Wild Horses

The Coming Extinction of American

Peter Getty

The image of horses running free over wide openland is inextricably tied with America’s birth. Butthat image has become gravely threatened dueto the U.S. government’s recent alignment with

‘Big Cattle.’

Today,

there are more American wild horses being heldin facilities than are currently in the wild. Sincethe 19th century, the number of wild horses free

in the West has declined by 90%. According toAmerican Wild Horse Organization, the practices

of removing American horses off public landshas decimated their numbers and raised

taxpayer costs by $80,000,000 each fiscal year.

Thousands of wild horses arebeing herded by helicopters

and vehicles into holding pensannually. The ones who

survive separation from theirfamilies, substandard

veterinary care, electric cattleprods or other horse

‘management’ techniques arestockpiled until they’re sold at

auction or die, never to runwild again.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) whichoversees the once healthy and thriving wildhorse and burro population in the western

United States is leading wild horses and burrosto their executions.

Though BLM has claimed there have been nodeaths or injuries to wild horses or burros

during the roundups, NBC correspondent LisaMyers’ exposé on wild horses gruesomely

captures on film a foal being trampled to deathin a BLM holding facility.

Much of the culpability points to the CattleIndustry, which claims that wild horses and

burros are a nuisance on public land, thoughcattle drastically outnumber wild horses and

burros. 240 million acres (82.5%) of public landare leased to private companies for grazing,

and less is being shared with wild horses everyday.

Government agencies, like the Bureau ofLand Management and Department of

Fish and Game, are opting to favor privateinterests over the protection of wild

horses and burros.

In fact, the population of horses and burros areso low, BLM’s own lead equine geneticist, Dr.Gus Cothran, has stated that the reduction in

the U.S. burro population is resulting ininbreeding due to a lack of genetic variability.

The burro population has only 20 out of the70% needed for a healthy genetic variability.

Such figures led the National Academy ofSciences (NAS) to warn in its 2013 report that

“removing burros permanently from the rangecould jeopardize the genetic health of the totalpopulation.” So far, those warnings have done

nothing to curb the roundups.

Ironically, 40% of America’s wild horses’habitat had been lost since PresidentNixon passed the Free Roaming Wild

Horse and Burro Act in 1971.

Laura Leigh of the advocacy group Wild Horse Education doesn’tthink the Act has provided any such protection to the wild

horses, “It’s my observation that the government continuallyviolates the provision of the act that requires humane handling

of these animals.” Leigh has taken BLM to court four timesarmed with her own footage of cruelty to the wild horses, and

has won two temporary restraining orders against BLM.

As a big blow to advocates of wild horses, onJuly 1, the United States Fish and WildlifeService decided not to grant endangered

species status to wild horses.

Singer, songwriter Carole King added,“Americans love freedom. Thesehorses are the embodiment of

freedom.” But the wild horses are nolonger free, and may never be again.

Please visit petergetty.net for moreinformation on this important topic.