HIDDEN VALLEY WILD HORSE PROTECTION FUND

HVWHPF overall long-term goals are:
1) Find good, quality homes for the majority of the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund rescued herd. As of May 2015, HVWHPF has 145 rescued horses in its care.
2) Keep the wild horses on the range protected and free and ensure public safety is at the forefront of all of its efforts.
3) Raise sufficient funds to support all HVWHPF programs that ensure the health and safety of all rescued horses of the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund herd.
HVWHPF has 3 primary goals for 2015:
1) Adopt out at least 25 horses from its herd to good, quality forever homes. This element is in keeping with the overall goal to find good homes for most of its rescued horses. Achieving this element will also help to reduce the overall annual expenses and benefit the horses that find homes as well as the horses remaining in the HVWHPF herd.
2) Install approximately 4 miles of 4-strand smooth wire fencing and cattleguards. This element is in keeping with its overall goal of keeping the wild ones protected and on the range. Achieving this element will help to ensure that more wild horses remain on the range and safe and out of the area's congested streets and highways.
3) Raise $120,000 through fund raising and grant opportunities. This element is an ongoing effort to ensure HVWHPF has the minimal funds available to pay for the hay that needs to be brought in to feed its 145 rescued horses for one year.

HVWHPF has opened an active horse gentling/training project operated by a small number of volunteers. These individuals have been trained to make the first approach, first touch, the socialization, haltering, farrier preparation (hoof trimming), and trailer preparation for a select number of young, adoptable horses from the HVWHPF herd. Additionally, the organization is working with a qualified trainer of wild horses to gentle up to an additional 8 horses in preparation for adoption. That program is sponsored by a donor and has already produced 3 adoptions out of the first 4 horses to enter the program.
The installation of additional fencing is already a “work in progress” project. A small group of volunteers has mapped the project, established the materials list and broken the project into several phases, received a quote for the purchase of the materials needed, and have an estimated $3,000 already available to spend on the project. The entire project cost is estimated to be $12,000. The installation of the fence will require substantial volunteer work but the team will be reaching out to local service clubs, churches, and other groups to recruit a team interested in helping with the logistics and labor needed to accomplish this project. The first mile of fencing is estimated to be completed by August 2015.
While raising $120,000 is not a simple or easy task, Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund is confident in its ability to reach out to those interested in helping to achieve its goals and benefit its rescued herd as well as the wild and free historic Virginia Range horses. HVWHPF has raised almost $25,000 as of May 1, 2015 or a little over 20% of its goal. The organization continues to identify grant opportunities that are aligned with its goals and needs and will apply for as many grants as it can. The area of most concern would be to ensure the payment and timely delivery of hay to feed its horses.

As already noted, there is a small team of horse gentlers in place that have been trained to work with the horses selected for their age, temperament, and physical abilities. Additionally, the team has developed a list of activities that each horse much master in order to graduate from the gentling program and enter the list of horses available for adoption. There are seven horses currently in training with another nine horses in line for the next gentling session. The program will see success by continuing this rate of gentling horses in preparation for adoption.
The fencing program has already been launched, and with approximately 8 miles of fencing already completed and under maintenance, the organization and its volunteers have a well-established track record for accomplishing its fencing projects.
Knowing the task of raising $120,000 is not an easy one, this organization has been able to secure the funding it needs to feed and board its rescued horses for the last 2 ½ years. By continuing its outreach to the local and national community, and continuing to improve its grant writing abilities, HVWHPF has the ability to achieve this goal. Additionally, HVWHPF has received an incredibly generous $10,000 grant from the Bently Foundation to enhance its fund raising abilities in 2015. The opportunities presented through this grant are unlimited and will allow the organization to grow and thrive by seeking out new donors and program sponsors.

Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund has 7 horses in its current training program and another 9 horses in the queue for the next training session. While these additional 16 horses may not all find their forever homes, they will at a minimum have reached the stage in their “domestic” lives where they can be handled, be safe, and be healthy.
The fencing project has been launched with a small team assessing the logistics and financial opportunities and challenges a project of this magnitude will present. Quotes and vendors have been identified and a plan has been mapped out. However, one of the biggest challenges is the task of finding enough volunteer recruits who can take the time out of their busy lives to spend installing a fence on relatively rugged terrain. While not impossible, it is a challenge and without a large volunteer turnout, the project timeline may fall behind.
The unending task of fund raising is nothing new to this organization or any other hard working all-volunteer group of dedicated volunteers. Fund raising is made far less complicated when the focus of all efforts are clearly defined and directed towards the programs and the benefactors (its rescued historic Virginia Range horses) of those donations. The organization will continue to seek out grant award opportunities to supplement the public donations it receives from its current and new donor base. A minimum of $10,000 per month is needed to ensure the programs established by the Hidden Valley Wild Horse Protection Fund Board of Directors are adequately funded throughout the year. The organization will continue its fund raising efforts and will accelerate its grant writing opportunities.
Finally, the completion of the 685 acre ranch that will become the training and adoption center for the organization's rescued horses is in the final stages of completion. The projected date to bring its horses to the property is July 2019.