Wild Horses and Burros

Did you know that the U.S. government manages America’s wild horses and burros? 

In 1971, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recognized wild horses as symbol of the American West and created a program to protect them.  The program became the Wild-Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, which, according to BLM, was made to “ensure that healthy herds thrive on healthy rangelands.” 

The BLM decided that the best way to protect the horses would be to maintain their herd size through taking wild horses from the range and making them available to Americans for adoption.  Why is this option the best?  Well, since wild horses and burros have almost no natural predators and their herd size doubles nearly every four years, the BLM worried about the overpopulation of horses.   

Overpopulation occurs when there are too many of just one animal.  When one animal dominates over all others, they throw the natural ecosystem out of balance, and in doing so, may kill off populations of other animals.  If there are too many deer, for example, the deer will eat all the shrubs and trees and leave nothing for other forest-dwelling animals to eat.  Overpopulation also leads to the spread of disease, which is dangerous for all animals.  

So to keep the horse population under control, the BLM has been rounding up thousands of wild horses each year and allowing people to adopt them, as long as the adopters are willing to provide a safe home for the animal.

But since the 1970s, a few things have changed.  The BLM is collecting more horses than there are owners, meaning that the BLM now owns too many horses!  And it is very expensive to care for a horse until an owner is found.  So the BLM have relaxed some of their adoption laws. For example, it is legal to adopt a wild horse from BLM and once past the probationary period (one year), the owner can sell the horse to a slaughterhouse. 

The other big change occured this past winter.  The BLM decided that, after they have gathered wild horses and burros from the range, they will legally put down, or kill, horses by an ejection of euthanasia if they later find that certain conditions exist.  For example, if the horse has a chronic disease or an injury, requires continual specialized care, or exhibits dangerous characteristics uncharacteristic of a wild horse, the BLM will put the horse down.

What do you think about this decision?  Do you think our government is protecting or killing our wild horses?  Do you think putting horses down will work?  If not, what can be done to let horses live healthy, happy and free lives, but without overpopulating our lands and endangering entire ecosystems?  We’d love to hear your thoughts!