In my pre-internet youth, we only had 3 TV stations that we could watch. And many of the daytime and early evening movies and TV had cowboy themes. Films like Hombre (1967) with Paul Newman offered a view of the wild horse as a symbol of the West. Books, advertising, music and children’s toys as well as comic books like Tomahawk and Red Ryder featured wild horses. And then there was TV – Bonanza, Have Gun-Will Travel, and (one of my favorites) Gunsmoke. Over and over in popular culture, we have seen images of mustangs running free. I grew up horse-crazy but never questioned where horses originated. Never once crossed my mind. Never thought to ask.

Driving through Washington State, my husband and I passed a lasting tribute to the American Mustangs at the Wild Horses Monument on a bluff overlooking the Columbia River off I-90. It is a life-size sculpture designed and created by the Native American Chewelah Sculptor David Govedare. He called it “Grandfather Cuts Loose the Ponies” and it features 15 horses running free, manes and tails blowing in the wind.

In the 1500s, the Spanish brought mustangs when they came to America as conquerors. The name Mustang comes from the Spanish word ‘mesteno’ or “monstenco” meaning wild or stray. These horses are smaller than the European breeds and were built to withstand running, weather and threats to survival that they faced when running free. Not only do they possess speed, but also adaptability. These were the horses that changed the lives of the Native Americans living in or near the Great Plains. Horses allowed Native Americans to hunt buffalo and trade buffalo meat for needed supplies as well as improve the range of their camps. Horses became a symbol of wealth. The cultural importance of wild horses cannot be overstated. They have become synonymous with cowboy, the pioneer and the spirit of exploration and adventure.

Mustangs have only a handful of natural predators and they have the ability to multiply readily. Herds can double in size every 4-5 years. In 1918, their population reached an all-time high of around 2 million mustangs roaming over North America. Since there are sheep and cattle farmers who utilized public lands for grazing their livestock, the war against the free roaming mustangs began. These farmers felt that the forage should be reserved for their animals. As people started settling the west, they brought more livestock with them, increasing the need for forage, According to the Journal of Wildlife Management, there are now around 225,000 free-roaming horses and burros in the US today spread all over the west. Somewhere around 60,000-83,000 of these wild horses are currently stockpiled in long-term holding facilities across the country with no place to go. As more and more mustangs are captured and placed into captivity, the pressure to sell them for slaughter grows.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) states “The Bureau of Land Management manages and protects wild horses and burros on 26.9 million acres of public lands across 10 Western states as part of its mission to administer public lands for a variety of uses. The Wild Horse and Burro Program's goal is to manage healthy wild horses and burros on healthy public rangelands.” At one time, you could adopt a mustang for a small fee ($100-$200). But BLM needed to move mustangs and burros out faster. So they created the Adoption Incentive Program (AIP) in 2019 which offered a $1000 fee paid to people who would adopt a wild mustang or burro. The first $500 would be paid after the new owner had the horse for 6 months. The second $500 and title to the animal would be given to the new owner 12 months after the initial adoption. While the BLM requires new owners to provide good homes, that doesn’t always happen. The BLM has no authority to enforce these requirements.
According to investigative journalist Dave Phillips of the New York Times (Updated June 23, 2023), “truckloads of horses were dumped at slaughter auctions soon after their “adopters” got the federal money” and the certificate of ownership. Selling to the slaughterhouses would bring in an addition fee – generally in the $200-$500 range per animal. “People who dump at (slaughterhouse) auctions are free to adopt and get paid again”. They are not motivated to give these animals any sort of good, basic care or feed. Burros are not exempt from the slaughter. Many mustangs and burros are severely abused. Ejiao (pronounced uh-jee-ow) is a gel made from boiling donkey skins and is used in traditional Chinese medicine, cosmetics and beauty products. There is an international trade in donkey and burro skins. Slaughter methods are often unregulated, inhumane and unsanitary.
BLM brings mustangs to all state (including TN) for adoption. The nearest slaughter auction house (where “adopted” animals can be dumped) is in Sneedville.
According to the ASPCA, the last three U.S. slaughterhouses—two in Texas and one in Illinois, all foreign-owned—were shuttered in 2007. American horses are now trucked across our borders to Canada or Mexico where such slaughter is allowed. Horses bound for slaughter (which may include pregnant mares, foals and horses who are injured or blind) are commonly and legally shipped more than 24 hours at a time in crowded trucks without food, water or rest. Horse slaughter is not euthanasia. It is often not humane slaughter.
The Wild Horse Program is in crisis. The cost of rounding up the mustangs using helicopters, in addition to the cost of storing and feeding, them is extraordinary. The herds are growing faster than they can be rounded up. As the herds grow, forage and grasses are depleted. Scientific advisors have warned BLM to “move away from roundups and control populations through fertility drugs delivered by darts and other management tools”, but that has not happened yet.
What IS currently working to lower USDA export numbers into Mexico is 1) the general public becoming aware of this situation and 2) helping by working with rescues by adopting, fostering, attending auctions, and sharing on social media .

For more information on the plight of the American Mustang, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UXrgc614Is