Laura Moretti: America's Disappearing Wild Horses / Part 3

• Historical Overview

America’s Disappearing Wild Horses

The evolution of the horse began with its ancient four-toed ancestor, Eohippus, meaning “dawn horse,” 50 million years ago. This small animal was about the size of a fox and made its home in swamplands, feeding off plant life. Eohippus slowly evolved into Mesohippus, the size of an average collie. Mesohippus had three toes and eventually became an inhabitant of the prairie. Its shape changed in conformity as its habitat changed: it grew taller, its teeth and middle toe grew longer, the latter growing into a hoof. The evolution continued until Equus caballus — the horse as we know it today — was formed.

Misfits Among Us

In response to numerous attempts by vested interests to cripple the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horse & Burro Act, Americans have made their intentions known time and again: they want wild horses—these feral, exotic, “sonsofbitches”—left in the public domain. In 1985, a provision aimed at allowing the government to sell our wild horses to slaughter came to a vote in Congress and was defeated. In 2004, the horses were not so lucky: Senator Burns (R-MT) managed to bypass the democratic process by slipping his slaughter provision into the 3,300 page federal budget. The slaughter of America’s wild horses was rubber-stamped, the will of the people ignored.

It can be said that no animal in human history has had as much impact on our lives as the horse. Millions have lost their lives in our wars. They have been used to transport us and our belongings across continents, to deliver our mail and network our civilizations, and they have plowed the fields that feed us. In these modern times, the horse is an entertainer, an athlete, an icon, and a friend—with more than 6 million of them in the care of American horse lovers. Yet, our Nation has abandoned its wild horses, these living symbols of our history and freedom.

The 1971 Act states: “It is the policy of Congress that wild free-roaming horses and burros shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death.” For over thirty year, unabated, the BLM and the Forest Service have continued to engage in all those acts.

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Save America's Wild Horses