Cross Breeds - What would happen if the BLM released all of the wild horses being held?

What would happen if the BLM released all of the wild horses being held?

I seem to be stuck between defending the wild horses and their freedom to be wild as a natural part of US history, and defending the Bureau of Land Management and their actions to keep the population of wild horses contained. I'm wondering if the BLM did exactly what protesters want and released all of the horses and left them alone, what would happen? If the outcome is bad, why are people against the population control?

Public Comments

technically, they are not a native species of animal to the americans. So there is nothing 'naturally american' about them. They'd be just as feral as pigs. Dig everything up, eat everything and become a health risk to those surrounding them incase of stampedes and vicious animals. The only severe difference is, pigs can successfully look after themselves, while horses would be dying left right and centre at the age of 7 years or less due to poor feet, poxy teeth and lack of food and colic, etc. There is nothing nice about them being contained, but there is also every opportunity for them to cause havoc if let back out, which would be bad... no? But whatever. I don't live in America. This is my opinion from a foreigner dealing with our own infestation of wild and unwanted horses (brumbies) Our solution was to shoot them from helicopters. Which... isn't very humane, considering they miss kill shot 90% of the time. EDIT: @The Great Gazoo. It would be nice to say that sterilisation would help sought out the problem. You also have to consider this though; The cost to sterilise that many a horse, would be the top one and most known. But also, how many wild horses would die because of sterilisation? We nearly lost our colt, and he was perfectly handled since birth, and had a skilled vet on assistance 24/7. The only reason we kept him was because of the lunging and hand walking we gave him, the box he was confined in, the needles we injected, and the numerous times my boss had to glove it and stick it up there. Would it really be any different than rounding up a few mustangs in a chopper and frightning them, to trying to walk them to stop swelling in the 'bad stage' of 14 days when a colt/stallion is gelded? How many people will get hurt trying to lunge a horse to get the swelling down? Seems like a waste. And the injections they're considering that help sterilises horses for something like 3 years... goodness. What sort of abnormalities will arise in them because of that? Contraception injections in us can cause bleeding for 4 months and other side affects, what would the difference be for horses? The BLM, or the mismanagement crew, have probably the most hardest job. They are caught between money given to them by government (which i would like to understand as 'very little' for the job at hand) pl8us the control the government have over them, and the ethical thing to do for the horses. How can they help them when there is NO solution asides from a mass murder like already planned? Nobody liked that idea. OH NO! Poor PONIEZ! But is it really fair on the horses to actually put them through the stress of lunging/walking them after sterilisaiton? Because... infection generally does happen afterwards. ~I don't want to be on the other end of that lead rope when the horse comes around and it starts feeling sore.
The outcome would be bad they would be overpopulated going into/onto peoples properties and ranches (probably be shot), they would starve, be cold, get sick with no one there to help them, spread the equine herpes even more, it just wouldn't be good. I think people are so against it because they're tree hugging hippies that b!tch 24/7 and don't understand how protected these animals are. I own two BLM Mustangs and I had a background check they have the right to come on my property to check on them anytime and if someone called saying I was abusing my horses they would be takin away no questions act and more than likely I would go to prison.
I think it would do more worse than good. Mares would constantly be getting pregnant, which would lead to overpopulation. This would damage the land and the horses would starve, not to mention other grass eating animals that would also starve. I don't agree with them being held captive but it has to be done that way. So I guess I'm for it.
do you know how the BLM does their "job?" if you did, you wouldn't back them at all. 1) they had 30,000 wild horses contained and were going to just shoot them ALL to fix the overpopulation problem. but word got out and they were not able to do it because of the outrage caused. 2) they have no plans, never had any...don't have any now....to sterilize. why the hell not?? 3) they're known as the bureau of MISmanagement for a reason. They round up the wild horses every year with helicopters....which results every year in major trauma to the wild horses they're supposed to be helping. terrorized horses run til they die, foals are left orphaned to die, horses break their legs running so hard to escape the choppers.... They suck at their job. Hey it's the government. What do you expect? So far, the BLM keeps over 41,700 horses in captivity. Over 15,000 are crammed into corrals, “butt to butt" that's management? really? A billionaire named Madelein Pickens can do a hell of a better job....and she's trying to. READ THIS: http://www.madeleinepickens.com/news/how-a-billionaires-wife-is-becoming-the-mustangs-messiah/ No one is against pop control. That's absurd to say that. What people are against is the INhumane treatment of these horses. Humans dumped these horses in the desert. Humans must be held responsible for them. (these wild horses are not natural to the land. they were put here by the Europeans who came here when there were still Native Americans living everywhere....they brought horses here, and instead of taking them back, they just dumped them here). There's better ways of taking care of the wild horses. The f-ing gov just doesn't feel like spending the time nor money in making things right. STERILIZATION (darting them!) would take care of a lot of problems. it's the most obvious... that's why Pickens does that to the horses she takes into her sanctuary.....she gelds them! duh.
Many would starve to death as there wouldn't be adequate food. Disease would be a huge issue due to population density. Range would be overgrazed, resulting in erosion and loss of forage diversity. Other species may be out competed for food, resulting in extinction for populations of other herbivores in those areas. There are not enough large predators left to keep the horse population in check, so they would continue to multiply out of control and decimate the environment around them. People have an issue with the various methods of keeping the herds down to sustainable levels because they have mo understanding of the real issues. Or, they are animal rights nutters that could care less about the actual well-being of the animals. Did you know that animal rights advocates actually oppose even pet ownership of dogs and cats on the grounds that they believe it to be the same as slavery? Those are the same people who oppose removal of wild horses in excess of sustainable populations. As far as overcrowding in facilities, that's because slaughtering them isn't legal any more, and hardly anyone wants them. What else would you like them to do? Legalize slaughter of wild horses again and allow a horse slaughter facility to re-open in the USA, and that issue wouldn't exist any longer. Want more humane methods of gathering and management? They cost more. Give them more money to do their job. Legalizing their slaughter would go a long way towards freeing up resources that could be used in a more productive way than feeding and vetting thousands of horses that aren't ever going to find homes.
though it may not be a perfect system it is better than leaving them to overpopulation, which breeds disease and lack of resources. there are some people against the current system because they want nature to be as intended, untouched by man-which is completely unrealistic in the world in which we live. others simply disagree with the methods used and want better systems in place. while it would be great to have a perfect system, we aren't there yet and with the economy circling the drain it could be a while before leaps and bounds are made. sometimes in life you just have to accept the lesser of two evils until a better solution is attainable.
Coconut Cruncher- technically, horses originated in North America and then crossed a land bridge. Today, they are no more native than the dumb cows that are using their grazing land. My prediction- at first there would be a huge die-off due to depleting the food source all at once. But eventually, natural selction will take place and only the hardier, more resistant horses will live to breed.
It would be horrible. I'd estimate 95% would die - and that includes 95% of the current wild bands, as well. They'd stampede, and many would be trampled and die lingering deaths or suffer permanent injuries. They'd run through fences and barbed wire, and be horribly injured. They'd sort themselves out into bands, with stallions fighting over the mares and again be injured/die. Those that survived the initial dispersal would eat everything available and turn the land into a desert... then they'd die horrible lingering deaths. Their carcasses would litter the landscape. Coyotes, buzzards, wolves, and other predators and carrion eaters would flourish... then they too would die of starvation when the supply of dead horse ran out. Coyotes and wolves and the like would then turn to domestic animals and pets for food. The carcasses would spread disease to the remaining horses, all of them in poor condition, and kill many more. Not just the horses would suffer - grazing animals like bison and antelope (true native species) would have had their habitats ruined by the horses. They too would starve. It would take years and years for the grasslands to regenerate. The rotting carcasses would foul the water so no other animals could drink. Birds, reptiles, rabbits - every animal you can think of - would be affected. The price of beef would go WAY up, as controlled beef grazing in the west (both private and public lands) would be impossible due to the horses ruining it. So turning them loose would mean they'd die horrible lingering inhumane deaths while destroying the environment for all the other grazing animals for decades to come. Human ranchers would be inundated and forced out. Major ecological disaster. Or, we can just kill them ourselves as humanely as possible. Bury or use the carcasses. And have no ecological disaster, a tragedy but not a disaster. Population control... After we get rid of the tens of thousands now in BLM pens, perhaps we can divert the funding for their maintenance to controlling the wild population in humane ways. Given the scope and terrain of the lands involved, I don't see that it's an entirely workable solution... but certainly it could and should be tried. Birth control darts have been used on a much smaller scale for the Assateague Ponies in Maryland for decades. No major problems... but many slip through the net, so to speak, and it's hugely labor intensive even on a small, small island. Catching and gelding... I can't see it getting done. A major predator might be the answer, but no one seems to want wolves in the lower 48. So I fear the only effect pop control may be culling. The scope of the land involved, the difficult terrain, and the wiliness of the horses are beyond what we can handle. I love horses. I love the idea of the free mustang. But they're too good at reproducing themselves, and controlling their population can only be done by humans. We're responsible for them, and we MUST control them. Or every thing in the ecosystem will suffer irreparably.
This is a site worth exploring if you have an interest in the history and current status of the BLM decisions and accountability. The 54 million acres of public land originally allocated for wild horse habitat has been reduced by 98% as the public land is instead being leased at low cost to private interests for grazing of their livestock. So the fat cats in the cattle industry benefit from using public lands to expand their wealth while the wild horses are kept off of the land allocated by to them by our federal government representing us as citizens, and are being starved and culled. I suggest scrolling through the entire site just for the perspective being offered........................ http://www.shakingwindranch.com/solutions.html This is a link from the site that is posted with regard to misconceptions concerning overpopulation issues......................... http://wildhorsepreservation.com/resources/nas_report.html The NAS/NRC has since been recommissioned to update the data in a 2011 study. Here is an article on the latest BLM plan................... http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=17844 This one cuts through the BS and asks for some accountability from the BLM............ http://equinewelfarealliance.org/uploads/Report_Congress_BLM_WH_B__Program_FY11.pdf
They would quickly exceed the land's carrying capacity, and starvation and disease would become common. In addition, the environment would be stripped and would harm the ecosystem for other species as well. As for people against, they are simply thinking with their hearts and not their brains. They believe there is room for all when that simply is untrue. This is why I personally have adopted mustangs and am an active volunteer advocate and promote the blm adoption program. I would like to add that there is much B.S. on the cruelty of roundups. I have personally seen unedited footage of roundups and witnessed how they are carefully herded, not chased recklessly as antis claim. The prevoulsly stated claim that blm shot 30 thousand is the most ridiculous lie I have heard yet. Like most other specialists jobs, the folks who get the blm jobs in the horse program had a very large competion for those job positions. Naturally, those most passionate and educated get those few positions. Is that not logical? I am damn sick and tired of all the Nazi propaganda claiming trumped up allegations against BLM. If you anti's would learn the hard core facts on land management and help promote sucessful adoptions, more of these fine horses would have loving homes. And do not tell me they cannot be domesticated. I have 5 of my own and they adapted quite well. If you all keep butting heads with blm, they may have no choice but to send some to slaughter. Is that what you want? about pickens, she wanted to be paid a fee per horse that was much higher than already contracted holding facilities. She is just a damn profiteer. @ gazoo You are just spouting out the most ridiculous lies I have heard yet. Get your damn facts straight. You sound like a politician.