Senate Upholds Protections for Wild Horses Against Slaughter
Washington, DC (November 20, 2017) - The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee has released its Fiscal Year 2018 Interior spending bill, maintaining protections for the nation's wild horses and burros against killing and slaughter. This decision is a significant victory for wild horse advocates.
Senate's Rejection of Slaughter Proposals
The Senate's Interior bill opposes the Interior Department's budget request, which sought to lift prohibitions on the destruction of healthy wild horses and burros and their sale for slaughter. The chairman's explanatory statement directs the BLM to pursue "humane and politically viable options" for wild horse management.
“The Senate has heard the voice of Americans loud and clear and rejected the killing of our nation’s iconic wild horses and burros,” said Suzanne Roy, Executive Director of the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign). “America’s mustangs are part of the history and culture of the West. Clearly, the Senate realizes that killing America's mustangs or selling them for slaughter is not acceptable to the American public. The only humane and politically viable path forward is to use birth control to manage wild populations on the range, as recommended by the National Academy of Sciences.”
House's Contrasting Stance
In July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “Stewart Amendment” to 2018 spending legislation, which AWHC labeled a “death warrant” for wild horses and burros. This amendment would allow the destruction of wild horses and burros deemed surplus by the BLM. The fate of these animals will be decided in negotiations between the House and Senate to reconcile the spending legislation.
AWHC urges Senate and House negotiators to reject the Stewart Amendment, which threatens over 90,000 wild horses. A 2017 national poll shows that 80% of Americans, including 86% of Trump voters and 77% of Clinton voters, oppose the plan to kill America’s mustangs.
Wild Horses and Public Lands
Wild horses and burros are protected on BLM land in ten Western States, where they are outnumbered by privately-owned livestock. The livestock lobby views wild horses as competition for taxpayer-subsidized grazing on public lands. Public lands ranchers pay $1.87 per animal per month for grazing, compared to $22.60 on private lands.
Special interests benefiting from agricultural subsidies are pushing to kill and slaughter wild horses and burros, despite 80% of BLM land grazed by livestock having no wild horses present.
The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) is dedicated to preserving American wild horses and burros in viable, free-roaming herds for future generations. Its grassroots mission is supported by a coalition of over 60 horse advocacy, humane, and public interest organizations.