Tell the Bureau of Land Management: Don't Slaughter Wild Horses!

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_"Congress finds and declares that wild free-roaming horses and burros are living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West; that they contribute to the diversity of life forms within the Nation and enrich the lives of the American people ..."_

These stirring words are found in The Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burro's Act, a piece of legislation that has been all but forgotten by the Bureau of Land Management‘s (BLM) National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board.

**This advisory board has recommended the BLM kill over 45,000 wild horses currently captive at government holding facilities throughout the U.S.**

The BLM argues wild horse numbers are unsustainable and when combined with cattle populations on the same land, can lead to destructive overgrazing. The solution to round up the horses and keep them in government holding facilities while they await adoption has been a costly endeavor, $49 million in 2015, alone. Therefore, slaughter of thousands of horses is the only solution.

The Humane Society of the United States, however, rightly points out that the BLM would not be in this situation if government officials had implemented a sensible program to manage the wild horse population through fertility control. This simple, low-cost solution would have prevented the need for dangerous round-ups and ended wasteful spending on a massive captive wild horse program.

The BLM's mismanagement of wild horse populations cannot justify the slaughter of these majestic animals. They should not suffer because of the BLM's failures.

The solution is NOT to slaughter 45,000 wild horses. Even the suggestion that this is somehow a solution is abhorrent. **The Bureau of Land Management must reject the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board's recommendations! The BLM should continue to care for the horses they removed or return them to their ranges, and use fertility control to manage wild horse populations in the future.**