History books tell us that horses were first introduced to the Americas when they arrived with the Spanish Conquistadors and explorers. The beginning of mustang horse information comes from the log books kept by the leaders of these groups. The logs tell of the high number of horses that escaped or were released into the wild when the explorers returned home.
As they became more common on the free range Native American tribes quickly integrated them into their life style. They became the main source of transportation for hunting, fighting or simply moving camp to winter lodgings. They were also used for trading between tribes and individuals in the tribes.
The Native American tribes were the first to selectively breed horses to emphasize their strong points. The tribes who were the most active in breeding were the Comanche and the Shoshoni. They focused on size, strength, and speed. The first completely American horse is the Appaloosa and it was bred by the Nez Perce tribe. This breed is still highly sought after by horsemen today.
By the early nineteen hundreds there were over two million free range horses and burros in the Americas. The military viewed them as a free resource to be caught and trained for use by troops. Later they would be rounded up and slaughtered for their use as pet food. They were hunted from airplanes and poisoned by the thousands.
In the 1950s the Wild Horse Annie Act was passed and gave some protection to the animals. They could no longer be hunted by motor vehicles. They received very little protection from that point until in the 1970s when the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was passed. This new legislation was designed to protect any remaining herds from being hunted or harassed by all people.
This new law gave complete control of the animals to the Bureau of Land Management. They were to protect them and control the size of the herds on public lands. The largest herds can be found in Nevada high desert areas where they forage on plants that are not digestible to cattle. You will also find some herds in several North Western states that border Canada.
Because fossils have been found that show the ancestors of horses lived in the Americas there is some discussion as to what they should be called. One group wants them designated as feral animals because the basis of their history comes from domesticated animals while others consider them as wild horses that have as much right to public lands as the cattle they are said to displace. If designated feral they could be in danger of attempted eradication by ranchers who want the land for cattle.
The management of numbers of these horses is tasked to the Bureau of Land Management. It is their job to find ways of controlling the number of animals in specific areas designated public range lands. They are also responsible for gathering and reporting mustang horse information to the government offices they work for. They have created an adoption program that has been very successful. Interested parties can adopt one for a nominal fee so long as they keep it for at least one year. Within this program over three hundred thousand horses and burros have been adopted to private parties.
As they became more common on the free range Native American tribes quickly integrated them into their life style. They became the main source of transportation for hunting, fighting or simply moving camp to winter lodgings. They were also used for trading between tribes and individuals in the tribes.
The Native American tribes were the first to selectively breed horses to emphasize their strong points. The tribes who were the most active in breeding were the Comanche and the Shoshoni. They focused on size, strength, and speed. The first completely American horse is the Appaloosa and it was bred by the Nez Perce tribe. This breed is still highly sought after by horsemen today.
By the early nineteen hundreds there were over two million free range horses and burros in the Americas. The military viewed them as a free resource to be caught and trained for use by troops. Later they would be rounded up and slaughtered for their use as pet food. They were hunted from airplanes and poisoned by the thousands.
In the 1950s the Wild Horse Annie Act was passed and gave some protection to the animals. They could no longer be hunted by motor vehicles. They received very little protection from that point until in the 1970s when the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was passed. This new legislation was designed to protect any remaining herds from being hunted or harassed by all people.
This new law gave complete control of the animals to the Bureau of Land Management. They were to protect them and control the size of the herds on public lands. The largest herds can be found in Nevada high desert areas where they forage on plants that are not digestible to cattle. You will also find some herds in several North Western states that border Canada.
Because fossils have been found that show the ancestors of horses lived in the Americas there is some discussion as to what they should be called. One group wants them designated as feral animals because the basis of their history comes from domesticated animals while others consider them as wild horses that have as much right to public lands as the cattle they are said to displace. If designated feral they could be in danger of attempted eradication by ranchers who want the land for cattle.
The management of numbers of these horses is tasked to the Bureau of Land Management. It is their job to find ways of controlling the number of animals in specific areas designated public range lands. They are also responsible for gathering and reporting mustang horse information to the government offices they work for. They have created an adoption program that has been very successful. Interested parties can adopt one for a nominal fee so long as they keep it for at least one year. Within this program over three hundred thousand horses and burros have been adopted to private parties.
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