Wild Horse and Burro

Penelope or “Penny” is from Yuma, Arizona, and was a part of the BLM and Arizona Dept. of Corrections Wild Horse and Burro Training Program. We adopted her about 3.5 years ago...

Adam Eggers who works in the Media Services Branch for BLM's National Training Center in Arizona shares his love of their adopted burro "Penny" and her many expressions.

As most herd management areas in the west cover huge areas with poor roads, BLM uses aerial surveys to estimate how many horses are in each population.

Just three days before Bishop's event we were still convinced she was going to be adopted out to some lucky home. I decided to take her on a 4-mile walk -- and we jogged. She did so great that I told my husband, "this is a premium donkey, she will be a great and docile pack burro runner!" Well, she went to the adoption event in Bishop and then came home with us!

Physiologically, these animals are the same as domestic horses and burros, but they are not just unhandled horses and burros. They are truly wild animals and this just makes the practices the BLM has put in place over the years that much more important to help protect the animal’s health and well-being.