Colorado Horse Organization Sues the BLM Over Mare Sterilization

Colorado Horse Organization Sues the BLM

On August 25, 2016, a Colorado-based organization, the Cloud Foundation, in collaboration with the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign), filed a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The lawsuit opposes mare sterilization research being conducted at Oregon State University, which the organizations deem invasive and dangerous.

Toni Moore, a board member of the Cloud Foundation, expressed concerns that if the BLM and OSU proceed with the procedure, it could be implemented in Colorado to manage the local wild horse population. Moore emphasized the potential cruelty of the procedure, stating, "The American public should be outraged that a national heritage species is going to have to go through such intolerant cruel behavior."

Moore further stated, "Wouldn't do this to a domestic mare, much less a wild horse." The lawsuit seeks to halt the procedures or, at the very least, allow public documentation of the experiments. A BLM news release indicated that three sterilization procedures are being researched as population control measures, which a local veterinarian criticized as "barbaric mutilation."

Despite the backlash, an OSU spokesperson clarified that the university's role is to provide research-based opinions to inform U.S. government policy, not to decide on wild horse population control. Moore hopes the procedure will be stopped, fearing it could lead to the extinction of wild horses in Colorado.

Attempts to reach the BLM for comment were redirected to national officials, from whom no response has been received. As of now, no decisions will be made until at least November.

Originally posted by One News Page