VRWPA HISTORICAL PROJECTS

Over our 22 year history VRWPA volunteers have:

·       Starting in the middle 1980's and into the early 1990's Legislative sessions, worked with Speaker Joe Dini, and Storey County Commissioners, to lobby the Legislature to enact laws allowing for local control of our estray horses.  This effort ultimately resulted in the 1994 Cooperative Agreement that allows for county management of the adoption program in place today.

·         Conducted seminars on the Hantavirus

·         Provided Weed Control for the Highlands called "the War on Whitetop".

·         Helped save the BLM pond in the Highlands from developers and made improvements as required by the BLM (installed a bench and sign at the pond for wildlife viewing)

·         Provided the money and labor for feed-trapping nuisance horses including, holding horses for 30 days before releasing them back to their native habitat or processing for Storey County adoption program. (VRWPA has been designated first response for handling sick or injured horse calls county wide. This includes Lockwood, Mark Twain, Virginia City , Gold Hill, and the Highlands . VRWPA has purchased the necessary equipment to perform duties of trapping (panels $2500), transporting (trailer $1000), holding, and feeding picked up horses (per day $4) and pays for veterinary care of sick, injured, orphaned and displaced horses, necropsies (autopsies), and carcass disposal (thousands of dollars).

·         Paid for County Fencing ($3500) and the Cattle Guard ($1000) for Lockwood.

·         Set up, managed and paid for an emergency winter feeding program ($18,000 for year 2000).

·         Found appropriate adoptive homes for many of the captured horses. This includes: Pre-inspection of facilities the horses will go to, and continuing follow-up until the adopter receives a full title at the end of the a year (approx. 40 man hours per month)

·         Repossessed and provided foster care of horses that for various reasons have been given or taken back prior to title transfer and started over to find a new home.

·         Developed and maintained ALL Adoption paper work for Storey County Wild Horse Control including quarterly reports to State (approx. 40 man hours per month)

·         Monitor the range for accident and illness that could affect the whole herd (approx. 10 man hours per month)

·         Paid our share ($5000) and Storey County 's ($2500) of the total $10,000 for the habitat capacity analysis done by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

·         Provided money for corral panels to start the prison gentling program ($6500).

·         Coordinated tax receipts for donations for equipments and supplies. Asked to administer the scholarship fund for inmates selected for the gentling program.

·       VRWPA donated monetary contributions to Raven for the flights they performed during the horse counts and slaughter investigation ($5000)

·         Coordinated and continue to administer, at the Sheriff 's Department's request, the $35,000 Reward Fund for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the horses shot, December 1998, in northern Storey County.

·    Because of our volunteers' help in managing the Comstock Wild Horses, donations from individuals, businesses, and community agencies have continued to increase annually.

 In conclusion: During the last three years alone, the VRWPA has spent $105,000 not counting in-kind contributions by volunteers, to help manage and protect the Comstock 'Wild' Horses, the Virginia Range and Wildlife Habitat.