From left: Justin Whiteman, Gene Small, Director Northern Cheyenne Land Authority, and Steven Littlewhiteman with some of the feral horses gathered on the reservation. Photo by Clara Caufield
Round-up of wild horses at Northern Cheyenne
By Clara Caufield
Native Sun News Today Correspondent
nativesunnews.today LAME DEER, Mont. –– Reminiscent of old western days, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe has been conducting a round-up of wild horses, clearing tribal range near public roadways for public safety reasons. In late January, the Northern Cheyenne Land Authority (NCLA) began clamping down on loose horses wandering around the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, capturing such strays, impounding them and even planning to sell those which are not claimed under certain conditions. In doing so, NCLA is enforcing Ordinance No. DOI – 005 adopted by the Tribal Council late in 2016, enacted to enhance public safety due in large part to the traffic hazards which loose horses have caused on major reservation roadways. According to Ron Burn, NCLA compliance officer, there have been multiple horse/vehicle collisions in the past years on major tribal roads, twelve of which he personally knows about, including three involving public school buses. Because horses are tall and can weigh over a ton, vehicle and horse collisions are especially dangerous, the animals often flying through the windshield upon impact, said Sterling Small, Injury Prevention Specialist for the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Board of Heath. “Hitting a horse at highway speed is very dangerous,” he said. “These accidents often occur at night when dark colored horses are very hard to see on or near the roadways.” In recent years, loose and unclaimed horses have been the cause of several highway accidents, especially on Highway 212 (crossing the reservation), Route 39, (from Lame Deer to Colstrip) and the Birney Road. In the past few weeks of enforcement, the NCLA with the assistance of some reservation cowboys; Gene Small, NCLA Director; Ron Burns, Compliance officer; Justin and Steven Littlewhiteman, rodeo cowboys have recently gathered and confined 55 loose horses. Those animals are compounded at tribal property, available for inspection and can be claimed by individuals who provide proof of ownership, pay an impound fee of $250.00 and $50.00 per day for costs of feed and maintenance, those funds going back to NCLA for associated costs. If not claimed, the horses will soon be sold.
For more news, visit the Native Sun News Today website: Round-up of wild horses at Northern Cheyenne (Clara Caufield can be reached at acheyennevoice@gmail.com) Copyright permission Native Sun News
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