Wild Horses Couldn't Stop Them
Federal Government Rounds Up Equines

Looking for a long weekend trip in small-town Texas where you can do something you've never done before? Then travel to Glen Rose, where you can take part in the First Annual National Wild Horse & Burro Expo. But make sure to haul your horse trailer to the north-central Texas town, because this is the largest wild horse and burro adoption event of the year.
     Around 300 head of equines (some of them saddle trained) will be brought to the Somervell County Expo Center November 14-17 in hopes of going home with a caring owner. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management, the event will feature adoptions, workshops with professional horse trainers on training and gentling, and a wild horse and burro show. The show will offer a series of competitions for youths and adults, including halter, showmanship, western pleasure and barrel racing. There is even a costume contest.
     The event is part of the BLM's Rangeland Management program in which it preserves and protects wild horses and burros living on public lands. When an overabundance of equines exists, BLM gathers them from the range using helicopters. They are then cared for at a holding area until they can be offered for adoption at an event such as this.
     There is a cost involved (adoption fees are determined in a bidding process), and there are some minimal requirements to qualify as the new "parent" of a wild horse or burro (e.g. age 18 or older, financially able to care for the animal, own suitable facilities to house a horse). In an Internet auction of wild horses and burros from Colorado, Kansas, Nevada and Wyoming, final bids ranged from $125 (which is the minimum bid) up to $1,965. The high bid was for a nine year old bay gelding, "Charlie Brown," who was captured in 1995 in Nevada. The gentle-natured gelding had been used as a saddle horse and mascot for the Moore, Oklahoma BLM office for the last 6 years. Final bidding for many of the adopted animals was in the $200 range.
     Glen Rose, about a five hour drive from Tomball, is well known for its Dinosaur Valley State Park attraction, where visitors can view 113 million year old dinosaur tracks in the Paluxy River bed. Camping, picnicking and nature trails are available at the park. Other interesting Glen Rose attractions include Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, a nine and a half mile scenic wildlife drive featuring exotic and endangered animals (www.fossilrim.org), and Barnard's Mill & Art Museum, a 140-year old building that is registered with National & Texas Historic Places exhibiting 12 rooms of original oils, bronzes, watercolors, etchings and artifacts. (Open on Saturday & Sunday only.)
     Upcoming BLM adoption events are slated for Odessa (Dec. 13-14), Victoria (Jan. 24-25), San Marcos (Feb. 14-15), Beaumont (Mar. 14-15), and Abilene (Apr. 11-12).
Visit: www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov. CS