Contraceptive Could Reduce Taxpayer Costs for Wild Horses

Wild horses cost American taxpayers $77 million annually. However, a birth control vaccine could help reduce these expenses by managing herd sizes effectively.

A wild horse herd resides on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land in the McCullough Peaks, just east of Cody. BLM officials previously conducted gathers to control the herd size, but thanks to a contraceptive called PZP, the population is no longer growing.

Senior Scientist Jay F. Kirkpatrick from the Science and Conservation Center stated, “They reached zero population growth in three years flat. They’re balancing foal production with mortality.”

The non-profit Science and Conservation Center, located in Billings, assists public, private, and tribal groups in controlling dozens of wild horse populations worldwide.

Some concerns remain. Powell rancher Tom Hagwood, who has won national awards for training wild horses, supports population control to prevent starvation. However, he questions the feasibility of darting horses in vast areas like the Pryor Mountains or McCullough Peaks.

He remarked, “I just don’t see where they’re going to be able to walk out across that desert and dart those horses. That’s too much area.”

Supporters argue that studies demonstrate the effectiveness of PZP, which is also used to control herds of elephants, deer, and bison.