By Heidi Hopkins
I started my week off with a beautiful drive through the Rocky Mountains. The aspen trees were an amazing, vibrant yellow and the views were breathtaking.
While the beauty of the mountain ranges and trees were inspiring, in my mind, they were dwarfed by the reason for this drive: I was being taught how to successfully drive a Certified Pre-Owned Land Rover LR3 donated to The Humane Society of the United States' Assateague of the West Project by Land Rover so my research team can locate wild herds of free roaming Mustangs and burros in remote parts of Utah and Colorado.
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Testing the Certified Pre-Owned Land Rover LR3 in the Rocky Mountains. Heidi Hopkins/HSUS |
Our research team will be studying the effects of fertility control drugs on the females in each herd.
It is our hope that these drugs will help reduce the stressful roundups performed by the government and prevent an excess number of new foals from being born each year.
For decades, the horses have been subject to stressful, unnecessary government roundups as a means of population control.
With more than 30,000 horses currently warehoused in government holding facilities, the need for a better solution has never been more urgent.
Riding along were Ken Cameron, a professional Land Rover driving instructor, and wild horse technician, Kayla Grams. Ken was extremely knowledgeable about off-road driving and the capabilities of the Certified Pre-Owned Land Rover LR3.
Ken guided us over a 6 mile off-road 4X4 trail that started out at about 6,500 feet, climbing to about 10, 500 feet! I wouldn't try this at home or with just any vehicle—we drove over some pretty scary stuff!
The Certified Pre-Owned Land Rover LR3s have been aptly equipped with an awesome off road package, including a neat little cooler inside the console. Some might think it's perfect for a few cold drinks, but for us, it'll be perfect for keeping the immunocontraception vaccine cold until we're ready to use it.
Without these vehicles, it would be impossible for us to safely traverse the rocky, unforgiving terrain where the horses roam. Thank you, Land Rover for putting your horsepower to work for America's wild horses.
Heidi Hopkins is the Wild Horse Immunocontraception Program Manager and Wyoming State Director for The Humane Society of the United States.
