Judge Halts BLM's Wild Horse Sterilization Plan

In a significant legal development, a federal judge has temporarily halted the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) controversial plan to sterilize wild horses in Oregon. This decision underscores the ongoing debate over humane treatment and population management of wild horses.

November 6, 2018

A federal judge has temporarily halted a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) plan to surgically remove the ovaries of 100 wild mares recently gathered from the Warn Springs Herd Management Area, in Oregon.

Earlier this year, The Cloud Foundation, wild horse advocate Ginger Kathrens, and the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) filed a complaint in U.S. District Court, in Oregon, seeking to prevent the BLM from performing ovariectomies on grounds that the procedures would subject the horses to a high risk of infection, death, and procedure-related miscarriage. The surgeries were slated to begin this month.

On Nov. 2, Judge Michael W. Mosman issued a preliminary injunction stopping the BLM from performing ovariectomies until the court issues a final ruling.

The BLM declined to comment on the ongoing litigation.

Suzanne Roy, AWHC executive director, believes Mosman’s decision recognized the public’s interest in humane wild horse treatment.

“We hope that the BLM will reconsider its plans … and focus instead on humane, scientifically recommended forms of population management, including PZP fertility control,” Roy said.

Originally posted by The Horse