BLM employees, employees that work for organizations that work with BLM and their immediate families are also not eligible. And, the animal must be purchased after March 12, 2019.
There is a $25 fee to apply to the program. Adoptees will receive $500 within 60 days of adopting the animals. They will then receive another $500 within 60 days of receiving title on the horse. The title proves that ownership of the animal has been transferred from the BLM to you. Later on, if you decide to sell, the title must go with the horse or burro.
The incentive is offered because the long term keep of these animals costs far more than the incentive being offered. The cost to keep a horse over its lifetime is around $50,000 per horse. The BLM claims that there is an overpopulation of wild horses and burros that threaten their health and the health of the ecosystems they live in. Taxpayers currently fund the care of about 50,000 wild horses and burros in BLM facilities each year. In 2018, the BLM sold and adopted out about 4600 horses, but the population growth continues to exceed the rate of placing these horses with private citizens.
While $1000 per horse for up to four horses sounds like a generous incentive that amount can easily be spent on shipping alone depending on where the horse will be transported to. And, if the new owner chooses to have the horse trained, the costs can easily exceed $1000. For many people, the yearly cost of a horse’s upkeep will exceed that amount. Proving only perhaps, that there’s no such thing as a free horse, even when it comes with an incentive.
In the year 1492, horses returned to the Americas after an absence of several thousand years. These horses arrived in the holds of the first ships to cross the Atlantic Ocean from Europe. Today, there are still feral herds roaming ...
Once again, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is coming under criticism for mismanaging Mustang herds, this time, in western Utah. On drought ravaged lands, Mustangs are being blamed for a shortage of grazing. However, proponent ...
The Cloud Foundation and American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign, along with veterinarians and congressmen agree that spaying is a poor option for controlling the number of free roaming Mustangs in the American West. They very m ...
In an effort to control the population of wild horses and buros in the U.S. midwest, the federal government is offering an incentive to anyone who adopts a wild horse or burro. The Adoption Incentive Program allows adoptees of wil ...
There is good news, at least temporarily, for those who are against the culling of wild horses in the American west. Last July, the House Appropriations Committee voted to remove from Interior Department budget passages outlining ...
Animal rights activists are angered after the U.S. Forest Service, a branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that looks after the national forests and grasslands, began the roundup of about 1000 wild horses. The horses are be ...
A controversial bill is headed to the US senate. Those who approve of the measures set out in the bill, which includes sterilizing mares, say it will effectively control the size of the wild horse herds, ensure the humane treatmen ...
Wild horses and burros continue to be available to the public with a $1000 incentive. The horses and burros, removed from public land by the BLM, are being offered for adoption and the incentive should help new owners with the cos ...
In Defense of Animals is petitioning to halt the sterilization program being planned by the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon that will brutally reduce the herd size and cause harm to horses in the Oregon’s Big Summit wild horse herd ...
In this good news, bad news video from ABC News Prime 'It’s Not Too Late', host Ginger Zee takes a look at the evolution of the BLM’s management of wild horses on American’s public lands. The BLM claims there are too many horses, ...
With a best jump of 102.75 inches and an undefeated jumpoff record of 1,332 - 0 at the age of 16, ! Velocity, a 11.3 hand Thoroughbred mare, has just captured the top PonyBox rank. Bred by Elmos Colourblind Ink, her earnings total ...
Love Valley is a place that looks like time forgot. Located in the Brushy Mountains north of Statesville, North Carolina it’s the brainchild of one man who decided to live out his childhood dream of living in the old west. Take a ...
As more tourist destinations become available, many of us are planning trips once again. For fans of cruising, The Shetland Islands is a unique port of call that features the iconic Shetland Pony. Beloved by children, but original ...
Purchase an ASTM-approved riding helmet made specifically for equestrian sports and you’ll be confident that your head will have good protection if you fall off. But not all helmets are created equal. The Helmet Lab research group ...
A woman who was caught on video kicking and slapping a horse who refused to load onto a trailer has been ousted by Pony Club. After avoiding the trailer, the horse gets loose, although others were there to keep it contained. But w ...
Less than six months after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) has voted to remove show jumping from the 5 sports that make up Modern Pentathlon. The move comes after a video of a rider an ...
Eel horses, kelpies, nessies, these are just a few horses and horse-like creatures you won’t find on any horse breed list. Are they just part of legend, meant to scare naughty children into behaving, or are they truly out there, e ...
By 
