Photo by Gen Haywood
Congress has left for its August recess without deciding the fate of America’s wild horses and burros. This offers advocates a short window of opportunity to draw attention to the plight of wild horses before members cast their votes in September.
While your representatives and senators are back in their home states, you can deliver the message of support for wild horses in person.
To schedule a meeting with your congressperson, senator or his/her staff, call the district office nearest you. District office phones numbers can usually be found on lawmakers’ homepages or listed on their websites under “contact.”
To help you, RTF has assembled two downloadable, printable packets.
Click here to download a packet with key points, a guide to legislation, information about the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse & Burro Program, key pieces of RTF’s Wild on the Range Campaign for humane management, and background about horse slaughter. If you arrange a meeting, print at least two copies: one for yourself, one to leave behind for your congressperson or senator.
Click here to download our lobbying guide with tips on how to advocate more effectively.
Looking for more ways to help?
- Write a letter to the editor or guest op-ed in your local or regional newspaper. Click here for tips.
- Call, call, and call again. Be polite, but be relentless. Dial the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 (if you reach a full voicemail, look for district office phone numbers on your senators’ webpages and call them) and tell your senators’ staff:
- I oppose any provision that allows the Bureau of Land Management to kill wild horses,
- I oppose any attempt to remove sale restrictions, opening the door for BLM to sell wild horses to kill buyers;
- I support the SAFE Act.
- I support a congressional mandate that proven, humane solutions be widely implemented including range and water restoration, enabling BLM to manage wild horses on the range.
- Spread the word: Share our posts on Facebook; retweet us on Twitter; bend the ears of friends and family, colleagues and neighbors, and encourage them all to call Congress.