Horses: Born to be Free

Shot on public land near Albuquerque, New Mexico in May 2010 with the Canon 1D Mark III and 300 f/2.8

These are free spirited wild mustangs that live and roam on public land. Wild mustangs are an iconic symbol of the American Wild West and are protected by Federal Law. Back in 1900, there were 2 million wild horses roaming freely in Nevada, Montana, California, Wyoming and Oregon. By 2019, the estimated number was 72,000 plus 30,000 - 36,000 that were rounded up - aka captured - and confined in holding pens. Many of these captured horses are not adopted and end up living in these small holding facilities for another 10 - 15 years aka the rest of their lives. Worse yet, some of the older ones end up being sent to slaughterhouses. This isn't right and you can learn more about the plight of these beautiful wild horses from Save Our Mustangs, American Wild Horse Campaign or Wild Horse Freedom Federation.