Brandon Mark’s letter (June 22) misses the “mark” by criticizing animal protection organizations for supporting a draft proposal that ensures the humane management of Utah’s wild horses, but Mr. Mark does not provide a feasible alternative.
The Bureau of Land Management has removed over 270,000 wild horses from our public lands since 1971. The agency continues to remove horses and put them in government holding facilities where there are currently over 47,000 animals; that’s clearly not a sustainable, long-term strategy. Political pressure from pro-slaughter proponents is building apace for the BLM to sell wild horses to slaughter and initiate mass killing programs.
An innovative, humane and forward-thinking solution is needed, and animal welfare organizations have offered one that will correct decades of BLM mismanagement and set the agency on the path to humane and sustainable management.
Contrary to Mark’s claims, the draft proposal aims to phase out the use of large-scale removals in 10 years and require the BLM to use humane and effective fertility control as its main management tool. This comprehensive and nonlethal program is a win-win for America’s wild horses and burros and the only viable solution given political realities.
Sundays Hunt (Utah State Director, the Humane Society of the United States)
Holladay