Return to Freedom Responds to New York Times Report on Wild Horses Sold to Slaughter

RTF calls for continued accountability, transparency about new wild horse sales program protections, and passage of the SAFE Act to permanently protect America's horses from slaughter.

LOMPOC, Calif., Aug. 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation (RTF) is deeply concerned by an Aug. 20 New York Times report highlighting the disturbing increase in federally protected wild horses being sold into the slaughter pipeline, including one horse trader who purchased 500 wild horses for just $25 each.

Return to Freedom has been raising concerns about the failure to adequately protect wild horses and burros sold by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) long before the recent increase in sales documented by The Times.

In 2005, the Burns Amendment gutted protections in the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act opening the door for all wild horses over the age of 10, and those unsuccessfully offered for adoption three times to be sold to the highest bidder at any public sale yard or auction.

Through this sales program, wild horses were sold by the Forest Service and the BLM for as little as $1.00.

It didn't take long for hundreds of wild horses to be sold to "kill buyers," their destinations being slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada. Sales contracts weakly stated the animals were not to be "knowingly" sold for slaughter, but intent is difficult to prove, and so enforceability was impossible. 

In 2022, RTF participated in a facilitated series of discussions with other interest groups and the BLM about similar concerns of "horse flipping" via the Adoption Incentive Program (AIP), which paid wild horse or burro adopters $1000. Some adopters took their $1000 and their recently titled horses and made a few more bucks quickly selling them to kill buyers. The trend increased, and we continued to report these under-the-radar actions to the BLM. The AIP was shut down by a judge in March 2025, but the sales program continued to offer a backdoor mechanism for bad actors to buy low and sell high. RTF continued to report these consequences to the BLM.

Tragically, recently sold, BLM- branded wild horses kept appearing at auctions frequented by kill buyers, sometimes as soon as one day after purchase. RTF's team provided information to BLM, and engaged in discussions with BLM leadership and multiple welfare organizations to determine where policy and action could shift within the law (i.e., immediately implementable) so that changes would matter for sold wild horses.

Not addressed in the NY Times story are those recent changes to BLM's sales policy that strengthen protections against buyers profiting from sending wild horses and burros to slaughter.

Under the revised bill of sale, buyers may not "recklessly or negligently" sell a wild horse or burro to slaughter, either directly or indirectly, placing responsibility squarely on the buyer. This disallows a buyer from saying they were unaware that a horse they sold had been sent to slaughter, and gives prosecutors something to pursue. BLM has also increased the sales fee from $25 to $125.

These changes are important, but their effectiveness will depend on enforcement and on real consequences occurring for bad actors. Continued vigilance, transparency and accountability will be essential to ensure that federally protected wild horses and burros do not enter the slaughter pipeline through unscrupulous buyers or adopters.

The Times report also underscores the urgent need for Congress to pass the Save America's Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act, which Return to Freedom actively supports. The SAFE Act would permanently prohibit horse slaughter in the United States and the export of American horses and other equines for slaughter abroad.

"The federal government has a responsibility to ensure that wild horses and burros removed from our public lands are not subsequently funneled into the slaughter pipeline," said Return to Freedom founder Neda DeMayo. "Policy reforms are a step forward, but lasting protection will require rigorous enforcement—and ultimately federal legislation ending horse slaughter and the export of equines for slaughter."

RTF Has Long Pushed for Reform
Return to Freedom has advocated for changes to BLM's sales policy for years. Our work has included:

• Investigating the policy to document not only who was exploiting its loopholes, but how they were doing so.
• Presenting evidence showing that federally protected wild horses and burros could be sold into the slaughter pipeline as quickly as one day after a buyer received title.
• Gathering information from partners and advocates about BLM-branded wild horses and burros appearing in kill pens.
• Working with partner organizations, advocates and supporters to press BLM for stronger protections and greater accountability.

Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the freedom, diversity and habitat of America's wild horses and burros through sanctuary, education, advocacy and conservation. RTF's sanctuary provides refuge for 500 rescued mustangs and burros. RTF works to advance humane, science-based solutions that protect wild horses and burros on the range while preserving their natural behaviors, family bands and genetic diversity.

SOURCE Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation