Saving America’s Heritage By Julie Von Tobel Gleason Nevada Commission for the Preservation of Wild Horses    We are standing in my barn staring at the two bay colts I brought home today. It is raining outside. We have been anticipating the rain all summer and it comforts my senses. It is the end of August and this is the first substantial downpour Las Vegas has had all year. The first year of the new millennium has been a year of draught and it is because of the lack of rain that these foals ended up in my barn. They are resting, sleeping so soundly you can almost hear them snore. The smallest colt, named Rocky, still has strings of hay sticking out of his mouth. He is not aware of my presence. The larger one, Bullwinkle, sleeps with one eye open and is slightly alert. The rain beats heavily upon the barn roof as if to serenade the foals. There shall be no more thirst and no more hunger little babies. This chant has led these two foals into the deepest sleep that they have had since the womb. Rocky and Bullwinkle, though they look like ordinary bay colts, are far from ordinary. Rocky and Bullwinkle represent our American Heritage, as they are two of America’s Wild Horses. A few weeks ago, they freely roamed on land south of the Redrock Conservation Area. Because the rain did not come until late summer, several spring areas in and around the Redrock area went dry. Rocky, Bullwinkle and the other wild horses that roamed this area depend on these water sources for their survival. The lack of water forced the Bureau of Land Management to declare a state of emergency and collect a substantial number of horses in the area to keep them from starving to death or dying of thirst. This is called a gather. There are emergency gathers currently taking place all over the west and southwest, particularly in Nevada where we hold half of the wild horse population in the United States. Due to the prompt action of our local BLM office, the herds surrounding Las Vegas have been gathered and taken care of before any deaths occurred. Once the springs have water again, the mothers of Rocky and Bullwinkle will be allowed to go back out on the range and remain as America’s wild horses. They are over five years old and thus too old to change their wild ways. Rocky and Bullwinkle are young and thus able to adapt to domestic life. They will enter the Bureau of Land Management’s adoption program, and begin their lives in captivity. Since they no longer roam free, they are now commonly known in captivity as Mustangs. Approximately one year ago, I was given the opportunity to serve on the State of Nevada’s Commission for the Preservation of Wild Horses. The Commission’s duties sounded exciting and stirred my romantic childhood memories of the many wild horses that used to roam along the highways of Kyle and Lee Canyons. Now, a year and several hundred hours later, I am just vaguely beginning to understand the plight of the Mustang and the issues surrounding the preservation of our wild horses. I have found my first year as a Wild Horse Commissioner to be educational and enlightening. Through this position, I have traveled to parts of the state in the past year that I have never seen before. I have witnessed training demonstrations by true horse whispers. I have listened to cowboys talk of their struggles to maintain their ranching way of life. I have made new friends. I have seen my first wild horse gather. I was there the day that Rocky and Bullwinkle lives changed and they were brought into the pens. I attended a horse show this year full of wild horses whose athleticism and heart astounded me. I have toured the Nellis Airforce Range, which is home to the Nevada Wild Horse Range and have seen hundreds of horses roam free on Nevada lands. If you had told me one year ago that my retired English pleasure mare and I would be playing babysitter to a couple of wild mustangs, I would have sworn you were crazy. Yet here my mare and I stand listening to the rain, mesmerized as we stare at the two bay colts known as Rocky and Bullwinkle who represent a piece of our American Heritage. Rocky and Bullwinkle will be available to lucky adopters at the local BLM adoption on October 8th, 2000. The adoption will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada at Horseman’s Park near the north arena. The minimum bid is $125.00 . That is a small price to pay for a piece of American History. If you are interest in adopting a wild horse, please contact the BLM at (702) 647-5000.