I just want to take a moment to thank all of you for the tremendous work you've done in making the CA WH&B program something very special. The Napa adoption was just one more success in a long history of volunteers making a big difference in California.  

Over the past several years you have all helped to ensure that every WH&B adopted in Ca is being treated humanely through increased adopter assistance visits or phone calls. You have fostered relinquished animals relieving them of long trips back to BLM facilities and helped to make "three-strikes" a rarity.

The animals you have gentled have found homes with new adopters who might otherwise not have considered bringing a mustang or burro into their lives. The Napa adoption highlighted the greatest service that all of you provide; exposing your local communities and other horse enthusiasts to the value and fun of being part of the WH&B family.

Meet the Mustangs was a tremendous success for all of us in that we adopted a lot of animals and treated the public to a day of fun. Throughout the day your enthusiasm and courtesy presented an invitation to the public to join something special by adopting or just enjoying the show.

I personally questioned how the WH&Bs would be perceived in Napa. After all, Napa isn't one of the poorer communities in the state. But once again, you proved mustangs and burros transcend economic and cultural
boundaries.

Nancy and Mike did a tremendous job coordinating the event with BLM, our WH&B volunteers and our new friends at the Napa Horsemen's Arena. This was a lot of work and it shows their passion for mustangs and burros along with the desire to share that passion with everyone. Mike and Nancy asked me to pass on their offer to assist other volunteers in CA with organizing similar events.

One of our Hub Leaders, Dixie LaFountain, also had the
idea of having a gentled animal or two available for adoption at her local county fair. She was going to contact the volunteers in her area in NorCal to see if they would be interested. I think this is a great idea as it
gets our volunteers involved with the local community and keeps our WH&Bs in front of the public..

Quite often BLM gets wrapped-up in performance measures looking at the number of animals gathered, adopted and compliance inspections, and we lose sight of the driving force behind the WH&B program: the American
public. Thank all of you.

-Tom Pogacnik
California Wild Horse and Burro Program Manager
Bureau of Land Management
2800 Cottage Way
Sacramento, CA 95825
(916) 978-4637