US Government moves forward on Euthanizing over 45,000 Horses
Call for President Obama to halt massive slaughter
The horses are to be euthanized as the result of a decision made last week at a meeting of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)'s Horse and Burro Advisory Board in Nevada.
Over the last 20 years, the BLM has been rounding up and removing wild horses from federal lands to allow privately owned cattle to graze on the land. The move has caused a financial burden of keeping the horses alive in containment facilities. That cost was $49 million in 2015.
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) released a statement condemning the decision, expressing, “The decision of the BLM advisory board to recommend the destruction of the 45,000 wild horses currently in holding facilities is a complete abdication of responsibility for their care. The agency would not be in this situation but for their long term mismanagement. Alternatives to this proposal have been ignored for over 20 years.”
Petitioners have collected over 75,000 names and are asking President Obama to stop this massive slaughter and to come up with alternative measures to address the overflow of horses.