Lawsuit Filed to Halt BLM's Controversial Wild Horse Sterilization Experiments

Portland, OR (September 21, 2018)– An alliance of wild horse protection andanimal welfareadvocates has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Portland. The lawsuit aims to stop the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from conducting controversial surgical experiments to remove the ovaries of wild mares atBLM’s Wild Horse Corrals in Hines, Oregon. The plaintiffs cite violations of the U.S. Constitution and three federal laws.

Legal Action Against BLM

Thecomplaintwas filed on behalf of The Cloud Foundation (TCF) and its executive director Ginger Kathrens, who is also the Humane Advocate on theBLM’s National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board; the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) (AWHC); theAnimal WelfareInstitute (AWI); and wildlife photographer Carol Walker, who is also a Director of Field Documentation for the Wild Horse Freedom Federation, by Nick Lawton of the public interest law firm Meyer, Glitzenstein and Eubanks LLP.

Demand for Public Observation

A key demand of the legal action is the right to meaningful public observation and video recording of the experiments to improve public awareness of how theBLMis treating these federally protected wild horses and help the public informBLMthat this inhumane form of sterilization is not socially acceptable.

Concerns Over Inhumane Procedures

The legal action also alleges that the experiments, which involve performing an outdated surgical procedure called ovariectomy via colpotomy (a blind surgery in which a veterinarian inserts his arm into a mare’s abdominal cavity through an incision in the vaginal wall, manually locates the ovaries, then twists, severs, and removes them using a rod-like tool with a chain on the end) are unscientific, inhumane, and dangerous, and will result in pain, suffering, and potentially life-threatening complications for wild mares.

Video of the procedure, which has been called “barbaric” by equine veterinarians, can be seenhere.

BLM's Previous Attempts

This is theBLM’s second attempt to conduct research on the surgical removal of the ovaries of wild mares. In 2016, AWHC and TCF sued to uphold their First Amendment right to observe the experiments, a major objective of which was to determine the social acceptability of the procedure. TheBLMcanceled the experiments, which it intended to conduct in partnership with Oregon State University, instead of providing public observation.

In its renewed attempt to conduct the research this year, theBLMdropped the objective of determining social acceptability in order to avoid providing meaningful observation. Instead, theBLMis offering limited observation through the doorway of a room adjacent to the surgical suite on a first-come, first-served basis with no independent veterinary observation provided.

CSU Withdraws from Project

When the agency re-released the sterilization research proposal, theBLMannounced that it would be conducting the experiments in conjunction with Colorado State University (CSU). The University was to provide expertise in monitoring and assessing the welfare impacts of the surgeries on the wild mares. However, in August,CSU withdrew from the project. Instead of finding another academic institution with expertise in animal welfare monitoring and assessment, theBLMdropped CSU’s scientific observation of animal welfare from its study design.

BLM Moves Forward Despite Opposition

Then, on September 13, 2018, theBLMannouncedthat it was moving forward with the spay feasibility study despite opposition from the public and veterinarians, a warning from the National Academy of Sciences that the procedure was “inadvisable” due to health risks, and after two major research institutions – CSU and OSU – ended their affiliations with the project.

As soon as next month, theBLMplans to start rounding up 100 percent of the wild horses in the Warm Springs Herd Management Area in southeastern Oregon. An estimated 685 horses will be permanently removed and another 100 mares will be surgically sterilized. The experiments carry a high risk of mortality from bleeding, infection, and evisceration (fatal protrusion of bowel through the surgical incision) and will subject pregnant mares to risk of miscarriage and associated complications. (More details on theBLM’s plan can be foundhere.)

The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) (AWHC) is a national wild horseadvocacyorganization whose grassroots mission is endorsed by a coalition of more than 60 horseadvocacy, public interest, and conservation organizations. AWHC is dedicated to preserving the American wild horse in viable, free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage.

TheThe Cloud Foundation(TCF) is a Colorado 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation, that grew out of Executive Director Ginger Kathrens' knowledge and fear for wild horses in the West. TCF works to educate the public about the natural free-roaming behavior and social structure of wild horses and the threats to wild horse and burro society, to encourage the public to speak out for their protection on their home ranges, and to support only humane management measures. Kathrens serves as the Humane Advisor onBLM’sNational Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board.

TheAnimal Welfare Institute(AWI) is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to reducing animal suffering caused by people. AWI engages policymakers, scientists, industry, and the public to achieve better treatment of animals everywhere—in the laboratory, on the farm, in commerce, at home, andin the wild. For more information, visitwww.awionline.org.