Wild horse and burro lovers from Texas to Virginia are (going once, going twice) sold on a new way to purchase ponies: Internet auctions. And the organization responsible for the virtual sales is none other than the federal government's Bureau of Land Management.
The bureau's eastern office, which covers operations in the country's 31 easternmost states, has taken a practice that conjures up images of nineteenth century cowboys and fast forwarded it into the digital era. For the next three weeks, horse enthusiasts from around the country will plug in to the Web to bid on horses and burros the bureau has rounded up on lands it controls.
Buyers began applying to participate in the auction on Monday, using a form available at www.adoptahorse.blm.gov. The buyers must prove they have the facilities and money to properly care for the animals. Once BLM horse and burro specialists have verified the potential buyers are qualified, the agency issues them identification for the auction.
On Friday, the bidding begins. Bids start at $125 per animal. When a buyer places a bid, the bid will automatically appear on the Web site.
BLM conducted its first online auction of wild horses and burros in May. Fifteen animals found new homes through the auction. BLM plans to continue holding auctions every three months.
The bureau's National Wild Horse and Burro Program has auctioned off more than 150,000 animals since 1971, when Congress created the program. Auctions are usually held in-person at sites around the country. BLM monitors wild horse and burro herds on western ranges. To keep populations in control, BLM gathers some of the animals and sells them to the public.
"We're bringing this highly successful program into the computer age to make it more available and convenient to potential adopters," says BLM eastern states director W. Hord Tipton.
The BLM Web site posts pictures of the horses and burros, but buyers can decline animals if they don't like them when they meet face-to-face.