TMP’s Sheldon Investigation Report… Concluded October 02, 2010

On the morning of Sunday, September 26, 2010 I was astonished to read on R.T.’s blog that an advocate had been accosted by a contractor’s tractor trailer truck and as well by the same contractor’s helicopter while attempting to locate the Sheldon Wild Horse Gather. As I read through the series of events reported in the blog post, I became even more shocked and – naturally – outraged.

Ever the curious one – to a fault it seems – I began to try and piece all of this together in my mind. I knew the gather was taking place as I had read it a month or so ago on Sheldon’s website. The NWR had set in motion a plan that began in 2008 and will continue until 2011 with the end result being a reduced population of the wild horses who reside within the refuge boundaries.

I knew the Cattoors would be the contractor as they are most often the contractor for such gathers. I knew that this gather would be “closed to the public” as this is customary for gathers conducted on FWS lands. There would also be a veterinarian onsite whose main purpose would be to observe the welfare of the horses and to make recommendations to the FWS for areas that could be improved, just as she has done on past gathers. (See link here.) Another veterinarian whose purpose would be to monitor, treat, and provide emergency care should it be required would also be onsite at all times.

A third veterinarian from the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDoW) had requested to be onsite for the gather operations. This request was granted by FWS officials as it would be a great opportunity for the NDoW to learn firsthand what a gather of wild horses en     tailed and therefore to be more knowledgeable when making their own decisions internally regarding wild horses. (I learned just yesterday that this third veterinarian from the NDoW never showed to the gather operations, and at the time of this writing to my knowledge has not visited Sheldon’s wild horse holding facility. This is a great disappointment to both this author and to the FWS. If anyone needed to see a gather firsthand, it would be officials from the NDoW as they have historically been part of the more negative minded where wild horses are concerned.)

So I knew all of these things, and yet I still could not make the story make sense in my mind. Why would the driver of the truck try to hit Leslie? Why would the pilot try to “herd” her back to her car? What would either one of them have to gain by such stupid and idiotic actions??? And what in the world could they have been thinking!? Um, Hello?! Ever heard of something called “safety”? Of course, I knew that both the driver and the pilot knew what safety was; I just wondered if they were using that knowledge.

So I finally couldn’t stand it any longer. I called Sue Cattoor.

“Hello Sue. How are you this morning?”

“Hi Tracie Lynn, I am fine and you?”

“Sue, I gotta ask you about something.”

“Sure, what’s up?”

“Well Sue, I woke up today to a report of one of your trucks and your helicopter harassing and endangering the life of an advocate outside of Sheldon. Know anything about this?”

“Yes, I know about it.”

“Care to explain?”

I listened intently while I took notes. Keep in mind, I do not claim that these statements are the truth or facts, only that they are the statements that were made during conversations with me personally and given to me by those who have made them.

The Cattoors discussed the day’s events that evening when they arrived in Denio over dinner. It was then that the driver mentioned that “a lady had stopped in the middle of the road to take pictures.” The pilot said, “It must have been the same lady who snuck into the Sheldon facility and that was hiding in the brush when I flew in.”

The following are the actual statements of the Cattoor’s driver and pilot:

The Driver’s Written Statement:

On September 23 I was driving a semi with a 56 foot trailer and I was hauling a load of horses from a trap site on the Sheldon to their holding corrals when on a narrow back road I saw an approaching vehicle.  It stopped in the middle of the road and a lady opened her car door and stepped out with a camera.  I slowed down to approximately 25 miles an hour – moved over as far as I dared and went around her.  At no time did I try to run her over or harm her in any way.  At no time did she indicate that she wanted me to stop.

According to the driver, Leslie was out of his travel path as he passed – she was still standing at her car with the door open – and he continued on to his destination without further incident, albeit “a little shaken up by the lady’s actions.”

Further investigation revealed the following:

The road on which the incident is reported to have occurred by both the Cattoors and Leslie was SR 8A. This road has been described to me by several people at this point as being:

• Approximately 20’ crested;
• Gravel in foundation; and
• “Not very easy to drive, especially with a load.”

The road was supposed to be closed at both ends by FWS Rangers to allow for only one vehicle to be on the road at a time – specifically the semi truck while he was transporting horses – to ensure the safety of any drivers but mostly the horses.

The road’s edge is not straight by any means and compensation for this causes a driver to have to move away from the edge occasionally to prevent slipping from the gravel crest of the road.

The driver did not feel it was safe to stop due to:

• He was fully loaded at the time with wild horses from the gather; a stop in the middle of nowhere would have only increased their state of anxiety. 
• The foundation of the road itself did not allow for a safe stop given weight of his load, the type of trailer and truck rig, and the distance between he and “the lady”. (A semi truck (18-wheeler, tractor/trailer rig) is approximately 12’ wide outside wheel well to outside wheel well.)

The Pilot’s Written Statement:

On Thursday September 23 I was returning to the Sheldon holding facility to park my helicopter for the night.  When I got there a Subaru car was parked behind a hill about 80 or 90 yards from the holding facility.  This was very suspicious – the road on which the car was hidden was a horrible road.  I turned around to check the car out and found it was left empty with a dog in it so I knew the owner was not far.  I started searching the little bushy hill overlooking the holding facility and found nothing at first so I went back towards the car to see if I could see tracks.  When I circled back around I saw a lady coming back towards the car – coming right by the two signs that say restricted area or no public access or something like that.  She must have been hiding in the bushes when I first flew over.  When she got to her car she started taking pictures of my helicopter and I started to leave to find a Sheldon employee to go talk to her but then she left in a hurry going in the wrong direction.  I turned to follow her so I could get her license number.  As soon as she seen me she stopped again jumped out and started taking pictures again – not acting at all like a frightened women.  I tried to get her plate number – got close enough to get part of the numbers and I thought it was a Nevada license.  Then I went and landed and found a Sheldon employee named Dale.  He went and talked to her.  At no time was I ever aggressive or too close to her or her vehicle to cause danger to either.  I stayed a safe distance as per FAR regulations.  I was never any closer than 50 yards unless it was when I flew over her when she was hiding in the bushes.  I was leaving my helicopter at the Sheldon facility and needed to identify any suspicious person hiding in the bushes because we have had many death threats in the past months.

I also contacted Sheldon Wildlife Refuge Project Leader Paul Steblein. Again, here are my notes from several of our conversations over the past week:

On Thursday, September 22, 2010 Leslie and Mr. Steblein spoke on the phone. Leslie was inquiring about the gather, access by the public to the gather site and to the holding facility and other gather related information in general. Mr. Steblein informed Leslie that no, she was not allowed to enter the gather site nor the holding facility without an escort from FWS. This was to ensure the safety of the both the people and the horses. However, Mr. Steblein stated, if she would meet him the following morning at 10 a.m. at the junction of SR 8A, he would take her on a tour of all gather related activities, and as well would take her on a tour of the holding facility. He stated that they would have to wait until the next day because of time constraints at the present. Leslie agreed, and their plans were made.

It was during this conversation that Mr. Steblein reports having told Leslie several times that the area of the gather, the holding facility, and the surrounding areas were all “closed” with restricted access. She would not be allowed into these areas without authorized access – access he was not granting at that time. Leslie stated she understood, and Mr. Steblein felt he had adequately explained the circumstances. It was later that same day that Mr. Steblein was contacted by Officer Smith reporting that Leslie had been stopped in a restricted area and was being questioned by Officer Smith at the time.

Mr. Steblein reports that he could not understand why Leslie had unsafely chosen to pursue a travel path into an area she knew to be restricted access only when he had already explained to her the circumstances of the closure, and why she had not waited until the following morning when she would have had authorized access and an escort. Additionally, Leslie’s actions had also placed her in violation of the law according to those restrictions to access. As a result, she was issued a warning citation.

The following morning, Mr. Steblein was to escort Leslie on a tour of the gather operations and of the holding facility, allowing both still and video photography. As a result of her actions on Thursday, Leslie became a liability for the safety of the horses and herself. Therefore, access to these areas was no longer an option. Instead, Mr. Steblein escorted Leslie to one of the nearby water springs in Sheldon for their interview.

This spring in particular was one of great concern to FWS officials as it had been greatly overused by wild horses. Mr. Steblein reported that he showed the spring to Leslie along with the damage that had been done, allowed the photography, and then allowed his interview by Leslie to be recorded by video. He also reported that the interview lasted a few hours, and was “really great; she asked some really great questions. I thought it went really well overall.”

A little more information…

I talked with Mr. Steblein several times throughout this past week. Each time I would think all of my questions had been answered, I would think of yet another question. Here are a few of those with their answers from Mr. Steblein:

Q. What are the specifics of Sheldon, like the governing legislation, the area it encompasses, and the types of wildlife it is intended to preserve?

A. The Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge is a 575,000-acre (2,330 km²) national wildlife refuge located on the northern border of the U.S. state of Nevada. A very small part extends northward into Oregon. It is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as the Nevada component of the Sheldon-Hart Mountain National Wildlife Refuge Complex, which is headquartered in Lakeview, Oregon. The Sheldon Refuge is not intended to support populations of wild horses. In 1931, the refuge was established under Executive Order 5540, dated January 26, 1931 and signed by President Herbert Hoover. The executive order was to carry out three central goals:

1.  
   1. The refuge was to provide a habitat for the pronghorn antelope, an animal whose population was in decline during the early 1900s.
   2. Conservation efforts were put forth to protect native fish, wildlife and plants.
   3. The refuge was to serve as an inviolate migratory bird sanctuary.

Then on December 21, 1936 President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 7522 designating the Charles Sheldon Antelope Range. Approximately 300 species of birds, mammals, amphibians, fish, and reptiles live on the refuge, including mule deer, bighorn sheep, sage grouse, kangaroo rats, mountain lions, waterfowl, and up to 3,500 pronghorn, to name a few. Wildlife populations and habitat are monitored closely to ensure that wildlife and habitat management objectives are met. Sheldon is the one of the few intact sagebrush steppe ecosystems in the Great Basin and as result hosts a variety of wildlife endemic to the unique environment. Desert fishes, greater sage-grouse, migratory birds, mule deer and the pygmy rabbit are all residents of the refuge.

Q. What are the methods of birth control being utilized at Sheldon for the horses?

A. We are using the vasectomies and overectomies.

Q. Is this done by laparoscopic surgery, or is this an open procedure?

A. No, it’s not laparoscopic. I am not sure exactly how the veterinarian gains access but the success rate has been very high.

Q. How high?

A. We’ve seen a foaling rate reduction of 50% after implementing the vasectomy procedure.

Q. A 50% reduction? That’s quite a drop! What about the genetic stability of the herds?

A. We’ve not had any problems thus far. The easy fix to any issues with genetics following the vasectomies would be to introduce another fertile stallion to breed with the mares.

Q. How long do you observe the horses before releasing them after the procedures?

A. They stay here 1 – 2 days and then are released only if they are not still bleeding or showing signs of complications. The veterinarians that have evaluated the procedure and our program here have stated that the horses are actually better off being released from holding and back to their home areas to heal because of less stress and less risk of disease transmission and infection.

Q. How many fatalities have you had as a result of this release after 1-2 days?

A. We don’t have a tallied count of these numbers, but I can say this: In 2009, we intentionally gathered from an area that was located away from where the 2008 post-vasectomy stallions were released in an effort to cover more stallions. We ended up actually recapturing 70 of the 90 stallions that had received vasectomies the year before. All of them were in great health, but more importantly they still displayed the stallion-like behaviors of a wild horse and the herd dynamics were intact.

Q. That is impressive! Have there been studies or veterinary journals written yet on your program?

A. Not as of yet, but there is talk about a write up being done this fall. We are very excited about it.

Q. You stated earlier that to deal with any genetic stability issues within a herd there would be another stallion introduced that was still fertile. What about the genetic bloodlines of the Sheldon horses; would this other stallion be of the same lines?

A. There really isn’t that much difference in the horses here on Sheldon when compared to the horses in the surrounding areas. They’ve all mixed and mingled for so many generations that they are virtually the same.

Q. I thought that the Sheldon Refuge was fenced.

A. Well, it is, but there is about a 3 mile gap in that fence on the East side of the refuge. It will be closed soon as well but it has been open for some time. And then there are the incidents of gates being opened by individuals trying to either allow the horses to leave the refuge or to let the horses from the Calico ranges come into the refuge. We’re not sure which is the real reason, and we don’t know who they are, but we try our best to keep them closed.

Mr. Steblein and I talked about the incident with Leslie as well. I am sad to say that my notes on this conversation were not as detailed as the ones above. (Note to self: Keep extra batteries with the digital recorder, not at home!) However, I will say that the conversation was a very matter-of-fact and candid exchange. There was no hesitation when answering questions as one would normally have with mistruths.

We talked about the headlines of “secret and covert gather” referencing the Sheldon gather. Mr. Steblein stated that the gather was reported on their website, and the local public was told about the restricted access to the area. Additional FWS Rangers were posted to inform any public attempting to enter but may not have been aware of the closed areas. When talking about this in particular, Mr. Steblein’s tone was one that reflected an attitude of “this is normal, everyday stuff for us; nothing new, big, or exciting, just a lands closure.” (http://www.fws.gov/sheldonhartmtn/sheldon/horseburro.html)

This made me think about our own FWS lands here in Texas. I was a little ashamed that I had not thought about it before, but this really is the norm with FWS. They don’t post it in the Federal Register or put up billboards on the side of the highways. In fact, you really should call the Ranger’s office before you plan a trip just to be sure that they will open because there won’t be a notice to you beforehand. I’m not really sure why this is, I just know that this is the way it’s done. But they’re never bashful about telling you, no, not at all. They are very open and honest, to say the least.

After reading and re-reading Leslie’s declaration, and then reflecting on the conversations I had over the past week about this situation, I find myself not so much outraged, but rather feeling a bit foolish on behalf of all parties involved. Very bluntly, and naturally very straightforward, here is my assessment of the situation with the information that I have at my disposal presently. This assessment is just my own, for whatever its worth to whomever cares to take it, and is – as always – subject to change as new information is revealed.

First off, having not been able to speak with Leslie yet personally, it seems from her declaration that Leslie was not intending to cause trouble with her visit to the Sheldon area. She was intent on observing what she believed to be a gather that was not up to par, and as an advocate, rightly so.

Second, her actions of pursuing the sounds of horses may not have been the smartest decision to make where safety was concerned, nor where legality was concerned. Whether she knew beforehand that the specific area she was in at the time was closed or not, she should have realized that if she was close enough to hear the sounds of the horses, she was close enough to be in a closed area. Even the possibility of such proximity should have triggered a red flag that this may not be the best course of action to take.

Next, the driver and the pilot had just cause to be suspicious of Leslie’s actions and presence given the recent month’s events and overall disposition of the relationship between some advocates and the contractors. However, even with their justified suspicions, they both could have handled the situations a little better. The driver could have at least acknowledged her with a wave of “Sorry, can’t stop,” or something. Come on fella, this is just common courtesy to a lady. But I can also personally understand the pucker-factor that comes with driving a rig down a road that may or may not be beneath your tires if you don’t keep it there. Multiply that factor by about a million when the rig is loaded up to the hilt with horses.

The pilot as well could have taken evasive actions to remove himself from the situation. Whether Leslie was snapping away with her camera or not should have been of no consequence to him. His own safety and the safety of Leslie should have been his first thoughts. If he was suspicious of her presence, he should have made a beeline for the landing zone and notified the proper authorities post-haste. They are the ones responsible for those matters, not him. By placing himself in that role, he possibly endangered the life of an advocate. (I say “possibly” here only because I wasn’t there, so I don’t know if the danger was imminent or emotional.)

Assumptions are only good for one thing: to make an “ass” out of “u” and “me” (ass-u-me). The driver assumed that Leslie was up to no good with her camera, and therefore did not make any attempt to handle the situation differently. The pilot assumed the same and reacted a little more forcefully. What if Leslie had been stranded? What if her camera had been a way to record her would-be rescuers just in case they weren’t rescuers after all? Hell, what if she had been a member of the press from out of state or the country, unfamiliar with local customs? Or even better, what if she had been a plain clothed employee of the FWS documenting the event? (Yea, that’s a whole bunch of what ifs and yea, a few of them are a bit farfetched but they are still questions that need to be asked because anything is possible!)

And quite frankly, I am a bit miffed that Officer Smith made Leslie cry. Again, assuming that she was up to no good, Leslie’s report gave me the impression that he approached her with what can be described as no less that the “bad cop” persona with the intent to intimidate her, which apparently he did as she wound up in a puddle of tears. Maybe it’s just the Southerner in me, or maybe it’s the old school upbringing I received, but that is not the way you treat a lady. I don’t care if you suspect her of committing mass murders. You still do not treat a lady with disrespect. Even more so, if Officer Smith suspected Leslie of being ill-intended, Psychology 101 dictates that when approaching the offender, intimidation is a surefire way to a bad ending; that is, unless of course, the officer was taking the intimidation route because he feared that Leslie was going to pummel him with her massive biceps. Not likely.

Conversely, Leslie – I know you and I haven’t talked about this yet, but I gotta tell you something – and I’m just being honest here – if you hadn’t been somewhere you shouldn’t have been none of this would have happened in the first place.

To all advocates of the American Wild Mustang:

We are advocates, not vigilantes.

We want BLM and FWS to follow the laws, we had better dang well follow them too! What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

We want them to be honest with us, we better be honest with them.

We want to be a part of the gathers in the observation and recommendation capacity, we had better mind our manners when we are allowed to do so. If we are given an inch, don’t try to take a mile. History has shown us that even an inch can be yanked right back away from us faster than we can say, “But…”

Most importantly, we absolutely must realize that our actions in the name of Advocacy have very long lasting effects on the American Wild Mustang. We may be upset about the situation ourselves, maybe even have our feelings hurt or worse, but we are still safe when we lay down at night. THEY ARE NOT ALWAYS SO LUCKY. We must think before we act. We must look further ahead to the long term results of our actions, not just the here and now. Yes, some really huge things may get accomplished with our actions today, but following the trickledown effect to the end result may not justify the means.

When I first became aware of this entire situation, I was angry. I was outraged. My own husband didn’t want to talk to me at first because I was so mad. As this week has progressed and the information I have shared with you here unfolded, I became more and more angry – but not at lack of safety reported by R.T. and Leslie. I was angry at the advocates as a whole, at the FWS, at the Cattoors… Hell, I was angry at the whole situation and everyone involved, including myself.

What have we become? We use words like “secret” and “covert” where they are not applicable. The intent can only be interpreted as means to grab attention. But instead of recouping the headline’s misnomer, the report that follows continues with the melodramatic tales of the thieves of the night. Just because an individual was not aware of a situation does not mean that the situation itself was a secret or covert. All it means is that the individual didn’t know about it. There is nothing dark and sinister about a lack of knowledge.

For the record, this gather was in fact announced many times, once that I know of for sure in the Federal Register where the opportunity for public comment was announced, not to mention here on TMP on August 04, 2010 and again on September 02, 2010. Both posts contained documents related to or referencing the gather operations and information.

RETRACTION: I don’t remember when exactly I saw the information I referenced in the paragraph above, but this is the page’s address: http://www.fws.gov/sheldonhartmtn/Sheldon/horseburro.html
After trying to locate it in the pdf files and on the website itself again, I’m afraid that I have to make a retraction. I cannot find the statement I saw before, and without said statement I have no proof. I do apologize.

Federal Register: May 12, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 92)

Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge, Lakeview, OR

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a comprehensive conservation plan and environmental impact statement; announcement of four public open house meetings; and request for comments.

[[Page 27005]]

Feral Horses and Burros: How can feral horses and burros best be managed for the long term consistent with refuge purposes? Should interim management guidelines adopted under the recent Feral Horse and Burro Management EA continue in the future?

Dated: April 14, 2008, David J. Wesley, Acting Regional Director, Region 1, Portland, Oregon

[FR Doc. E8-10480 Filed 5-9-08; 8:45 am]

And given the past events at gathers and the actions in the name of Advocacy, can you really blame FWS for not wanting to have advocates present and “to keep things low and quiet”? Yes, we should be allowed to observe – POLITELY! When you go to someone else’s home for a visit, you are polite. That’s just good manners.

I mean no one any disrespect with my words here. I only mean to try and bring a little bit of the things some of us have forgotten back into the light. If I have offended anyone with my statements, I do apology for the offense, but I do not apologize for my words. Please take them as constructive criticism, and definitely not with any destructive criticism intended.

Tracie Lynn Thompson

Links for reference:

• Independent Welfare Assessment by Dr. J. Weikel, DVM of the 2008 Sheldon Horse Gather
• Sheldon Horse and Burro EA Master Copy.draft final.7Apr08
• Final Sheldon HB final EA FONSI 6_25_07
• Master Copy Sheldon Horse EA.11sept07.revised draft release
• SheldonHB_fina lEA2008.draftQA.8Apr08.PFSedits
• Sheldon Horse and Burro FONSI.Signed 5-08
• Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge Comprehensive Conservation Plan
  • Planning Updates: 
    • Planning Update 1, May 2008 (pdf 780 kb)
    • Planning Update 2, April 2009 (pdf 2,671 kb)
    • Planning Update 3, June 2010 (3,918 pdf )
    • Public Scoping Report (pdf 1,437 kb)

From the Sheldon NWR Website:

The revised final Environmental Assessment (EA) and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) can be found below:

• News Release
• Questions & Answers PDF
• April 2008 Environmental Assessment PDF
• April 2008 Finding of No Significant Impact PDF
  

For comparison purposes, the 2007 revised EA and FONSI can be found below. A comparison chart is located on pages 1-6 in the summary at the beginning of the April 2008 revised Environmental Assessment above:

• June 2007 Finding of No Significant Impact PDF
• September 2007 revised Environmental Assessment PDF

Questions should be e-mailed to sheldon-hart@fws.gov