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2026 is just hours away, Meredith — and freedom can’t wait
The following is from the American Wild Horse Conservation: In just hours, the calendar will turn — and 2026 will begin. Before that happens, we want to pause and recognize what you helped make possible this year — and why the moment ahead matters so much. In 2025, we won some historic legal victories. Together, we:
- Shut down the federal Adoption Incentive Program, a corrupt scheme that funneled wild horses and burros to slaughter;
- Won a major federal appeals court ruling in Wyoming, halting the largest attempted eradication of wild horses in U.S. history;
- And won critical Freedom of Information Act lawsuits, forcing the government to turn over thousands of pages of records that brought critical accountability and transparency to their wild horse and burro management program.
A detailed breakdown of why *right now* matters
The following is from the American Wild Horse Conservation: Right now, America’s wild horses and burros are facing unprecedented threats. They continue to be chased, trapped, and removed from the public lands across the American West that these innocent animals have called home for centuries. Helicopters are driving families across miles of rugged terrain. Foals are being pushed to exhaustion. Burros are standing their ground in the face of danger — and paying the price for it. And because of supporters like you, American Wild Horse Conservation is there to witness every. single. roundup. that takes place at the hands of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and its contractors. As we continue to fight back in 2026, will you be there with us? DONATE BEFORE MIDNIGHT Here’s why we need you today: In 2025, AWHC documented 100% of Bureau of Land Management wild horse and burro roundups — every helicopter, every trap. Our observers are often the only independent witnesses on the range. Without them, these operations would happen out of public view, without accountability, and without evidence to challenge cruelty in court or in Congress. Here’s why now matters: Presence is irreplaceable. You cannot expose abuse without seeing it. You cannot challenge unlawful actions without documentation. And you cannot protect wild horses from behind a desk. As we head into 2026, the pressure to remove wild horses from public lands is intensifying. More roundups are planned. More families are at risk. More moments will demand that someone is there. Here’s why you matter: Your support keeps AWHC on the ground. It supports the observer who documented Mesa and Dune. It supports the footage used in federal court. And it ensures that no roundup happens without witnesses. With just hours left in the year, your 2X-Matched donation helps power our work and keep eyes on the range when it matters most. Will you join us with a donation before midnight? DONATE BEFORE MIDNIGHT Thank you for standing with wild horses, AWHC Team ...
Someone from AWHC was watching that day
The following is from the American Wild Horse Conservation: Before the noise came, the land was familiar. I knew where to step. I knew my baby, Dune would follow. That morning, nothing felt different — until it was. On November 15, at our home in the Buffalo Hills of Nevada, helicopters chased our herd across the land we have always known. Burros like us were not meant to be driven this way. Our instincts — to stop, to brace, to protect our young — make these chases more dangerous, not less. As the helicopters came down, I kept Dune close — always just a few steps away. When the ground felt uncertain, I slowed for him. When he hesitated, I waited. That is how burros survive. We do not scatter easily. We do not run blindly into danger. When we are afraid, we stop. We stand. We look for safety. But on that day, nowhere was safe. I stayed with Dune as long as I could. I placed myself between him and what was coming. I thought we might be free and safe when our family was taken away. But then, the helicopter returned — just for us. Seven men surrounded us. Ropes flew. I felt the pull. I felt my baby fall beside me. We were taken to a place with fences and noise. I don’t know where my family is now. I only know that we are not going back. Humans have decided there is no place for burros here anymore. Their goal was to remove every single one of us. 33 of us were taken from Buffalo Hills, 4 did not survive. An observer from American Wild Horse Conservation was watching that day. They saw what happened to us. They documented it — because without witnesses, no one would ever know our story. Your support makes it possible for AWHC to be there — to stand watch, to tell the truth, and to fight for a future where families like mine are not torn apart by force. Please, if you can, make a year-end donation to AWHC’s Observation Fund to help protect wild families like mine — before more are lost. Every donation made before tomorrow at midnight will be matched, going twice as far to power this critical work. PROTECT WILD FAMILIES — DONATE NOW — Mesa As witnessed by AWHC observers ...
FWD: Protecting horses like Wally
The following is from the American Wild Horse Conservation: Wally’s story is not an isolated one. It’s a warning. There are so many other horses like Wally facing the same threats. That's why AWHC exists—to prevent what happened to him from happening to any other wild horse or burro through in-the-wild conservation and meaningful policy change that only happens because supporters like you step up when it matters most. As we approach the end of the year and prepare for what lies ahead in 2026, your support ensures AWHC can continue our fight to protect wild horses — whether on the range, in holding, or hidden in plain sight online. If you can, please make a 2X-matched donation before Wednesday at midnight to help us reach our $100,000 Year-End goal and make sure we have the resources needed to make the next lifesaving investigation, lawsuit, and more possible. MAKE A 2X MATCHED GIFT TODAY! Thank you for being part of the reason Wally is safe tonight. — American Wild Horse Conservation ...
Wally wasn’t found on the open range — he was found on Facebook
The following is from the American Wild Horse Conservation: This is how Wally was found. Not out on the open range. Not with his family band. But in photos posted to Facebook Marketplace — listed for sale like an object, not a living, breathing being: PROTECT WILD HORSES. GIVE TODAY! Earlier this year, our rescue partners at Wild Heart Restart Ranch came across Wally’s listing while monitoring online sales. The photos showed a horse quietly waiting — vulnerable, unprotected, and one step away from disappearing into a system where horses are bought, flipped, and too often funneled toward slaughter. Meredith, this should never happen — yet bad actors have exploited wild horses for years. That's why AWHC responds wherever harm occurs by uncovering abuse through investigation, taking legal action to hold perpetrators accountable, and supporting rescue partners when we can to make a lifesaving difference. In Wally’s case, your support made it possible for us to give a grant to Wild Heart Restart Ranch to:
- Fund Wally’s purchase, removing him from immediate risk,
- Cover his veterinary care,
- And pay for his September board so that he could recover safely with our trusted partners.
