Trump's Plans Could Lead to Slaughter of 100,000 US Horses
Advocacy groups in the US are raising alarms as up to 100,000 mustangs could face slaughter due to the Trump administration's budget cuts. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is facing a funding reduction of $162.7 million for 2018, leading to a $10 million cut from its wild horse and burro management program.
The program, established in 1971, aims to protect an estimated 70,000 horses in the west, along with approximately 50,000 horses removed from the wild and available for adoption. Despite efforts like round-ups and birth control drugs to manage populations, the BLM claims that caring for this number of horses has become 'unsustainable'.
According to BLM figures, the 'appropriate management level' for wild horses should be closer to 26,000. Over the past eight years, the program's budget has more than doubled, rising from $36.2 million in 2008 to $80.4 million in 2017. Despite these increases, the program struggles to meet its statutory obligations under the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act of 1971, which mandates maintaining animal populations at appropriate levels.
The budget release indicates that the cost of caring for horses in off-range facilities consumes most of the funds. The document states, 'The current program is unsustainable and a new approach is needed', especially given the constraints on federal funding. The budget proposes giving the BLM tools to manage the program more cost-effectively, including the ability to conduct sales without limitation.
Historically, the BLM has avoided selling horses into the food chain, with bills of sale prohibiting commercial processing. However, the 'without limitation' proposal could allow mustangs and burros to be sold for slaughter for the first time.
The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) was among the first to strongly oppose this move. 'The BLM is asking Congress to approve the brutal slaughter of nearly 100,000 mustangs and burros,' said Suzanne Roy, director of the American Wild Horse Conservation. Campaigners warn that 46,000 captured horses in government facilities and another 46,000 wild horses could face slaughter 'en masse' if the proposals proceed.
They argue that the bureau 'wrongly asserts' there is an excess of 46,000 wild horses and burros on the range, claiming the assessment lacks scientific backing. 'These innocent and publicly cherished animals should not pay the ultimate price,' Roy concluded.
Another activist group, Wild Horse Education, urged the American public to pressure Congress. 'This budget proposal is an example of lazy government,' said founder Laura Leigh. 'This is simply one more gift to the livestock industry. Instead of allocating funds to control the federal grazing program and protect the land, we burden the horses.'
Many rural programs are being severely impacted by the Trump administration's new budget proposals, unveiled on Tuesday, May 23. The cuts include a $1.4 billion reduction in the Department of the Interior's funding, along with deeper cuts to the Department of Agriculture. These two agencies manage over 700 million acres of public lands, primarily in the west. The plans are still subject to Congressional approval.
Originally posted by Horse and Hound