Horse Tales Blog

The Rotary Club of Smith Valley recently celebrated its 75th anniversary of being chartered in 1946. That’s a lot of history for a club that typically averages 30 – 35 members at any given time.
And while it started out as a men’s club, since 1987 women have been joining Rotary in ever greater numbers. It is generally accepted that people join Rotary for fellowship and to provide service to their communities and the world. Over the years, many of the club’s projects and events have become staples of community life here in the Valley. One of the most recent events is the ever popular Fun Days on the first weekend in October. It was first held in 1968, ostensibly as a day for family’s to gather and have fun.

It is returning to the Valley at Dressler Park this year after a hiatus last year due to COVID. It is now a 2 day event with entertainment for all ages and remains, in every way, a family event. In addition to a car show, trap shoot, tractor pull, and many other activities, there are over 40 vendor booths for crafters and entrepreneurs featuring homemade and commercial items on Sunday. Each booth is 10×10, and an allowance for vendors to purchase more than one booth to share their wares. Booths are $40, but a price of $25 is offered for nonprofits. Contact information can be found in our ad in this issue.

The proceeds of Rotary’s efforts, including a raffle and silent auction, benefit a long list of youth projects including Rotary leadership camps for 8th graders and Juniors in High School and scholarships. One of the club’s special gifts is the ability to host social events as fundraisers that bring the community together and simultaneously provide funds for community and youth projects (e.g., annual Lamb Feed and Spring Steak Dinner and Dance (formerly Spring Brunch). Every year, the annual Easter Egg Hunt and annual 1st grade Christmas party entertain young people. For the past several years, the Club has leveraged matching grants with our District (5190 – 59 clubs in No. NV & CA) to support much needed community projects.

Some of these include: installing handicapped parking spaces and a ramp at the community hall, improvements at the Heyday Inn, and partnering with the historical society on a gazebo at the historical park in Wellington. On the international stage, eradicating Polio is a high priority for the 1.2 million members of Rotary worldwide and our club has contributed to the fact that there are only 2 countries in the world where Polio exists. We are very excited that soon Polio will be only a distant memory.

We meet every week, currently at 7 p.m. at the Heyday Inn on Thursdays. Membership is by invitation and every Rotary member would love to bring in new members. Rotary is a special opportunity to forge new friendships and make a difference in the world.

By Kim Harris

Am I obsessed with horses in war? Well, no, but I am always intrigued by how horses came from a place of necessity to a place of leisure. I see several of my neighbors keeping them as “pets”.  Many take their horses on trail rides or to training sessions, yet some of these horses never leave their owner’s property. So I’m inclined to question, is a horse happier being useful and roaming across the land, or secure in a confined space? And then there’s the fact that at times, they had no choice as to what their purpose was, let alone their owner’s intentions.

The “War to End All Wars” ultimately failed to be such, and the world was at war once again as of September 1, 1939 with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and the subsequent declarations of war on Germany by Britain and France. And yes, horses were still a necessary component of what was to become known as “World War II”. So what changed in this war? Well for one thing, motorization became even more advanced, yet still many areas of battle presented the same problem of mobility as in the Great War.

Therefore horses were once again pressed into service as beasts of burden. As for the Cavalry, most British regular cavalry regiments were mechanized by World War II. The United States retained a single horse cavalry unit stationed in the Philippines, and the German Army retained a single brigade. Many of the other armies had variations of blended horse regiments. Horse-drawn transportation was most important for Germany, as it was lacking in natural oil resources. Infantry and horse-drawn artillery formed the bulk of the German Army throughout the war; only one fifth of the army belonged to mobile panzer and mechanized divisions. Each German infantry division employed thousands of horses and thousands of men taking care of them. In two months, December 1941 and January 1942, the German Army on the Eastern Front lost 179,000 horses.

The Wehrmacht, as Germany named them, was an army on horseback. By 1939 the German Reich possessed 3,800,000 horses to be used in WWII German cavalry while 885,000 were initially
called to the Wehrmacht as saddle, draft, and pack animals. Of these, 435,000 horses were captured from the USSR, France, and Poland. Additional horses were purchased from Hungary, Romania, Czechoslovakia, and Ireland.

Sometimes in war, doing the right thing matters more than which side you are fighting on. Here is such a case. The Lipizzaner Stallions are known to this day as a famous breed of horses, often referred to as the “Dancing White Stallions”. They are highly trained in classical dressage at the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, which has existed for hundreds of years. The breed was nearly lost in World War II when the Lipizzaner mares were separated from the stud farm of Piber and moved into Czechoslovakia, and then faced with possible destruction at the hands of the starving Russians.

Alois Podhajsky, the director of the Spanish Riding School, made a bold request of the Americans, especially General Patton, to save the horses. Patton, an equestrian Olympian himself, gave his blessings saying, “Get them, make it fast!” With only hours to spare, one of the Army’s last great cavalrymen, American colonel Hank Reed mounted a covert rescue operation. Racing against time, Reed’s small yet determined force of soldiers, aided by several sympathetic Germans, stole across enemy lines to save the horses.

What about horses in Asia on both sides of the conflict? Cavalry provided a major element in the Chinese armies where they primarily used cavalry for patrolling, reconnaissance and direct conflict as mounted infantry with the Japanese forces. Mongolian horses provided the bulk of horse-stock in Chinese armies.

Japan’s environment, historically, did not foster horse breeding practices. One Japanese cavalry unit saw active service outside China, in the Malayan campaign of 1941. The Japanese also made use of Mongolian mounted auxiliaries, recruited in Japanese held territory, to patrol the Soviet and Mongolian borders. In the United States cavalry horses were eventually replaced by the Bantam 4×4 car, soon to be known as the jeep. The only significant engagement of American horsemen in World War II was the defensive action of the Philippine Scouts. The Scouts challenged the  Japanese invaders of Luzon holding off two armoured and two infantry regiments during the invasion of the Philippines. They repel-led a unit of tanks and successfully held ground for the Allied armies’ retreat to Bataan. What would become of the very last combat horse cavalry charge in U.S. Army history occurred at Morong at the west side of Bataan on January 16, 1942, when mostly Filipino troopers of ‘G’ Troop, 26th Cavalry successfully charged their mounts at a far superior Japanese force of armor-supported infantry, surprising and scattering them. This lightly-armed, 27-man force of U.S. Horse Cavalry, under heavy fire, held off the Japanese for several crucial hours.

Stateside there was understandable concern amongst Americans regarding their coast lines. Beach patrols became increasingly important as they upheld three important functions: they looked out for suspicious ships, they reported and prevented any enemy landings, and stopped communications between ships and people on shore. In 1942, in Florida and New York, two Nazi saboteur teams were discovered being put ashore by German U-boats. Off the Oregon Coast, the enemy was already active sinking merchant ships, shelling Fort Stevens and trying to start forest fires with bombs.

The Sand Pounders patrol was staffed with recruits drawn from both the Midwest and from east of the Cascades. Throughout the early war years, the “Sand Pounders” carried .38 revolvers and Reising M50 submachine guns. They were mounted (one with a backpack radio transmitter) and made their way along the beach during every kind of weather the Oregon Coast would produce, ever on the look-out for Japanese submarines. They initially had only the authority to report suspicious occurrences. However, by late summer in 1943, the governors of Oregon and Washington issued a proclamation giving them full law-enforcement authority. For more information on the “Sand Pounders”, please refrer to my January 2021 article in Horse Tales Magazine.

Thank goodness times have evovlved and mechanization replaced the need for the horse in battle situations. I hope your interest in the horse in war has found some answers in my installment articles. I don’t profess to know everything about a subject, I only want to share what I’ve researched based on my own interests. If you have any feedback or area of interest you would like me to write about, please contact me. My next installment will take place during the Korean War, where I will tell you about a horse that was not a “horse” – she was a Marine!

~Kim Harris
of Western History ALIVE!

ELY, Nev. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Elko District, Wells Field Office and Ely District, Bristlecone Field Office will begin a wild horse gather on or about August 1, 2021, on the Antelope Complex located about 50 miles southeast of Elko or 50 miles north of Ely, Nevada. The BLM plans to gather and remove approximately 2,200 excess wild horses. The BLM will conduct gather operations using the helicopter-assisted method.

The Antelope Complex has four herd management areas (HMA) which consist of Goshute, Spruce-Pequop, Antelope Valley, Antelope HMAs and encompasses over 1,608,350 acres of public land. The combined Appropriate Management Level (AML) is 435-789 wild horses. At the beginning of March 2021, the BLM conducted simultaneous double-observer surveys helicopter survey, the
current estimated adult population is 6,032 wild horses within and directly outside of the Complex. The current estimated population, which did not include foals, is nearly 7.5-times above the high end of the established AML.

The purpose of the gather is to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, to restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The action is also necessary to reduce overpopulation of wild horses within and outside the HMAs, where there currently is not enough water and/or forage to support the number of horses in the area, and to prevent further degradation of public lands by helping to balance herd size. By balancing herd size with what the land can support, the BLM aims to protect habitat for other wildlife species such as sage grouse, pronghorn antelope, mule deer and elk.

Livestock grazing permittees in the Elko District have taken non-use or reduced use for over 10-years, while still providing positive resources such as water for the horses and wildlife. Removing excess wild horses would also enable significant progress toward achieving the Standards for Rangeland Health identified by the Northeastern Great Basin Resource Advisory Council. “We conduct gathers like this to ensure the health of rangelands within the HMAs, as well as the health of the wild horses in the area, are not at risk due to herd overpopulation and severe drought conditions,” said Gerald Dixon, Elko District Manager. “As always, we are committed to conducting safe and humane gather operations as we work to protect animal health by bringing herd size down to AML in order to work toward restoring a thriving natural ecological balance to the range and protect the range from further deterioration associated with overpopulation.”

The BLM’s priority is to conduct safe, efficient, and successful wild horse gather operations while ensuring humane care and treatment of all animals gathered. The BLM and its contractors will use the best available science and handling practices for wild horses and burros while meeting overall gather goals and objectives in accordance with the Compre-hensive Animal Welfare Policy.

All animals identified for removal will be transported to the Palomino Valley Center in Nevada or Axtell Off-Range Corrals in Utah. Upon arrival to the facilities, all animals will be checked by a veterinarian and readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro adoption and sale program.

Members of the public are welcome to view the gather operations, provided that doing so does not jeopardize the safety of the animals, staff and observers, or disrupt gather operations. The BLM will escort the public to gather observation sites located on public lands. Once gather operations have begun, those wanting to view gather operations must call the gather hotline nightly at (775) 861-6700 to receive specific instructions on each days’ meeting location and time.

The following COVID-19 guidelines rules may apply based on the State Governor’s recommendations up to:
•Facemasks are required for daily safety briefings and in the observation areas.
•Always stay at least six feet from others. Avoid gathering with others outside of your household.
•Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. •Bring hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol to use if soap and water are not available.
•Do not attend the gather if you are sick, recently exposed (within 14 days) to someone with COVID-19 or are not feeling well.

The BLM is conducting the gather under the DOI-BLM-NVE030- 2017-0010-EA Antelope and Triple B Com-plexes Gather Plan Environ-mental Assessment decision signed on December 21, 2017. Access the Decision Record and determination of National Environmental Policy Act adequacy at https://go.usa.gov/ xFDvP. Gather reports and additional information will be posted on the BLM website at https://go.usa.gov/xFK5U. For technical information, contact Bruce Thompson, Wild Horse and Burro Specialist at (775) 753- 0286 or b50thomp@blm.gov. For information on how to adopt or purchase a wild horse or burro, visit www.blm.gov/ whb.

•Provide shade, airflow (use fans) and free access to clean water during hot weather.

•Avoid riding your horse when the combined air temperature (F) and relative humidity is over 150, especially if the horse is not acclimated to the heat.

•To cool an overheated horse, sponge it with cool water. Repeat this until the horse is cool.

•If near a water source, use a hose to spray the horse continuously with cool water.

•Contact your veterinarian right away if you suspect your horse is having a heat stroke. Horses naturally cool themselves by sweating. You must provide extra care to your horse during hot weather to reduce their stress and maintain their health and well-being.

Sweating is natural cooling Horses normally cool themselves by sweating. The sweat evaporates from the skin surface and causes a cooling effect. Less sweat evaporates during times of high humidity. A horse that is working hard in a hot environment can lose 2 to 4 gallons of sweat per hour.

Horses can acclimate to hot and humid weather conditions. Air temperature and relative humidity affect the horse’s ability to cool itself. The below guidelines can help reduce or avoid heat stress in horses.

How air temperature and relative humidity affect horse cooling Keeping your horse cool Summer is a common time for heat-related issues but unexpected warm weather can add to overheating, especially if horses are out of shape and have long, thick coats.

Overheating can result from:
•Hot weather
•High humidity
•Poor barn ventilation
•Prolonged exposure to direct sunlight
•Excessive work
•Transportation
•Obesity

Here are some tips to keep your horse cool and comfortable during hot weather.
•Provide free access to clean water
•Reduce ride time and intensity
•Provide relief from the sun
•Consider electrolytes
•Additional tips
Cooling an overheated horse Hose down the horse.  To cool an overheated horse (rectal temperatures above 103° F):
•Spray the horse’s head, back, neck, rump and legs with a steady stream of cool water.
•Repeat this continuously until the horse is cool. You can add ice to the water to speed-up cooling for very hot horses (rectal temperatures above 105° F).
•Research shows using ice to cool a hot horse is safe.
•Ice baths reduce core body temperature and lower heart rates after hard exercise.
•Horses were also found to trot more freely after an ice bath.
•Don’t directly apply ice water over the hind end (large gluteal muscles). Focus on areas where the blood vessels are more prominent: head, neck, back and rib area.

Don’t place a sheet or blanket on the horse when trying to cool it. Blanketing will block water evaporation from the skin. Don’t blanket during hot and humid conditions. Effects of heat on horses Prolonged exposure to high temperatures can result in heat stress, heatstroke and problems such as dehydration, muscle spasms and colic.

Acclimating horses to the heat We recommend a 15- to 21- day acclimation period for horses from cooler or drier climates traveling to compete or reside in hot, humid climates. Acclimation increases the horse’s tolerance to heat and exercise.

You should still monitor the horse during training and competition in hot and humid climates. Warm weather infectious diseases Hot weather brings an increased risk of infectious diseases that involve mosquito transmission to horses. Two important diseases in this category are West Nile virus (WNV) and Potomac Horse Fever (PHF). WNV causes neurologic signs and muscle trembling, killing almost a third of the horses that develop signs. Mosquito numbers often soar in late summer, as larvae hatch from warm water pools.

Horse owners can do 3 things to lower the risk of WNV infection:
1. Eliminate or treat all standing water in the horse’s environment to discourage mosquito hatching.
2. Minimize mosquito bites by keeping horses indoors during prime mosquito feeding times (dawn and dusk) and protect with repellents.
3. Ensure horses are well vaccinated against WNV. This may include a late summer booster vaccination, in addition to vaccination in the spring. PHF cases are more frequent in late summer and are characterized by fever, laminitis, and often, diarrhea. Horses can be infected by drinking contaminated  water or by eating feed that has been contaminated by insects from aquatic environments. PHF resembles several other diseases so immediate veterinary
care and diagnostic testing are strongly recommended.