ISPMB

ISPMB’s goal is to prevent the elimination of unique herds and to find a solution that would help to raise the public’s awareness of the need to protect wild horses and burros on public lands. At present, ISPMB is creating a model management program for wild horses in our country and currently manages three unique wild horse herds – the White Sands herd, the Gila herd, and the Catnip herd.

The Gila Herd It began in 1996, when ISPMB was notified about a proposed removal of approximately 75 wild horses that were located near Gila Bend, Arizona. These wild horses were not protected by the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act and therefore were going to be gathered and sold at auction. In simple terms, this means being sold to the highest bidder for meat consumption in Europe. Read more about Gila Horses

The White Sands Herd A total of 70 wild horses were transported from the harsh sands of the White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in New Mexico to the lush, green pastures of South Dakota. In 1999, this transfer culminated a ten year effort by ISPMB to protect the wild horses of White Sands Missile Range. Read the Department of the Army’s Letter of Acknowledgement

The Catnip Herd Eighty-two wild horses arrived at the ISPMB in South Dakota from the Sheldon Wildlife Range (SWR) in northern Nevada. The SWR is not mandated by Congress to protect wild horses and proposes to reduce herds to 125 animals with the eventual possibility of eliminating wild horses altogether on the range. Read more about the herd

Herd Management Philosophy Currently, ISPMB is continuing its observation and study of the herds so that a model management program can be derived. Fertility and recruitment rates are observed along with behaviors of bands and their interaction with each other. Each herd is blood typed and DNA tested. Right now the herds are far more genetically diverse compared to any breed of domestic horse in our country.