Controversial California Wild Horse Roundup Begins Amid Objections
October 10, 2018
The Forest Service has commenced a significant roundup of up to 1,000 wild horses on federal lands in Northern California, despite concerns from California Senator Dianne Feinstein. The senator fears that some captured animals might be sold to slaughterhouses.
Senator Feinstein recently sent a letter to acting Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen, urging a halt to any sales of wild horses from the first roundup in 13 years at Modoc National Forest.
The roundup, expected to last about a month, began this morning. The Forest Service argues that the action is necessary to maintain the ecological balance in the Devil's Garden Plateau Wild Horse Territory, which currently houses nearly 4,000 wild horses.
The territory, spanning over 250,000 acres, can sustain no more than 402 wild horses, according to the service. However, advocates are concerned that older horses, which cannot be adopted, might be sold to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada.
For years, Congress has included language in appropriations bills preventing the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from using euthanasia and limiting its ability to sell animals, as per the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act of 1971. However, this only applies to the Interior Department, while the Forest Service falls under the Department of Agriculture.
The Forest Service has indicated plans to sell up to 300 horses, aged 10 years or older, for as little as $1 each without limitations.
Senator Feinstein has questioned whether the Forest Service can ensure that no horses sold will end up in slaughterhouses. She has requested a prompt response to her queries and a halt to sales until she receives answers.
This issue arises as the Forest Service and BLM manage over 82,000 wild horses and burros across approximately 27 million acres of federal herd management areas. BLM states that this is 55,000 more than the appropriate management level, risking damage to vegetation, soils, and other resources.
With no natural predators, wild horse and burro populations could exceed 100,000 by next year, potentially leading to starvation and water shortages, according to BLM.
The Forest Service manages about 8,000 wild horses and burros, primarily in Arizona, California, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah, often in collaboration with BLM.
In response to the situation, BLM plans to launch an adoption incentive program, offering $1,000 to those who adopt one of the 50,000 wild horses currently in off-range holding facilities (Greenwire, Oct. 10).
Last summer, BLM quietly updated its policy to facilitate bulk purchases of wild horses and burros (E&E News PM, July 24).
Suzanne Roy, executive director of the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign), criticized the Forest Service's approach, stating, "There's a right way and a wrong way to manage wild horses, and the Forest Service is pursuing the wrong way with the mass roundup by helicopter of 1,000 federally protected mustangs at Modoc."
Roy added, "The situation is worsened by the plan to sell older wild horses for $1 each without slaughter limitations, endangering California's wild horses in a state that has banned this practice for 20 years. We urge the Forest Service to protect wild horses from slaughter and are willing to collaborate on humane management solutions, including birth control, for California's largest wild horse population."