Geplaatst De gouverneur van Colorado spreekt inmiddels over de ergste branden in de historie van zijn staat. Er zijn dan ook 32.000 mensen geevacueerd terwijl de vuurzee nu ook Colorado Springs bedreigd.
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Scorching temperatures and little rain caused several wildfires to blaze near Fort Collins, Colo., this month, and horses and humans were forced to evacuate.
Near the beginning of June, lightning caused the High Park Fire and prompted state health officials to issue smoke warnings. The Colorado National Guard sent soldiers and helicopters to help fight the High Park Fire, but soon the blaze escalated so officials evacuated the area and closed roads. After weeks of continual threats to life and home, the blaze is now 85 percent contained, but more than 87,000 acres have burned, and the equine refugees are still in limbo.
Since the fires began almost a month ago, more than 500 horses have spent time at The Ranch Larimer County Fairgrounds and Events Complex, which serves as the sheriff department’s base of the rescue operations.
“We were getting flooded with animals,” said Bob Herrfeldt, director of The Ranch. “We’ve gone through this, unfortunately, too many times. We’re getting too good at it.”
Some horses arrived at The Ranch with their owners, but others were left at home when the fires broke out. That’s when the Larimer County Sheriff’s Posse steps in. This group of volunteers are trained horsemen. When an area is locked down due to fires, The Ranch receives reports of abandoned animals. In coordination with the firefighters and The Ranch, the Sheriff’s Posse goes with a fire escort to retrieve the animals.
“They’re the ones actually going up into the fire and pulling horses out,” Herrfeldt said. “They are the unsung heroes in this whole thing.”
Due to the vast rangeland on which livestock graze near the Rocky Mountains, it can be difficult for owners to transport their livestock out of harm’s way by trailer. As a result, when an evacuation notice is released, owners often spray paint horses or cattle with the owner’s name or ranch initials and open gates and fences.
“Animals are smarter than people when it comes to that,” Herrfeldt said. “They usually find places to go.”
When firefighters encounter animals in pens, they do the same thing—either paint the animals or tag their halters for later identification.
When these John and Jane Does, as Herrfeldt called them, come to The Ranch, the staff posts photos of them online so they can quickly be identified through the Larimer County Humane Society's Lost and Found page. Clinicians and students from nearby Colorado State University, where about 25 displaced horses are currently housed, visit The Ranch daily to donate their time, medication and resources to help any injured or sick animals.
“In our location right now, we have no John or Jane Does,” Herrfeldt said. “It’s tough to get a hundred head out of those areas.”
Most of the horses are ranch horses, used to handle other livestock such as cattle, and Herrfeldt and the staff at The Ranch have encountered difficulty keeping the horses calm and comfortable in their unfamiliar surroundings.
Bron: www.chronofhorse.com
