Wild horse advocates hold candlelight vigil at State Capitol
A crowd of more than 100 people gathered Saturday evening along North Carson Street in front of the Nevada State Capitol, holding a candlelight vigil for an estimated 3,000 Virginia Range wild horses currently under state of Nevada jurisdiction.
The mustangs face ownership transfer to a private entity after the Nevada Department of Agriculture's agricultural board voted Dec. 12 to cancel the humane management cooperative agreements with wild horse advocacy groups.
“It’s really absurd to think that any non-profit entity would adopt 3,000 horses and keep them wild," wild horse advocate Cindy Hartzell said Saturday. "They would become private property, and along with that, a liability.”
Protesters at Saturday's vigil called for Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval to reverse the agricultural board's decision. Advocates say the governor, who appointed members of the board, allowed the NDA to terminate a successful birth control program for wild horses last month.
“These horses are very dear to us," Hartzell said. "The thought of not having these mustangs on the Virginia Range is very sad.”
Protesters are urging the state to reinstate the successful humane management cooperative agreement, which includes humane birth control.
The state's humane management cooperative agreement with the American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) was implemented by local organizations, including the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association, the Wild Horse Connection and the Wild Horse Preservation League, advocates said.
Continuing preservation efforts are not only important to locals, Hartzell said, but also to visitors of the region.
"We have so many tourists who come to Reno to see the wild mustangs,” she said. “Some of these advocates who do tours out there have had people from as far as Australia and around the world, just to see our wild mustangs.”
Advocates say they are concerned that under the ownership transfer proposal, the horses would become private property and subject to the whims of private interests that may include pro-slaughter practices.
“They would become private property and could all be removed and sent to slaughter,” Hartzell said.
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