UPDATE: The number of representatives cosponsoring the bipartisan SAFE Act has reached 186. This important bipartisan legislation would ban the export of American #horses for slaughter and impose a lasting ban on horse slaughter here at home. Take action ⬇️

Shutdowns are emblematic of greater dysfunction and continued inaction: One more day on which our government has failed wild herds on our public lands and put off removing the threat of slaughter for every American horse. Take action ⬇️ #horses

☀️ You can help wild horses and burros with the purchase of every beautiful jar of Pamela’s Pickles thanks to our friend Pamela Anderson! Details ⤵️ #horses

🎃 Wishing everyone a spooky and safe All Hallows’ Eve. Photo by Bev Pettit at our sanctuary. #wildhorses #horses

The Horse Transportation Safety Act would ban the use of double-deck trailers to haul #horses under any circumstances. Tap Take Action in our bio to send a message urging Congress to pass the bill.

The government has been shut down, but we cannot fall silent. Until Congress acts, American #horses and other equines will continue being shipped to foreign slaughterhouses. Learn more / take action ⬇️

🍁 Wishing you a happy fall #FoalFriday from us and this little curly cutie from Salt Wells Creek in Wyoming! Photo: Meg Frederick

☀️ It’s lunchtime at our San Luis Obispo, Calif., satellite sanctuary! Our 2,000-acre satellite is home to more than 85 #wildhorses and burros that once roamed public lands in Oregon, Nevada, Wyoming and Arizona. More ⤵️

UPDATE: Our federal court case deciding the future of wild horses in Southwest Wyoming has been stayed as a result of the government shutdown. Learn more about the case and how you can support this important litigation: returntofreedom.org/update-shutd... #horses

The number of #horses shipped out of the country for slaughter is up 25% from a year ago. Congress must pass the bipartisan Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act to both impose a lasting slaughter ban and shut down the foreign slaughter pipeline. ⬇️

The Trump administration last week let expire the contract for a 30-year-old prison inmate wild horse training program. Some 2,000 #wildhorses at the Cañon City, Colo., state prison complex will need to be transferred to other off-range holding facilities. returntofreedom.org/wild-horse-t...

Meet Johnny, an adorable little colt born just last Saturday! Johnny’s mama, Sierra, and his sire, Jack, are part of a group of 30 Spanish mustangs that arrived at our Lompoc, Calif., headquarters sanctuary in December 2018. #foalfriday

Dr. Jane Goodall's eloquence belied the ferocity that she brought to wildlife protection and animal welfare. Hope is more than “passive wishful thinking,” she wrote. “This is indeed the opposite of real hope, which requires action and engagement.” May we all heed her call.

🌸 Thanks to our friend Pamela Anderson, you can help America's #wildhorses and burros with every purchase of Pamela’s Pickles from Flamingo Estate! ⬇️

🧵The looming government shutdown would provide a reprieve for some wild horses and burros facing removal from the range, but each day will represent further inaction on #wildhorses and on horse slaughter. ⬇️

Today we celebrate our shared inheritance as Americans — and redouble our efforts to protect these irreplaceable treasures. Our public lands, including those home to #wildhorses and burros, are under siege by short-sighted policy changes that we must work together to stop.

Wishing everyone a beautiful weekend! Photo: Meg Frederick #wildhorses

The recent history of what had been California’s last large remaining wild horse herd is a tragic example of federal government mismanagement of America’s #wildhorses through capture and removal. Learn more / take action in replies ⬇️

🌤️ Staying positive on a #WildHorseWednesday by pausing to watch this family band of #wildhorses at Salt Wells Creek in Southwest Wyoming.

Our satellite sanctuary is peaceful and beautiful even during the driest times of the year on the Central Coast. More than 65 #wildhorses and 23 burros roam 2,000 acres of rolling hills and oak trees there.

We were touched by the kind comments we received after sharing a guest post by our friend Eric. He’s a 77-year-old veteran who paid tribute to his late wife of 35 years, Grace, who loved #wildhorses, by sponsoring a rescued mare we named Gracie in her honor. 1/2

The positive news: Five more members of Congress have signed on to co-sponsor a ban horse slaughter, bringing the total to 166. The negative: 12,194 American #horses were shipped out of the country for slaughter through July — up 25.3% from last year. Take action in replies.

“Hey, Neda, it’s Bob, Bob Redford.” Our founder shared some fond memories of our late friend, RTF board member and wild horse champion Robert Redford — including that surprising first phone call — on journalist and animal advocate Jill Rappaport's podcast. Link in replies ⬇️ #Horses

It was with great sadness that we learned of the death this morning of our friend and board member Robert Redford. "We have all lost an irreplaceable artist, activist and environmentalist,” said Neda DeMayo, founder of RTF. #horses

💛 Happy #FoalFriday to all who celebrate … which everyone should … because they’re ADORABLE. Our federal court fight continues for the future of this filly and all of the wild horses on the Salt Wells Creek Herd Management Area in Wyoming. Learn more: returntofreedom.org/roundup-to-z... #horses

❗️Good news: As our court fight for the future of Southwest Wyoming’s #wildhorses continues, the Bureau of Land Management today confirmed that it will delay a planned helicopter roundup there until at least next summer: returntofreedom.org/roundup-to-z...

Everyone loves a satisfying scratch — including wild horses! Scratching in horses is linked to bonding, comfort and relaxation. It promotes a healthy coat, too. Shedding, sweating, insects, parasites and allergies can be causes of itching. #wildhorses #horses

🛑 Right now, the U.S. Forest Service is capturing 350 more #wildhorses like these in a helicopter roundup at Devil’s Garden Wild Horse Territory in Northern California. Learn more / take action: returntofreedom.org/update-104-w...

⭐️ In 2002, after completion of its film “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron,” @dwanimation.bsky.social selected our sanctuary to be Spirit’s home. Now 30, Spirit still inspires many to learn about — and advocate for — the wild #horses whose survival on our public lands remains in jeopardy.

💛 A guest post from a special friend of Return to Freedom: returntofreedom.org/guest-post-r... #horses

🌼 Happy #FoalFriday! Photo taken at the Onaqui Mountain Herd Management Area in Utah by Meg Frederick

🛑 New statistics show that the number of American horses shipped to Mexican or Canadian slaughterhouses is up more than 25% this year. Thousands of #horses will continue to suffer and die needlessly until Congress passes the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act.

The U.S. Forest Service on Tuesday was set to begin a helicopter roundup of 350 #wildhorses at Devil’s Garden in California. Since 2016, the agency has captured and removed 3,500 there in a failed attempt to reach a target of fewer than 402. Learn more: returntofreedom.org/usfs-sets-ou...

There’s nothing better than sharing quiet time with the herd! Follow us to learn more about our sanctuary and advocacy work and ways you can help America’s wild horses and burros. #horses

☀️ Happy Labor Day! — A special shout-out to our sanctuary’s equine and ranch team, Sarah, Marina, Johanna, Robin, Satya, Jimmy, Paulin, Efrain and Felix, for keeping the #horses fed and ranch running 365 days per year. You’re the best!

Thank you to the many horse lovers who this week welcomed Return to Freedom back to The Hampton Classic Horse Show as we raised awareness about the plight of #wildhorses and burros! returntofreedom.org/rtf-raises-a...

10 more members of the House have signed on as SAFE Act cosponsors. 151 are now backing a lasting ban on horse slaughter and shipping #horses to foreign slaughterhouses. Learn how you can help ⬇️

This #WildHorseWednesday, we thought we’d share a bit of recent video from our staffer Ryan of a band that he observed on the range in Nevada. Watch the full video here: returntofreedom.org/watching-wil... #horses

American #horses, both domestic and wild, will continue being shipped across our borders to slaughter until Congress acts. ✅ Send a message to your representative and senators today: returntofreedom.salsalabs.org/safeact2025/....

♥️ Meet Ama from our Hart Mountain herd! — In 1998, all of the #wildhorses were removed from the Hart Mountain Fish Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. Twenty-five, including Ama's parents, were relocated to our sanctuary in their family and bachelor bands. ⤵️

✨ Feeling free on #FoalFriday with this little fella at Salt Wells Creek in Wyoming! 📸 Meg Frederick #horses

🛑 9,246 American #horses were shipped to Mexican or Canadian slaughterhouses from January to June of this year — an increase of 19.2% from the same period in 2024. ✅ Take action: tinyurl.com/2basak62

Happy #WildHorseWednesday! The Pryor Mountains Wild Horse Range was established in 1968 after local residents won a fight to keep the Bureau of Land Management from removing the herd. It includes 38,000+ acres of public land in Carbon County, Mont., and Big Horn County, Wyo.

The House and Senate have stepped up and included critical protections for wild #horses and burros in their 2026 appropriations bills, but we must continue to urge Congress to press for fertility control use that can end roundups. Learn more / take action: returntofreedom.org/congress-ste...

Happy birthday to our friend and board member Robert Redford! We celebrate your inspiring and timeless legacy for the preservation of the natural world and creative pursuits. Photos: Kristina Loggia, Greg Norrell #horses

Handsome as ever! — Spirit, the Kiger mustang stallion chosen to be the artists’ muse and model for @dwanimation.bsky.social ation.bsky.social’s film “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron,” turned 30 on May 8#horseses

Happy #WildHorseWednesday! Stallions often carry their share of scars from scrapes with one another, but they have other ways to get their point across. 1/2

The number of House cosponsors backing the Save America’s Forgotten Equines (SAFE) Act has grown to 139, but we need to keep pushing for more — and for a vote on the bipartisan bill. TAKE ACTION: tinyurl.com/2basak62 #horses

We're returning to Horse Welfare and Animal Adoption Day at The Hampton Classic on Aug. 25 as part of the EQUUS Foundation Alliance! returntofreedom.org/rtf-to-share... #horses

“What is life? It is a flash of firefly in the night. It is a breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is as the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.” — Isapo-muxika (Crowfoot), Siksika chief #wildhorsewednesday #horses