Dear Mr. Cattoor:
Please accept my appreciation for the outstanding work you and your crew have done for the Utah wild horse program and others like it throughout the West.
Gathering horses for the Bureau of Land Management can be as much hard work as fun. I’m sure you have experienced more of the hard work than the fun; however, to us and much of the public, you make it appear very easy and enjoyable. Recently, a television report from our Cedar Mountain roundup mentioned how easy you make the arduous task appear.
To many, the work you do behind the scenes goes unnoticed. We value the care and appreciation you exhibit for the public’s wild horses–in particular, your capture techniques, which are designed with the horse’s welfare as the primary consideration.
Wild horse adoptions are our principal means of managing their population. The success of these adoptions depends on how well we promote their availability. In every regard, you have demonstrated a willingness to work for the public and with the media by selecting capture sites that lend themselves to reporters and their cameras. The public wants to know about the process, and your added efforts help deliver this to their living rooms.
Also, we recently tested a method of taking potential adopters to the capture site to consider selecting a horse we normally would have returned to the range. Our initial test at the Cedar Mountains was quite successful, placing 28 horses with adopters. This new marketing technique helped us improve the efficiency of our adoption and further benefited rangeland resources by removing additional excess horses from the range. The sorting ,,’our crew provided was instrumental in making this event a success.
Again, we appreciate your efforts and the goodwill you have gained for the wild horse program in Utah. With teamwork and greater public understanding, wild horse management efforts can be a reasonable task; and you have certainly done your part.
Sincerely,James M. ParkerState Director
