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 Go For It!
   
Location: Texas |
Okay... Before anyone starts bashing me about this... This is just my opinion and I am completely entitled to it, lol.
I don't think that there is any need for wild horses. Horses are definitely NOT an endangered species. They are so over-bred these days that you can find them just about anywhere. I know people who own lots of land and have "wild" horses. Horses are pretty much domesticated, as it should be, in my opinion.
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  Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | grinandbareit - 2015-12-08 9:11 PM Okay... Before anyone starts bashing me about this... This is just my opinion and I am completely entitled to it, lol. I don't think that there is any need for wild horses. Horses are definitely NOT an endangered species. They are so over-bred these days that you can find them just about anywhere. I know people who own lots of land and have "wild" horses. Horses are pretty much domesticated, as it should be, in my opinion.
It would be different if they were TRULY wild and of pure blood like the ones that came over on the Mayflower (jk) but these are every type and kind you can imagine partly due to people abandoning them there when the kill plants shut down. It is far better to end this now and more humane than to watch them starve. And as for rounding them up, just as many die that way I imagine as what dies of starvation etc. They lose a lot when they drive them into corrals etc. | |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | There is only one remaining wild horse breed and they live in China. The Tserwalski's horse. Or something like that. | |
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Veteran
Posts: 291
| I don't think the federal government should be in the real estate business! | |
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 Hawty & Nawty
Posts: 20424
| Zipping up my flame suit....
One of my life experiences that will always stick in my mind is the time my family and I floated on intertubes down the Salt River Canyon here in Arizona. After passing through some tall cliffs, our river took a turn and we floated through some flatland. It was there that I first saw the Salt River Mustangs. There might have been about a dozen. Looked well fed, wild, untamed and breathtaking. Beauty is where you find it.
I understand the rancher disputes. Trust me, I write about them. I get it. However, I also remember the joy it brought my family to see a beautiful untamed proud stallion standing knee deep in the water looking back at us. It just kills me to know they rounded him up.
Not everything needs to be domesticated, controlled, told what to do, bred for perfection. Chances are pretty high that under those restrictions none of us would be here ourselves.
It will break my heart to know the last wild horse (indigenous or not and I'll tell you, the indigenous people will argue this) that there are no more horses loping through the wilds.
Putting all reasoning aside, people have this absurd belief that everything needs management and thereby destroying all the magic out of life.
Could some of them starve to death? Maybe. Aren't they replenishing the circle of life? Absolutely.
Long live the Mustang. Our last thread to the wild west. | |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | oija - 2015-12-08 10:32 PM There is only one remaining wild horse breed and they live in China. The Tserwalski's horse. Or something like that.
The Przewalski's horse. It is found wild in China and Mongolia. They are endangered and the only truly wild horses left. They are pretty neat.
COOL FACTS: - Przewalski’s horses have never been tamed for riding, which means that they are the last truly wild horse in existence today.
- Przewalski's horses have 66 chromosomes, two more than domestic horses.
- The Mongolian name for these horses is "takhi," which means "spirit". Horses are central to Mongolian culture, and takhi are a symbol of their national heritage.
- The Chinese call the Przewalski’s horse "yehmah."
- These horses were scientifically described in the late 19th century after Polish naturalist Colonel Nikolai Przewalski obtained a skull and hide of this seldom-seen animal and shared them with scientists at a museum in St. Petersburg.
The Mustangs of north america are feral horses. They are not wild. They destroy native habitats of many other true native species. I hate to say it, but from a scientific standpoint they are a lot like feral domestic cats at this point.
It's a sticky situation. I think if the government wishes to keep them running on the range, they should employ a darting system to control populations- similar to what is used for "wild" ponies on the island of the cost of Virginia. I would think this is cheaper than feeding the 908098234032983 horses they are bound to produce every year, plus the costs of rounding them up. | |
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Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | barrelracr131 - 2015-12-09 7:52 AM
oija - 2015-12-08 10:32 PM There is only one remaining wild horse breed and they live in China. The Tserwalski's horse. Or something like that.
The Przewalski's horse. It is found wild in China and Mongolia. They are endangered and the only truly wild horses left. They are pretty neat.COOL FACTS: - Przewalski’s horses have never been tamed for riding, which means that they are the last truly wild horse in existence today.
- Przewalski's horses have 66 chromosomes, two more than domestic horses.
- The Mongolian name for these horses is "takhi," which means "spirit". Horses are central to Mongolian culture, and takhi are a symbol of their national heritage.
- The Chinese call the Przewalski’s horse "yehmah."
- These horses were scientifically described in the late 19th century after Polish naturalist Colonel Nikolai Przewalski obtained a skull and hide of this seldom-seen animal and shared them with scientists at a museum in St. Petersburg.
The Mustangs of north america are feral horses. They are not wild. They destroy native habitats of many other true native species. I hate to say it, but from a scientific standpoint they are a lot like feral domestic cats at this point.
It's a sticky situation. I think if the government wishes to keep them running on the range, they should employ a darting system to control populations- similar to what is used for "wild" ponies on the island of the cost of Virginia. I would think this is cheaper than feeding the 908098234032983 horses they are bound to produce every year, plus the costs of rounding them up.
Yup that's it. Knew I was missing a P and Z. :)
It was late last night and I didn't feel like googling on my phone. It's really cool that they only come in bay dun. Dun is the most primitive color on a horse and is actually associated with good feet in most breeds. A. A. Dent discusses it in his equine heritage book.
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Go For It!
Location: Texas | BARRELHORSE USA - 2015-12-08 10:03 PM
Whiteboy - 2015-12-08 1:29 PM
Its interesting that the range land horses vs cattle always comes up. The difference is that the ranchers are managing the land for future years. One nearby location has some 120 acre sections that are private, on the other side of the fence is BLM ground. The BLM gound (with no cattle) is picked clean, of even the sage brush, while the private section (with lots of cattle) is still covered in rangeland grasses. I really need to get a picture of it, just to show the stark contrast.
This is so true ... and most Americans miss the truth ... the federal government should not own any land and the present billions of acres they claim should be auctioned off to the public and the few scenic parks turned over to each state to own and manage.
Private ownership brings out the best way to care for the land you own where those that lease will overgraze for the short term profits and to hell with the long term condition of the property!!
The best mustang situation would be for honest ranchers to own the land and control the herd to a true mustang standard of dinky small old spanish blooded horses that the Spanish explorers brought with them. Not culls that were turned loose and are breeding like rabbits. A private owner could easily run a guest ranch and city slicker viewing area or several herds of wild never handled horses and charge admission to see some genuine mustangs. No federal or state nonsense involved !!
Horse processing plants are needed desperately to contain the low end market for horses and who cares what people in other countries eat and enjoy.
The wild fires created by the federal government city slicker managers are due to stupidity ... due to no logging and livestock in areas with pine forests the underbrush provides fuel for these devastating fires. On the same subject anyone stupid enough to build homes in these type areas or flooding areas should never be able to buy insurance to rebuild and raise the cost of insurance for those not at risk ..
Fire is a good thing when Mother Nature is allowed to clear out an area. Pine seed and majority of native grasses require a fire in order for their seed to be able to germinate!! But .. here comes the feds with their planes and an army of stupid people with 5 gallon water tanks spraying water on smoking logs behind the fire wile leaving small towns unprotected. If land was privately owned there would be fire breaks across great forests and you could literally let a fire burn itself out. Then allow logging companies to quickly remove the burned upright timber and let the new seedlings create an entire new forest...
Those of you that live where there has been a "runaway" fire the past 4 years on sagebrush range land... .. go look at the grass that has replenished itself from seeds that could be a 100 years old. With livestock control by a private land owner and not over grazing ... these lands would rejuvenate themselves for future generations.
As I stated before ..... the federal government should not claim to own nor grab more land with tax payer money ... whatever is needed .. private ownership will save the scenic views, a few wild herds of genuine mustangs, huge prairies of tall waving buffalo grasses along with majestic forests for all to see and enjoy ... free enterprise is always a jillion times better than anything the government has tried to accomplish ...
These two links will demonstrate the amount of land the federal government controls and does not include the millions of acres Obama has declared as national monuments nor does it show how the United Nations is in control of most of our national park systems ...
http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/291-federal-lands-in-the-us
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/08/19/westerners-fear-monument...
The problem with white people is they are busy trying to create something while the government and environmental groups are constantly trying to take something ... and they are being paid with your tax dollars to make their taking happen ...
When you think of federal lands tomorrow .... think of owning it and look at the amount of money that can be saved by disbanding all the hidden agencies spending your money on themselves and the massive administration costs .. and taking the mineral rights away from the feds and making use of the oil, gas and minerals that are on these properties ... for the public good ..
While I do agree with much of what you stated... One thing I disagree with is turning the parkland over for private purchase. I'm sure that you have been to Yellowstone before. I LOVE that it is public land. Many American children live in cities and towns that don't have wilderness areas. It would be a shame if people couldn't grab their kids, jump in their car and go fishing at the lake or camping in the woods because they would trespassing on private property. People, with enough money, would buy up places like Old Faithful and some of the beaches on the coast, stick huge PRIVATE PROPERTY, NO TRESPASSING signs up and you wouldn't be able to use them. That would suck, because I LOVE going to these parks and I am grateful that we had the foresight to hold on to some of it for our future generations to enjoy.
That doesn't mean I think we need wild horses roaming the plains. They aren't buffalo, we don't eat them and you can see them anywhere. To me it isn't any different than turning dogs loose somewhere. They are domesticated animals that we have as pets. They aren't bears, Elk, mountain lions, so to me it is kind of silly to have them out there roaming the plains.
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Nut Case Expert
Posts: 9305
Location: Tulsa, Ok | Drop on down to Osage County, Oklahoma and take a good gander at the number of mustangs being housed on private ranches. Your federal tax dollars at work housing something like 30,000 in this state alone at a hefty annual fee per animal. Some how I just don't see extinction in the near future. | |
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 Champ
Posts: 19623
Location: Peg-Leg Julia Grimm | grinandbareit - 2015-12-09 11:58 AM
BARRELHORSE USA - 2015-12-08 10:03 PM
Whiteboy - 2015-12-08 1:29 PM
Its interesting that the range land horses vs cattle always comes up. The difference is that the ranchers are managing the land for future years. One nearby location has some 120 acre sections that are private, on the other side of the fence is BLM ground. The BLM gound (with no cattle) is picked clean, of even the sage brush, while the private section (with lots of cattle) is still covered in rangeland grasses. I really need to get a picture of it, just to show the stark contrast.
This is so true ... and most Americans miss the truth ... the federal government should not own any land and the present billions of acres they claim should be auctioned off to the public and the few scenic parks turned over to each state to own and manage.
Private ownership brings out the best way to care for the land you own where those that lease will overgraze for the short term profits and to hell with the long term condition of the property!!
The best mustang situation would be for honest ranchers to own the land and control the herd to a true mustang standard of dinky small old spanish blooded horses that the Spanish explorers brought with them. Not culls that were turned loose and are breeding like rabbits. A private owner could easily run a guest ranch and city slicker viewing area or several herds of wild never handled horses and charge admission to see some genuine mustangs. No federal or state nonsense involved !!
Horse processing plants are needed desperately to contain the low end market for horses and who cares what people in other countries eat and enjoy.
The wild fires created by the federal government city slicker managers are due to stupidity ... due to no logging and livestock in areas with pine forests the underbrush provides fuel for these devastating fires. On the same subject anyone stupid enough to build homes in these type areas or flooding areas should never be able to buy insurance to rebuild and raise the cost of insurance for those not at risk ..
Fire is a good thing when Mother Nature is allowed to clear out an area. Pine seed and majority of native grasses require a fire in order for their seed to be able to germinate!! But .. here comes the feds with their planes and an army of stupid people with 5 gallon water tanks spraying water on smoking logs behind the fire wile leaving small towns unprotected. If land was privately owned there would be fire breaks across great forests and you could literally let a fire burn itself out. Then allow logging companies to quickly remove the burned upright timber and let the new seedlings create an entire new forest...
Those of you that live where there has been a "runaway" fire the past 4 years on sagebrush range land... .. go look at the grass that has replenished itself from seeds that could be a 100 years old. With livestock control by a private land owner and not over grazing ... these lands would rejuvenate themselves for future generations.
As I stated before ..... the federal government should not claim to own nor grab more land with tax payer money ... whatever is needed .. private ownership will save the scenic views, a few wild herds of genuine mustangs, huge prairies of tall waving buffalo grasses along with majestic forests for all to see and enjoy ... free enterprise is always a jillion times better than anything the government has tried to accomplish ...
These two links will demonstrate the amount of land the federal government controls and does not include the millions of acres Obama has declared as national monuments nor does it show how the United Nations is in control of most of our national park systems ...
http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/291-federal-lands-in-the-us
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/08/19/westerners-fear-monument...
The problem with white people is they are busy trying to create something while the government and environmental groups are constantly trying to take something ... and they are being paid with your tax dollars to make their taking happen ...
When you think of federal lands tomorrow .... think of owning it and look at the amount of money that can be saved by disbanding all the hidden agencies spending your money on themselves and the massive administration costs .. and taking the mineral rights away from the feds and making use of the oil, gas and minerals that are on these properties ... for the public good ..
While I do agree with much of what you stated... One thing I disagree with is turning the parkland over for private purchase. I'm sure that you have been to Yellowstone before. I LOVE that it is public land. Many American children live in cities and towns that don't have wilderness areas. It would be a shame if people couldn't grab their kids, jump in their car and go fishing at the lake or camping in the woods because they would trespassing on private property. People, with enough money, would buy up places like Old Faithful and some of the beaches on the coast, stick huge PRIVATE PROPERTY, NO TRESPASSING signs up and you wouldn't be able to use them. That would suck, because I LOVE going to these parks and I am grateful that we had the foresight to hold on to some of it for our future generations to enjoy.
That doesn't mean I think we need wild horses roaming the plains. They aren't buffalo, we don't eat them and you can see them anywhere. To me it isn't any different than turning dogs loose somewhere. They are domesticated animals that we have as pets. They aren't bears, Elk, mountain lions, so to me it is kind of silly to have them out there roaming the plains.
few scenic parks turned over to each state to own and manage.
Griz you missed this line. ^^^
There is a push out west by many people for the feds to turn over the management of the federally owned lands to the states. That's what SHOULD have happened long ago. Nothing the government does turns out well. Private ownership is best because people who own land (ranchers, farmers, foresters) REALLY do care about the land being healthy because if it isn't, it can't produce. Ranchers, farmers and foresters are in it for the long haul. That makes them good stewards of the land. Most of all we need to get the stoopid environmentalists OFF our back. Their hearts "may" be in the right place but they are idiots when it comes to balancing natural resources with land use.
As far as mustangs. The only ones out west I know of that have any mustang purity are the Kiger mustangs of SE Oregon. They live in the Steens Mountain area. I"m for leaving pockets of real mustangs for people to gawk at but the rest should be gone. Just sayin' | |
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 pressure dripper
Posts: 8699
Location: the end of the rainbow | Why is everyone always worried about the majestic wild horses and no one ever cares about the wild burros. Burros have feelings to ya know.
Edited by willrodeo4food 2015-12-10 3:34 PM
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10D Crack Champion
| willrodeo4food - 2015-12-10 3:05 PM Why is everyone always worried about the majestic wild horses and no one ever cares about the wild burros. Burros have feelings to ya know.
...... and........... they look better in sombreros than "mustangs".
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 Expert
Posts: 4121
Location: SE Louisiana | river runner - 2015-12-08 1:15 PM
What do you mean by limits on land and cattle? Really? The federal government is going to tell me how many cattle I can own?! If ranchers are not leasing this land to run on who will? You don't think there should be any income made from these properties?
No.. If you lease BLM land to graze, they limit how many you can run on that land. Natural wild horses in North America died out in the last ice age. The original new wild horses (mustang) were mostly Spanish barbs that escaped or whatever into the wild when Europeans brought them across the ocean. | |
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 Veteran
Posts: 288
| Whiteboy - 2015-12-08 10:46 AM
There are zero 100% pure wild horse herds here in Utah. Utah also has one of the highest populations of wild horses in the US. It is an absolute joke that fact that people are crying about protecting a non-native invasive species. Next will be the Wild Coyote ACT of New York City.
If people had a clue. I can drive 30 west of the town I live in and see close to 200 "wild" horses at any given point. That by the way will out number the Deer, Elk, and Antelope combined. These feral horses are completely destroying the range. They are also so inbred that they are absolutly disgusting to look at.
On top of that the BLM is housing thousands of horses. The BLM pays private contrators to keep these horses. They pay the contrators $5-8 per day per head. One contrator I know grosses nearly $3 Million dollars annually to house 1000 head of feral horses at taxpayer expense.
What the BLM is doing is not managment...it is un-managment.
Thank you.....I am in Washington state. The 50 mile stretch if highway between my town and the next one north of us is all tribal land. There are "wild" horses throughout this whole stretch. About 10 years ago I did a research paper on them and at that time, there were 12,000 head with a reproduction rate of 25% per year. That is not a dwindling population. This is tribal land, so BLM and the feds have ZERO say in management of these herds. My kids used to make a game of counting them and could be up in the hundreds, just on one side of the road that you could see. Not counting ones back in the swales and canyons.
Finally, after years of watching them starve to death every winter, get hit by cars, die on the side of the road, etc. The tribe started rounding up mares and canning them, and adopting out the orphan colts. Then you get animal rights people griping. It's a complicated situation, but I really do not agree they are going extinct.
Edited by wickedstepmother 2015-12-11 8:28 AM
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