In 1971 Congress passed the Free Roaming Wild Horse and Burro Act. This act “protected” wild equine on public lands from harassment and killing. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was given the task to manage the herd numbers at a sustainable number. Even with their adoption program, the BLM had caught thousands of horses and burros that they must store in long term storage facilities. To help reduce the number of animals being stored, Senator Conrad Burns inserted specific language into a 2005 spending bill that required the BLM to sell any horse or burro over the age of 10 or that had been offered for adoption three times unsuccessfully. Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue has purchased thousands of them.
The burros are the direct descendants of the burros used in early railroad construction and mining throughout the southwest. The conclusion of World War II left a surplus of cheap equipment and the burros lost their jobs. Released to fend for themselves, the burros thrived in some of our country’s harshest environments. These burros deserve love and respect and a better life then standing in a government dry lot.
