FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

We were on site for the Mono Lake Montgomery Pass Wild Horse Round-up. We have video footage that is available for media station use- with consent from Filmmaker. Please reach out. Currently, there are 67,000 wild horses in captivity. Mono Lake gathered 461 horses in the Eastern Sierra, outside Yosemite National Park, California, United States. It costs U.S. taxpayers approximately $1 billion over the horses’ lifetime to keep them ALL in captivity. On average, it costs taxpayers roughly $50,000 per year to maintain each wild horse in captivity.

Mono County currently has 699 wild horses in multiple herds on and around Montgomery Pass. These horses are the last true wild horses, historically bred with indigenous wild horses from local Native people pushed off their lands when settlers came to the the area is outside of Yosemite, these horses are also descendent from colonial horses when they were pushed off their lands by Los Angeles Department of water and power for the land grab and water grab as well as the last true Spanish Mustang from the central Valley. On July 8, we were present when they started a helicopter round-up to capture approximately 450 horses, which will be rounded up via helicopter assistance by CD Warner Livestock and placed into captivity.

According to the Wild Horse Cacus, founded by Congresswoman Dina Titus, Las Vegas, Helicopter roundups of wild horses are unethical, inhumane, and dangerous to both the horses and local residents. There are countless videos and photos supporting this claim.

We are demanding an end to helicopter-assisted roundups, as they are inhumane, and are calling on the Forest Service to implement water bait trapping methods instead.

· An Immediate Halt to July 8, 2026 Roundup: Cancel the planned gather of the Montgomery Pass wild horses immediately.

· A Permanent Ban on Helicopter Drive-Trapping: Transition all management strategies away from high-stress helicopter roundups and permanently explore humane, on-range management alternatives.

· Emergency Inter-Agency and Congressional Communication: We call on Congressman Kiley’s office to break its silence and immediately interface with Congresswoman Dina Titus and the Congressional Wild Horse Caucus to address these systemic regional failures.

· Mandatory Public Consultation: Halt all future operations until honest consultation occurs with area leadership and ensure meaningful public engagement. The current operation was created with a predetermined outcome rather than an honest analysis of public input.

· Independent Oversight and Accountability: Implement strict, third-party veterinary monitoring for all operations, excluding BLM/USFS personnel. Include legally binding fines and contract termination clauses for violations of modern veterinary standards. The standards within the Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program have never been formalized, leave too much discretion regarding what is humane, and do not even include basic equine welfare standards for air quality and heat index (both important during wildfire season and summer heat).

· Redrawn Territory Boundaries: Current boundaries restrict herd movement and resource access. These boundaries were based on administrative convenience and agreements, not on how the herd utilizes the range. Map lines must be redrawn to include Adobe Meadows within the protected territory, ensuring the wild horses have access to adequate, permanent water sources.

Rather than subjecting local mustangs to cramped living conditions, Inyo and Mono County residents are requesting a two-year moratorium on the project to remove wild horses. During this time, we aim to retain $400,000 locally and establish a wild-horse-protected territory.

· We demand that the water within the wild horse protected territory to keep them within the wild horse territory.

We also propose studying the ecological benefits that wild horses may provide to the Montgomery Pass meadows. Additionally, local tribes and communities have designed a pilot program for equine therapy, adoption, and management, which will be implemented with reallocated funds.

CD Warner competed against Cattoor Livestock Roundup Company, both from Utah, and is being paid $400,000 of taxpayer money from local sources or more to round up the wild horse herd near Benton, CA, on Mono Lake. We ask that these funds be redirected to support local management efforts, including programs with wranglers in Bishop and throughout both counties.

For more information, please visit https://www.madebymotherearth.com and follow us on Instagram @madebymotherearth.