The most magical moment of summer 2018 - by far - was getting to visit a herd of horses on the plains in South Dakota. What can I say, I’m still a little girl at heart.
This summer we drove to South Dakota, on a road trip to Eagle Butte to see @ukuleletutorial’s goddaughter have her Lakota naming ceremony as part of pow wow. While we were there, the family took us up on the plains to visit their herd of horses - nearly 100 head all told!
The family runs about 100 acres of land, creating a beautiful swathe of free range for these beauties.
While some are broke for saddle riding, most of these friends are relatively untamed and used as breeding stock for future race or rodeo horses. Not all horsemen are the same - and this family clearly had a unique connection to these beautiful animals and a wonderful way of seeing their role as their caretakers and protectors.
Imagine my utter delight to come across this friendly mama and her baby!
I was raised around horses, took riding lessons, hopped along a few cattle drives, and generally have always had a love and appreciation for ponies of all sorts. Life has gotten in the way of my love affair with horses - city living is not exactly conducive to horsemanship - and getting up close and personal with these friends filled places in my heart that have been empty for awhile.
Oh, look! A nose bump. <3
Another nose bump - this time from a bigger nose.
Getting to see horses running wild across open plains is amazing.
These are the kinds of shots I see in movies, but easily forget exist in real life. I wish I could have lived in the times when horses roamed our country freely in mass quantities! While some still do, of course there aren’t as many as there once were. Today, there are about 75,000 wild horses and burro in the US, with access to 26.9 million acres of public land across 10 states.
While these horses are protected on native land by a wonderful family, not all horses are so lucky.
Unfortunately, wild horses in the US have systemically been eliminated from national lands by our government. The American Wild Horse Campaign cites that the government currently allows 16,300-27,000 horses and burro roam, while they allow about 727,000 cattle to range on public land. However, as stated above, there are currently about 75,000 horses on the range, rather than the government quota. This issue is deeply tied to agriculture and ranching practices within rural areas - where many say that wild horse overpopulation is the root cause of ongoing range damage.
Each year, thousands of wild horses and burro are picked up and taken to government holding facilities where they are at a high risk of slaughter. A Nat Geo article stated the US has about 45,000 wild horses in holding pens.
This is a horrible truth, and I’m sorry to share it in the midst of these beautiful, happy pictures. I guess I’m always thinking about the complexity of what I’m seeing - and I can’t help but remember that these horses have their freedom only because of Native protections. Many activists are calling for the government to try out different approaches, including PZP, a vaccine that is 90% effective at reducing wild horse fertility. While we still wouldn’t get to see massive herds of horses roaming, we would see more humane treatment of those who currently exist.
Other options for wild horse management include neutering:
Check out this Nat Geo article about the the Future of America’s Wild Horses!
Although millions of dogs and cats are spayed and neutered annually, the BLM receives harsh criticism and lawsuits from activist groups when they try to conduct research or spay mares. If permanent sterilization became an option, it would allow the horses to live out their lives in the wild as a non-breeding population rather than in a holding pen.
A final option is adoption or rescue services.
There are already many organizations working to rescue and rehome wild horses. In fact, our friends here in South Dakota are hoping to work within their tribe and local connections to turn this 100 acres into a preserve for wild horses one day. It’s a beautiful dream that I can only hope comes true! Unfortunately, currently only about 2500 horses are adopted each year, while 10,000 are born so this is not a fix-all solution. Would you ever consider adopting a wild horse?
Despite all the complexity around wild horses in America - they are one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen.
It also didn’t hurt that we had such a beautiful sunny day to visit, that blue sky was an incredible backdrop for a remarkably special experience.
And that’s what I have to share with you today! What’s your favorite horse-related experience?
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BIG LOVE, Lily
So beautiful and so lucky to experience that @lilyraabe
Thank you so much for stopping by to check this out and support. As always, I appreciate it. :)
These horses are so cool, i must confess i am quite scared from horses if i see them near to me, also if my mum ride them sometimes i am still scared of them but your photos are really cool !
Thank you so much for checking out the pics - they are really really big, haha, I was reminded of that this summer.
Whoa! That's an epic experience, thanks for sharing.
Thanks for checking it out!
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How cool to find the wild horses and getting some awesome shots
Thanks for checking it out - it was definitely awesome. :)
I love this post ;)
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Hey @archisteem, it would be my honor to be included, thanks so much for considering me. :) And I’ll try out the tag! Added it to this post.
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Did you know that in Alberta, there are actual wild horses? There are likely 100 - 300 depending (it fluctuates as they are wild). They are descendants of settler horses that broke free in the 17 or 1800's. It is crazy. They are hard to spot, but my brother has seen a few running across the highway like a deer would.
Oh wow, I had no idea! That’s such a cool thing to know - and also interesting that you always have a chance of spotting them. Good for them for surviving all this time! Thanks for stopping by. :)
I guess they were wild for a long time before they were tamed and domesticated. They certainly can survive in the wild.
Totally - well, I’ll be sure to keep an eye out if I’m ever there! :)
So many beautiful horses, so much open space - it's the stuff that my dreams are made of, living in a crowded city!
Nice post and very good images!
Thanks so much - very much a dreamy situation for sure. Glad you enjoyed!
Lovely photos of the horses here and great you got to see them up close and personal. I think it sounds like you need to be back out in the wild yourself with your sombre experiences of being in the city?
It's sad to hear about the situation with the wild horses though, hope that a decent solution comes out of it to stop so many being slaughtered.
Living in Seattle keeps me close enough - as much as I love horses I love theatre and the work I do more - everything’s a trade off I guess, but how lucky to get to spend time in this space!! Appreciate you stopping by to support! :)
Wild horses should roam free, region would not be the same without them.
What has changed to create excessive numbers now a burden, wildlife that roamed the area mountain lions, wolves, coyotes and even bears which are no longer there, or is it only human interference?
Always enjoy animals free the way they should be, thanks for your additional information about wild horses @lilyraabe
Photography and wild horses absolutely stunning, #steemitbloggers
It’s primarily human interference, specifically around agriculture (farming/ranching). The reason folks are upset about overpopulation is because it’s messing up the grazing land that 800,000 cows use every summer. We’re prioritizing beef over horses, sadly.
Thanks for stopping by to check it out, glad you enjoyed the pictures!
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Oh my horses are just so beautiful and strong and you can just tell they are smart and noble by looking at them :) This is such a cool post
Thanks so much for checking it out, glad you enjoyed the pics. They are superrrr smart creatures, and definitely deserve protections to keep them a part of our country’s history and present reality.
beautiful post so sorry to hear about horses being held in holding place when they are born to be free.
I know, it’s sad, right? But also yes - they are so beautiful!
We were driving through Oklahoma once and saw hundreds in a field in the distance. Beautiful, wild, free spirits.
Wow, that sounds like an amazing sight. Hope you got a picture!
I don't think we did as it went by fast .. we were traveling in a rig in Indian country and figured out later those were wild horses. I will ask him about it. It was 4 or 5 years ago.
Well, it makes for a great memory and story nonetheless. :) See you around!
yes.. and to know they are out there is wonderful
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Oh neat! Thank you so much for letting me know and for the feature, I appreciate it. :)
@lilyraabe simply an AWEFILLED sight, the majesty of those beautiful horses galloping freely on those plains... ❤
Yeah I feel you it's super expensive to ride horses in my city :/
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Thanks for checking it out - ya, riding in the city is def not the same - a whole different world of horsemanship really. Anyways, glad you enjoyed this post, see you around and thanks for the support.
They are such beautiful creatures! I love them. I have never ridden a horse...
You took great photos. They are so crisp and beautifully colored. I love the sky as well. You've been very lucky with the weather :)
Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so very much for checking it out - we were def lucky with the weather and just the overall experience. Appreciate your support.
Ilove them, we have them here too. They are soo peaceful. Lovely pictures!
Oh awesome! Where is “here” for you so I can come to find your horses? Haha.
Are they really wild or belong to someone but living in the wild for a while @lilyraabe?, it really nice to see those horse in the way they live their life. #steemitbloggers
Hey! These ones are technically owned by this family, who allows them to run wild on their land most of the time. A few of them are broken for saddle or racing, but most of them get to roam. There’s also over 70,000 truly wild horses roaming the country too. :)
That baby horse and the mom were the cutest!
It's a very complex issue, but slaughter is definitely the worst solution ever! Rescue farms and services are somehow reliable and maybe their breeding can be regulated.
I guess I would feel guilty adopting a wild horse, because I would drag them away from home.
Thanks for checking it out! Isn’t that baby adorable?!
It is complex - but I just don’t think slaughter should be an option. I wish that could be taken off the table entirely. Appreciate you stopping by to comment. :)
That's so awesome! I bet that was such a cool experience. Those horses are beautiful!
Thanks so much for stopping to check it out, the horses were utterly magical!
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This is a beautifully written article.
I would love to adopt a mustang from the BLM. The problem is I really don't have the skills to train one. But I'm jealous of your opportunity to see these horses. :) <3
Thank you so much for stopping by to check it out!! <3 I would also not be sure what to do with an adopted mustang - but it sure would be cool in theory!!
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How fortunate that you were able to witness this magnificent wild herd. I do hope they will be able to turn that 100 acres into a preserve for them. It just breaks my heart to hear that wild horses are being held in holding pens and that many would be slaughtered.
I had thought of adopting a wild horse at one time but I wasn't really set up for it and the logistics was just to much.
Up where I live now we have one of the only free ranging herds of bison and it's wonderful to see them in the wild. Thanks for sharing!