Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 25, 1990 TAG: 9007250185
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Every year for 65 years, the volunteer firefighters of Chincoteague have rounded up the wild ponies on the neighboring barrier island of Assateague and auctioned them off.
Today, the ponies will be driven across the narrow inlet that separates the islands and herded through the town's streets to a penning area. On Thursday, some of the foals will be auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the Fire Department.
Last year, the department sold 77 foals for $40,000. Some of the foals purchased are returned to the island at the request of the buyers.
The animals are thought to be the descendants of ponies that washed ashore during Colonial times from shipwrecks. The ponies gained fame from Marguerite Henry's children's classic, "Misty of Chincoteague," first published in 1947.
Animal-rights groups, such as the Charlottesville-based Voices for Animals and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in Washington, D.C., say the rounding up, penning and auction are cruel, especially to young animals.
The ponies "must swim unfamiliar waters, after which they are stampeded through town, separated from their mothers and sold at auction," said Susan Weidman of Voices for Animals.
People for Ethical Treatment of Animals is upset that unweaned foals are being auctioned off. Such animals need special care if they are to survive away from their mothers, said spokeswoman Siriol Evans.
"Purchasers may get caught up in the excitement and not realize the very special care that these young animals need," she said.
by CNB