SHALIMAR

Shalimar is a wild horse (mustang) who was born in 2017 and rounded up in September 2022 from the South Steens HMA (Herd Management Area) in southeastern Oregon, the same area Storm was captured from two years before he was born. He was five years old when his wild, backcountry herd was stampeded by helicopter, and he was captured and taken to the BLM Wild Horse and Burro holding facility in Burns, OR. Aged incorrectly at 17 years by the BLM (12 years older than his actual age) he was automatically assigned Sale Authority (SA) status, which applies to all wild horses and burros over 11. These animals are considered unadoptable due to their older age and they lose all the federal protections afforded to wild horses and burros that are eligible for adoption.

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Shalimar had been bought from the BLM Burns holding facility by a woman in Canada who later changed her mind and abandoned him at a trainer's facility in Oregon. As he was considered a senior horse at that time and there had been no interest from any other buyers, the trainer was looking for a sanctuary to take him. We agreed to take him and it wasn't until several months later that we discovered his true age through a wild horse photographer. She sent us some images of Shalimar as a foal in 2017, running with his backcountry herd in the South Steens HMA. Given his much younger age, we considered finding him another home, but by this time we learned about this he had bonded with Storm and the donkeys so we decided to keep him with us. Shalimar represents all Sale Authority horses, past, present and future, who had their federal protections taken from them and suffered as a result.

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After discovering his true age, and reaching out to several other wild horse photographers who track the South Steens herds, we obtained several photographs of Shalimar with his undocumented back-country herd, both as a foal and as a bachelor stallion prior to his capture. We identified his sire as a Bay Tobiano Paint (Pinto) stallion known as Talon, and his dam as a Palamino Paint mare known as Honey. The South Steens mustangs are well known for their beautiful Paint mustangs. Shalimar is a Buckskin Paint with splashes of light tan, and striking dark gray streaks in his mane and tail.

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*Wild horses and burros over 11 years old, and those passed over for adoption three times, are considered unadoptable by the BLM and are assigned Sale Authority status making them eligible for sale rather than adoption. They can be sold at auction for as little as $10 with no screening or oversight as to whether the buyer is capable of handling a wild untrained mustang, has suitable facilities, or has a history of animal abuse. Unlike wild horses and burros that go through the adoption process and remain under BLM ownership for a year before title is issued and ownership transferred, SA animals lose all their federal protections and become the immediate private property of their "owner" at time of sale, receiving no follow-up as to the quality of their care or heir whereabouts. These are the animals most at risk of going to slaughter. Those who fail to be sold will be taken into long term holding where they are incarcerated for life.

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**According to an insider who helped us identify Shalimar from the wild, the BLM are well known for "aging up" wild horses and burros, especially geldings, and assigning them Sale Authority status where they can be sold outright with no oversight.