Landolfi 1

Abigail Landolfi
ENG 1201
Mr. Helmers
April 4, 2017

Wild Horse Over-Population and Effects on the Environment

Wild horses have been a part of Americas history since they were first introduced as

early as 1493. They have played an extensive role in not only hunting and trade expansion, but

also revolutionizing travel. Over the years, horses have become more free and wild while

populations sky rocket. With growing herd populations and human civilization, land is running

scarce. Over time, the wild horses that roam free on the lands of American, not only have a

depleted source of food, but they also have slowly started to destroy the environment around

them.

In todays society horses are used for many different purposes. Things ranging from

pasture animals, using them for farm work, to horses being used for competitions. There are a

wide variety of horses available to the human race than there used to be. With years of cross

breeding and selecting specific genes, there are different breeds for different disciplines and

actions. Horses such as Thoroughbreds for racing, quarter horses for barrel racing, and

Warmbloods for eventing or jumping. These are just a few of the hundreds of different breeds.

When people became more aware of the breeding that they could do, the types of horses that

became available greatly increased. Horses used to mainly be used as plow horses for farm work

or using them to round up other animals whereas modern day horses can be used for many

different things. With the advances we have in scientific technology, horses have been able to aid
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us in the discovery of curing illnesses such as

diphtheria. With the medical advances scientists

realized that they needed an animal with a large

amount of blood to help create the antitoxin to

fight the illness. Horses were so widely used in

this that the New York City Health Department

set up its own facility to house these horses for

further research (Warner).

Horses once used to roam the vast lands of America, but over time the populations had

died out. When Christopher Columbus hit land in 1943, the horse was in a sense, reintroduced.

The Indians sought these horses out as they viewed them as a prized possession. Horses have a

place in history as being domesticated in ancient civilization times. It was never really known

how the horses were domesticated but with more research people have begun to understand the

horses may have been bred to be domesticated. When looking back on history, it is noticed the

ancient tribes may have been looking for specific traits such as docility and used selective

breeding to slowly domesticate these animals (Wolpert). The original thoughts that horses started

off as being domesticated by one culture or tribe has since then been proven wrong. In order for

this to be true, the diversity in the genetic DNA code would have to be much closer together and

similar than it is. When looking at all of the breeds and their physical and mental attributes, you

will notices that all of the genetic coding is more different than it is similar (Wolpert). This is

suggesting that the domestication and evolution was much more diverse than just coming from

one tribe. Horses were once hunted for food rather than as companions. According to present day

research, it is suggested that as the wild horse ancestors of the domestic horse became rare,
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techniques to raise and tame them became a greater advantage (Wolpert). The horses not only

became domesticated, but their body structure began to change

as well. The variety of locations that these horses were in and the

type of the land they were roaming caused for the horses to change

the type of body structure they had. Horses at one point had toes,

but as generations continued, the toes formed into one solid

bone called a hoof.

Once domestication became a more common habit, tribes and different cultures added

horses into their everyday life. They started off as being used for not only human transportation,

but for the use in transporting goods and eventually the use of horses turned to being used as

messengers and mounts for war. Tribes began to expand more as they had an advantage for faster

and more efficient travel. Horses then slowly began to migrate across the continent and soon

became wildly known and more available to many more tribes. Since the evolution of the horse,

there are many different breeds, colors, and body types; all depending on where they live, or

what they are bred for. There are a wide variety of people that are involved in the equine

community. There are those that look to breed, board, train, sell, rehab, rescue: the list could go

on forever. The main issue with the equestrian community being so large, it everyone has

different opinions on how to go about things. There are different training methods as well as care

methods that people take too. When the topic of wild horses comes up, it suddenly becomes a

disputed topic.

Horses are a stenotopic species, meaning they prefer to live in a grass like environment.

This is why much of the wild horse population is found in states such as Nevada, New Mexico,

Utah, Colorado, North Dakota and Montana (Bioegeography). Overall, from ten western states,
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there is an estimated 27,000 animals just being horses, with a total of almost 59,000 of all

animals (Wild Horse). As the population of domestic horses grow, so does the population of wild

horses.

Wild horse overpopulation not only has a human effect, but also an environmental effect.

In the figure to the right, you will

notices that there is very little

vegetation left. This photo was

taken at Fish Creek Allotment in

Nevada. It was said to be at

142% to 239% of what the BLM

had determined was sustainable

for the population of wild horses

(NACO). The horses are not only

starving and unable to support themselves, but they are also destroying the land that they roam.

The slowly climbing number is cause the vegetation to decrease. With the decrease of vegetation,

it is not only causing the horse population to starve, but any other animal that may need access to

food on the land. Much of the land the horses are on is owned by the government as

reservations. The land is controversial because people are wanting to expand the housing

development but they cant because of these horses. As the horses are becoming more and more

overpopulated, the cities around them are having to help pay for these horses as some of the

money from taxes is going towards the land.

There are many places dedicated to helping save these wild horses. Located in

Shingletown, California, is a sanctuary that recused wild horses in order to save them. Since wild
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horses roam on public lands that is facing destruction, the founders of Wild Horse Sanctuary

rescued the horses. The sanctuary not only rescued these horses, but they have 5,000 acres of

lands to run on that is protected (Wild Horse Sanctuary). There are many sanctuaries like this

that are willing to adopt and protect those horses who roam the lands. Many, if not all, are non-

profit organizations who are simply trying to protect the horses and educate the public.

The Bureau of Land Management is in charge of dealing with the wild horse

overpopulation (BLM). Much of what they are doing people deem as wrong. The BLM, not only

rounds the horses up using helicopters but then they are auctioned off/adopted to different

people. Although adopting one of these wild horses takes a lengthy process and background

checks, there is no telling what could end up to these horses. Anyone can apply to adopt a wild

horse and by change, get one. There are many videos of horses who run miles upon miles to get

away from the helicopters. Young horses should not be running this long as their hooves are not

fully formed. Running miles in terror like this deteriorates the hooves and if proven deadly. The

horses are headed into corral pens, where more often than not, horses are injured or killed. There

was a story that was released within the past few years about a well know stallion who was

captured and trapped in a pen. He was not only separated from his heard, but he was placed right

next to a mare and her offspring, his offspring. In a rage to protect them and the fear they were

all facing, he got his head stuck in the metal bars while rearing and broke his neck. There was no

saving this stallion. The horses that are rounded up, the ones that have roamed this land since

their birth should not be rounded up and sent thousands of miles from the land they have always

known.

The only people that are really involved in process of the horses is the government and

the people who are trying to rescue these horses. On top of the support groups there are people
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who make fundraisers or gofundme accounts in order to help raise funds to support the horses.

Although the BLM is a main contributor to the wild horses, not everyone is seeing eye-to-eye

with them. Many people do not agree with what is being done, or if anything should be done in

general. The public views the rounds ups as cruel and inhumane to the horses.

Not only are there wild horses that are heavily becoming overpopulated, but there are

thousands of domestic horses that we dont know what to do with either. Many people either

dont know about the issue of horse overpopulation, or simply choose to not recognize it. The

topic of overpopulation in America is one that is widely known and controversial across the

equestrian border. People have different opinions on what should or shouldnt be done. There are

things that have been suggested such as surgeries to help stop reproduction, rounding up more

horses, or simply just letting nature takes its course. One of the bigger topics was sending them

to slaughter. Slaughter is a huge controversial topic. People view it as a good or bad thing. The

living conditions are not ideal for horses being sent to slaughter, but then again, neither are the

health conditions that the horses may be in. Many of the horses that are sent to slaughter are

auctioned off to the highest bidder. More often than not the highest bidder is a kill buyer. These

people have no mercy for the animal at hand and all they want it the money they are going to get

for the meat. It is a big issue in the United States as people can buy and sell to these said kill

buyers but it is illegal to slaughter a horse within the country. What happens next is the horses

are loaded into trailers and shipped to Mexico or Canada for a grueling death. The controversy

on horses being slaughtered is either A. it is too inhumaine and shouldnt be done or B. these

horses are unwanted by us anyways. Seeing both sides to this is key. Yes, the living conditions

are horrible and the horses are often not cared for and under fed. But, at the same time, if people

really cared for and wanted these horses they would not have ended up here. How is slaughtering
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horses any different then slaughtering a cow? I was once told that one mans trash is another

mans treasure. This is true in the case of slaughtering animals, more specifically horses. We

dont know what to do with the wild horses let alone all of the domesticated horses. Sending

them to slaughter isnt always the easy way out for most people. Sometimes it is their only

option. If we can no longer to take care of or afford a horse, why not send it some place that the

horse can be of use to someone; dead or alive.

To conclude, wild horses and their effects on the environment is playing a huge role in

the things society and the government is starting to do. We may not be able to control what

happens to these horses, but we can influence what the BLM does. Wild horses have played a

role in American culture since man first settled, we are only changing where they roam due to the

fact of human convenience.

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Works Cited

" Wild Horse, Burro Population Still out of Control." Wild Horse, Burro Population Still out of
Control. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2017.
<https://www.avma.org/News/JAVMANews/Pages/151015m.aspx>.
"Bioegeography of Wild Horses." Bioegeography of Wild Horses. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.
<http://online.sfsu.edu/bholzman/courses/Spring05projects/Wildhorses/Wildhorses.htm>.
Wolpert, Stuart. "How Wild Horses Were Tamed by Humans Is Uncovered by Biologists From
UCLA, Swedish Universities." UCLA Newsroom. N.p., 25 Jan. 2001. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.
<http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/How-Wild-Horses-Were-Tamed-by-Humans-2090>.
2013, Mallory Warner August 15. "How Horses Helped Cure Diphtheria." National Museum of
American History. N.p., 12 Dec. 2014. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.
<http://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2013/08/how-horses-helped-cure-diphtheria.html>.
"About the Wild Horse Sanctuary." Wild Horse Sanctuary History. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2017.
<http://www.wildhorsesanctuary.org/about.html>.
Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Internet Adoption. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr.
2017. <https://www.blm.gov/adoptahorse/index.php>.
Using Science to Improve the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program: A Way Forward.
Washington, D.C.: National Academies, 2013. Web. 5 Mar. 2017.
<http://dels.nas.edu/resources/static-assets/materials-based-on-reports/reports-in-
brief/wild-horses-report-brief-final.pdf>.