The U.S. government is dragging wild horses away from Nevada, using helicopters to collect 2,500 mustangs from public and private lands in an effort to control the wild herds' population sizes.
Animal advocates say the so-called "gathers" are unnecessary and inhumane, arguing that helicopters risk injuring the horses and wintertime roundups expose them to respiratory disease.
"We are very, very disappointed this is happening under the Obama administration," says a program director of one conservation group that's suing to stop the roundups. "This will devastate the herd and have a devastating impact on the horses left behind."
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management disagrees, contending that mustang populations are growing faster than Western lands can support.
"Herd sizes double about every four years," a BLM spokesman says. "To put a moratorium on gathers would be untenable."
A contractor transports the horses to corrals using two helicopters under BLM supervision, the agency said. The animals are then trucked to Fallon, Nev., for immunizations and veterinary care.
The BLM spokesman said officials would not know how many horses were captured on Monday until later this week. She said the agency would probably search the mountain range for one week to 10 days -- with a goal of capturing 250 mustangs -- before moving on to the next of five areas.
Long-term plans call for the mustangs to be put up for adoption or sent to holding facilities in the Midwest. The agency said a facility in Reno was full of adoptable horses, making it unclear when new animals could be housed pending adoption.
The BLM already manages more than 30,000 mustangs, and while the agency offers its surplus horses for adoption, most facilities that hold adoptable horses are already full.
In addition to the mustangs' ecological role, critics of the roundups — including celebrities such as singer Sheryl Crow and actor Viggo Mortensen — point to ethical issues in the operation itself.
"It's a brutal process no matter how they do it," activist Elyse Gardner tells the LA Times. "Legs get broken, horses get sick, foals can't keep up and get separated from their mothers."
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Source: newsroom - meattradenewsdaily.co.uk
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