Myths and Facts about Wild Horses and Burros

Myth: There are too many wild horses and burros on public lands, and their numbers must be reduced.

Fact: During the 1800s, it is estimated that there were more than 2 million wild horses and burros roaming the West. These animals, along with countless wildlife species ranging from bison to wolves to prairie dogs, were the victims of ghastly extermination efforts, primarily to make way for private domestic livestock grazing. Today, there are approximately 70,000 wild horses and burros remaining on millions of acres of our western public lands. Tragically, the interests of these “living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West” are being forfeited for those of the livestock industry and other commercial operations.

Many wild horse and burro herds are being managed at such dangerously low numbers that their long-term health and genetic viability are seriously imperiled. In 1999, the federal government sponsored a wild horse and burro population viability forum in which several leading scientific experts, including Drs. Gus Cothran, Francis Singer, and John Gross, participated. One of the main issues discussed was that smaller, isolated populations of fewer than 200 animals are particularly vulnerable to the loss of genetic diversity when the number of animals participating in breeding falls below a minimum level. This scenario sets the stage for a host of biological problems associated with inbreeding, including reduced reproduction and foal survival, reduced adult fitness, and physical deformities. Unfortunately, the federal agencies charged with the protection, viability, and sustainability of our nation’s herds, the Bureau of Land Management and the US Forest Service, maintain shockingly low appropriate management levels (AMLs)—the number of wild horses or burros within a “herd management area” that the BLM deems the land can support in balance with other multiple uses. In many cases, AMLs are set far below the genetic viability threshold, and overall, the BLM’s AMLs would reduce wild horse and burro numbers to under 30,000 across 55 million acres.

Myth: Wild horses and burros must be rounded up to save them from dying of starvation or thirst.

Fact: While the BLM argues that wild horses and burros are being rounded up for their own good to keep them from dying of starvation or dehydration in areas affected by fire and drought throughout the West, animal advocates have frequently found the condition of these horses to be stable—and certainly not warranting the permanent removal of herds. In many of these cases, livestock often remained in the same areas or were returned to the areas in short order. Of course, once the wild horses and burros are gone, they are gone for good—advancing the BLMs overall objective of drastically reducing populations as quickly as possible. By attempting to justify extra removals as “emergencies,” the BLM is able to bypass the standard National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, which requires certain planning documents, analysis, and public input.

Many wild horse and burro herds have been unable to roam freely throughout their entire designated herd management areas—blocked by fences and other impediments constructed to accommodate livestock. Hence, they are unable to access forage and water to which they are legally entitled. Wild horses and burros have survived droughts and other harsh conditions in the past and will survive them in the future, as other wild animals do, if they are treated as wild animals and left alone.

Myth: Wild horses and burros are destructive to the environment and must be removed to protect ecosystem health.

Fact: Wild horses and burros, like any wildlife species, have an impact on the environment, but due to their natural behavior, their impact is minimal. In fact, wild horses and burros play a beneficial ecological role—for example, by dispersing seeds through elimination, maintaining or forging trails during heavy snowfall, and breaking ice at watering holes (which in turn helps other animals survive). Wild horses and burros can also serve as food for predator species such as mountain lions. Importantly, there are key differences between wild horses and cattle in terms of their grazing patterns, behavior, and impacts. Cattle are far less selective in what sort of forage they will consume, meaning a wider range of plants are consumed. Wild horses (with their upper and lower incisors) are able to cut grass; cattle, conversely, may pull plants out roots and all. Horses are nonruminants, so seeds pass more easily through their digestive system. Perhaps most importantly, wild horses traverse greater distances (and altitudes) than domestic cattle set out to graze. Cattle tend to congregate and stay near water sources (e.g., stream banks, sensitive riparian habitats) and may trample an area repeatedly. Livestock are often concentrated in grazing allotments at artificially high densities during the critical growing season when vegetation is extremely vulnerable to permanent damage. This overgrazing sets the stage for habitat degradation that may not be immediately apparent but which can cumulatively cause massive vegetation die-off.

If BLM and USFS officials are genuinely concerned about ecosystem health, they must refrain from conducting business as usual and turning a blind eye to the indisputably overriding cause of habitat degradation: livestock grazing and public encroachment. Cattle vastly outnumber wild horses on public lands, and for years, the agencies have permitted extremely high levels of livestock use on public lands (as a subsidy to the livestock industry), resulting in soil erosion, water contamination and depletion, and deterioration of vegetation. Although wild horses and burros are often blamed for these problems, the agencies’ own data indicate otherwise. Little has changed since the release of the 1990 US General Accounting Office Report, Rangeland Management: Improvements Needed in Federal Wild Horse Program, which concluded, “The primary cause of the degradation in rangeland resources is poorly managed domestic (primarily cattle and sheep) livestock.” A 2024 study by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) analyzed 21,000 grazing allotments and found that less than 1 percent listed horses as a significant disturbance to land health standards; conversely, livestock overgrazing was cited as a “significant reason for failure” in 33 percent of assessed allotments—affecting roughly 38 million acres of public lands.

Myth: Wild horses and burros are an exotic or feral species and must be removed to protect native wildlife.

Fact: The paleontological record shows that North America is the cradle of equine evolution, beginning more than 60 million years ago. Indeed, mitochondrial DNA analysis of fossil remains indicates that E. caballus, the “modern” horse, is genetically identical to E. lambei, the most recent equine species to evolve in North America more than 1.7 million years ago. Hence, it can plausibly be argued that the Spanish actually reintroduced a native species, one that evolved on this continent, and which has adapted and flourished both biologically and ecologically since its reintroduction. Interestingly, scientific evidence now suggests that horses may have persisted on the North American continent until as recently as 5,000–6,000 years ago prior to their reintroduction in the early 1500s (a true blip in evolutionary time).

Simply because horses were domesticated before being released is biologically inconsequential. Observing horses in the wild demonstrates just how quickly domesticated behavioral and morphological traits disappear. By virtue of their evolutionary history, biology, and behavior, these animals are native wildlife. In addition, the WFHBA rightfully recognized them as an “integral part of the natural system of the public lands.”

Myth: Ranchers depend upon livestock grazing for their livelihood, and wild horses and burros are creating an undue hardship on their operations.

Fact: While some small family ranchers do depend upon livestock for their primary source of income, the top grazing permits on our public lands in terms of numbers of livestock are held by large corporations. Today, less than 2 percent of all the forage for our nation’s beef cattle is produced on western public lands. Moreover, as the USDA’s 2023 edition of America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance report notes, an overwhelming majority of farming households earn the majority of their income from off-farm sources (and often use off-farm income to help cover farm expenses). The reality is that livestock grazing on public lands does not constitute a vital part of anyone’s income; such grazing is effectively a government handout given the paltry fees charged by federal agencies. In 1994, the Department of the Interior concluded that the elimination of all public lands grazing would result in the loss of only 0.1 percent of the West’s total employment. Trends with farming and ranching in the intervening years—including consolidation in the industry—have further underscored this reality. Ultimately, changing times and demographics, not a small number of wild horses and burros, are responsible for the decline of the ranching industry’s importance in the West.

Myth: Without the federal grazing program assistance, ranchers would be unable to carry on a cherished family tradition and way of life.

Fact: Small family ranchers and small family farmers have far more to fear from corporate interests than they do from responsible federal lands management policy. In fact, only 2.7 percent of the nation’s total livestock operators hold federal grazing permits. It can reasonably be argued that those ranchers who benefit from ridiculously cheap public lands grazing fees and other government subsidies associated with federal grazing permits have a distinct advantage over those who do not. Many of these ranchers who now fancy themselves as modern day cattle barons are millionaires and billionaires who made their fortunes in other businesses.

Because grazing allotments on public lands require ownership of private base property, and wealthy individuals and corporations own more private property (i.e., base property), they wind up with more federal grazing allotments. Hence, these wealthy operations benefit from numerous taxpayer subsidies, while small family operations struggle to make ends meet. Wealthy individuals and corporations are increasingly buying out small ranching operations—acres at a time. With rising operating costs and mounting debts, most small family ranchers are looking for work outside the ranch and a way out of ranching. In fact, according to the USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture, while the number of small ranches has decreased in recent years, the number of ranches with more than 500, 1,000, and 2,500 cows have all increased substantially from 2017 to 2022.

Some ranchers have expressed an interest in a proposal that would provide for their needs as they transition into other lines of work. In recent years, federal legislation has been introduced that would allow grazing permit holders to voluntarily waive permits to graze on federal lands in exchange for market value compensation. Not only would such arrangements help ranchers and present a huge cost savings to taxpayers (see last myth), but it would also allow forage to be reallocated to wildlife, including wild horses and burros.

Myth: Removed horses and burros are adopted to loving homes through the government’s adoption programs.

Fact: While the BLM has an obligation to ensure that the persons adopting wild horses and burros are “qualified” adopters, many people do not fully understand the responsibility and commitments that are required to care for an adopted animal, thus setting the stage for failed adoptions. Rigorous screening of potential adopters, as well as education and monitoring, are critical to the success of any adoption. Sadly, the BLM has failed in all of these areas. In 1997, the Associated Press uncovered enormous and egregious abuse within the adoption program, including the revelation that many individuals were adopting large numbers of wild horses only to turn around and make sizable profits by selling them for slaughter. To make matters worse, The New York Times reported on a Justice Department investigation that revealed the BLM had a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on this issue, and that, in fact, many BLM employees were well aware that adopters intended to sell horses for slaughter after receiving title. A 2015 Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General report concluded that a single buyer had sent approximately 1,700 wild horses to slaughter. Even now, countless horses continue to fall through the cracks. A 2021 New York Times report exposed grave problems with the BLM’s Adoption Incentive Program, whereby individuals receive cash payments to adopt captive wild horses. This program is deeply flawed and results in scores of formerly wild horses ending up at slaughter. The 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act and its legislative history make it clear that Congress, with overwhelming public support, intended for wild horses and burros to be protected in the wild, removed only when necessary, and, if removed, guaranteed humane treatment.

Myth: With thousands of wild horses and burros awaiting adoption, the program is too costly, and the only solution is to either sell or destroy “excess” animals who haven’t been adopted or are deemed “unadoptable.”

Fact: In 2020, the BLM put forth a reckless strategy to drastically reduce the numbers of wild horses and burros on public lands—without any careful environmental review—that called for removing a staggering 18,000–20,000 wild horses annually (at a cost of nearly $1 billion in the first five years alone). Not surprisingly, increased removals resulted in a backlog of animals awaiting adoption. Many animals are automatically shipped to long-term holding facilities and never even put up for adoption. With more than 66,000 animals now in holding facilities, costs for the inflated number of removals and the animals’ care have mounted—all directly attributable to the BLM’s own misguided strategy. The BLM’s fiscal year 2005 budget for administering the program was $39 million. The program’s 2023 budget was nearly $148 million.

Each year, through annual appropriations legislation, Congress includes prohibitions against lethal control for wild horses and burros—a sign of the strong bipartisan support that exists to protect these cherished icons from cruel treatment and destruction. National polling shows overwhelming support to protect wild horses, and past suggestions of destroying these animals have been met with public outcry.

Western rangelands can sustain the wild horses and burros that exist, particularly if the BLM adopts a proactive approach using humane and proven fertility control methods such as porcine zona pellucida (PZP). The BLM manages 245 million acres of public lands in the United States. Wild horses and burros are now relegated to fewer than 27 million acres of those lands (where they are still vastly outnumbered by livestock). Over the years, the BLM has continued to reduce the acreage available to wild horses and burros; over 20 million acres of designated habitat for wild equines have been revoked since passage of the 1971 law.