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Crooks and Liars
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New Nevada Agriculture Director
Takes Aim at Wild Horses
Part Twenty One
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News From the Front - May 2, 2008
Wild Horses Help Promote Nevada Ecotourism
A crew from
Twelve Horses, a major media and marketing firm that has developed a number of Nevada tourism promotions, came out Wednesday to shoot footage of the range and the Virginia Range horses. The purpose of the shoot was non-political - to explain what the region's range and wild horses are all about and to motivate outdoor enthusiasts to visit Nevada.
The Nevada Department of Agriculture's Estray Horse Program Manager was invited to be on hand to explain the range, the herd and the Department's role in managing the horses. The Department refused to let their staff participate - an action that was regarded with some curiosity by the media crew. To be blunt, the Department's actions only served to reinforce wild horse advocates' opinions that Director Lesperance is solely interested in pursuing his obsessive crisis, not engaging in tangible activities that provide benefit to Nevada.
Curiously, at the precise start time for the project Director Lesperance's renegade rancher buddy Don Alt (whom we photographed trapping horses last year) was spotted in the area. The horses stayed pretty well hidden until after Alt left.
But while the Department of Agriculture wasn't very hospitable, and possibly contrived to undermine the tourism promo, it was as if the horses knew that the film crew was a friendly force and they were most engaging - as wild horses can be when not threatened. The crew got loads of great shots of horses and the Nevada countryside.
The Twelve Horses folks are real pros. We expect a fantastic production will be forthcoming that will help promote our state.
Checking in with Sentinel (right,) the band stallion.
It is polite to get the stallion's permission before entering the band.
An itchy youngster making good use of some of the equipment.
"Agency threat" Kathy Graves watches the activities on her own Virginia Range horse.
Some young horses lining up for their "interviews."
Unit Manager Leilani Schweitzer gets a sense of what it's like to be among the horses.
Sentinel (left) keeps close watch over the activities.
Lacy J. Dalton, an experienced wild horse person, also greets the band.
Setting up interviews.
Wildlife Ecologist Craig Downer explains the horses' role on the range.
Lacy talks about the Virginia Range.
Done for the day, Sentinel takes his band over the hill and out of sight.
Any time we show these kinds of photos we have to remind readers that these are wild horses. We are familiar to these particular horses, we know how to conduct ourselves politely around them and how to guide others in this kind of experience. Any observer that the horses don't know should stay at least 50 feet away as any action perceived as threatening could provoke an aggressive response from the band stallion or cause the horses to bolt, putting young foals at risk.
Please stay safe and do not closely approach any wild horses!
Hitting a Nail on the Head.
The opinion around town is that Betty Lee Kelly (of Wild Horse Spirit) nailed it with her letter that appeared in today's
Nevada Appeal. From some of the "materials" we've been able to seen (including hours of videotapes) it looks like Kelly will be able to prove her claims... if the Department wants to drag this issue further out into the light of day.
The spirit of Thomas Paine lives
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