Wild Horse Dilemma

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Wild As The Wind

For the past few years, I have been given the opportunity to observe this, and a few other small bands of wild horses that inhabit the open range in my area. Each spring, I look forward to seeing the new foals as they begin their life’s journey on wobbly legs. At the same time, I contemplate with dread, the prospect that some, or all of them may be removed from the range in the annual BLM (Bureau of Land Management) roundups.

My concern for the horses has been intensified, since learning of the BLM’s proposed disposal of more than 33,000 horses now in captivity. The agency has run out of funds for their mainenance and upkeep. Proponents of the plan use the word “euthanasia” (implying “merciful death”); opponents call it “slaughter”.

If there were a simple and clear-cut solution amenable to everyone, the problem would be solved. But this is not a simple issue, and the answers are not black-and-white.

Without human intervention, it seems likely that the herds would have become extinct in North America. Left to their own devices, the herds would have starved long ago, due to over-population. Another problem arises from the fact that the horses not indigenous to the region — yet most Nevadans see them as symbols of our own independence and determination to survive in this harsh and rugged country.

As public lands decrease – due in part to urban expansion in the southern part of the state, and diminishing access created by the establishment of Wilderness Areas in the north — competition over available grazing land becomes an increasingly hot issue for ranchers.

Inbreeding could become a threat to the survival of this band. As herd sizes and range areas decrease, bands like this one risk becoming encapsulated; set apart from diverse gene pools of other bands.

For now; for this year only; the endangered horses in captivity have been spared in an eleventh-hour dramatic move by Madeleine Pickens, wife of billionaire, T. Boone Pickens. Mrs. Pickens has agreed to “adopt” all 2,000, and is negotiating with the BLM to take responsibility for all 33,088.

What is not immediately apparent, is what changes will the BLM make, to ensure that a situation this critical is avoided in the future.

Blazing Stallion

 

~ by photorover on 2009.01.12.