There are good people and bad people, but there are only good donkeys There is magic in those long ears We are on donkey time In a world where you can be anything, be ASSOME
Our Project - Save Our Asses - Feeding wild burros has unfortunately become an attraction for visitors to the desert in California. Oatman, Arizona and other communities have actively promoted this activity to the detriment of the burros, motorists, and community residents. The BLM, counties, and other agencies are left with the problem which at best is removing burros or worse road kill and accidents. Locally, 15 were killed on the highway north of Trona last year and many more in Death Valley and nearby Beatty Nevada.
March 2026 Update Beatty, Nevada has a big heart when it comes to its wild burros — and a real problem on its hands. Last year, the BLM was required by law to remove over 1,000 burros from the area after safety issues mounted. It’s a heartbreaking outcome that’s entirely preventable — and it almost always starts the same way: someone feeds a burro. Once they lose their instinctive caution around people and vehicles, the consequences are devastating. Highway fatalities. Ingested plastic and trash. Permanent removal from the wild. Beatty knows this, and they want to do better. We recently met with the Beatty Town Office and Chamber of Commerce to launch a public education campaign built on what we learned in Trona and through our work with Loco for Longears and similar organizations. Donated bookmarks and posters are already dispersed, with signage for local businesses close behind — all designed with specific audiences in mind, from tourists and OHV groups to longtime residents. But we’re also excited that this October, we’ll be at Beatty Days with trained pack burros in tow. Beatty hosted pack burro races from 1949 to 1972, and while there’s no race this year, our burros will be there all weekend — living proof of what these animals can do when given the chance. Wild, loved, and respected. That’s the future Beatty is choosing — and we’re proud to help make it happen.
July 2025 update Since beginning slowly around the first of the year, this project has really taken off. Working with “Loco for Longears” of Arizona, we have designed informational posters about “Feeding Kills Burros” and directing visitors to the “Ridgecrest Regional Wild Horse & Burro Corrals” as an alternative. We have printed and distributed over 60 copies to Visitor Centers from Jawbone Station to Mono Lake (10 so far) and many businesses in Trona, Randsburg & Inyo County. BLM and USFS like the designs, the BLM state office shared it on social media. We are working with Death Valley National Park on a new poster one for their use. Maturango Museum suggested bookmarks, so we did that too. We printed, cut, and laminated over 1000. So far, they are available free at Red Rock Books, Maturango Museum, the Ridgecrest & Trona Libraries, and are in the mail to Tonopah. We also received reports and photos of a resident in Trona providing food and water to the burros. We forwarded the information to the right people at BLM, had quick action taken, and it should now be resolved.
BACKGROUND
We have been approached by residents of Trona and Inyo County road crews to help find solutions. At first, we thought of highway caution signs, but those already go largely unnoticed or become shooting targets. We contacted other burro organizations in Arizona and found their experience is that public education through posters and fliers works best. We discussed several approaches and where to reach out to visitors.
Ridgecrest is a unique community with a love for burros, including the high school mascot. The Regional Wild Horse and Burro Corrals are also unique with 24/7 access around the perimeter to see formerly wild horses and burros. Many from the community visit regularly to view, feed, and interact with the animals. The majority however do not understand what the facility is, why burros are gathered, or how the animals are processed and sent elsewhere for adoption. It is also an opportunity for signage and displays emphasizing to the public why not to feed the wild burros.
The local Ridgecrest California Welcome Center is a major visitor center for tourists visiting the area and Death Valley. We met with them and they will host a display about wild horses & burros, direct visitors to the BLM corrals as a place to reliably see them, and of course not to feed them. The Visitor Centers in Lone Pine, Bishop, Mammoth, and Furnace Creek should be receptive as well.
1) Posters & fliers about not feeding wild burros for display and distribution at Visitor Centers & businesses.
2) Displays about the Wild Horse & Burro program to go at the visitor centers and to direct visitors to the Ridgecrest Corrals.
3) Signage and displays at the Ridgecrest Corrals (inside & on the perimeter drive) Purpose, what to feed at corrals, safety, never feed the wild ones, …
4) If successful, expand to the East side of Death Valley, Tonopah, and the Bullfrog HMA where feeding burros is a very serious problem.
Where is it Ok to feed Burro's ?
YES - BLM Corrals
NO - Anywhere in the wild
