Alberta’s wild horses are once again being targeted by the province and, once again, it’s causing concern.

“What’s the problem? Why do horses have such burr under the saddle?” said Darrell Glover, who has led the Help Alberta Wildies Society (HAWS) since 2014.

Ten years ago, the province had 880 wild horses.

In 2024, there would be 1,478.

At the time, the cull was halted after strong opposition.

Today, the province has new plans to manage the population.

Alberta’s wild horses are once again being targeted by the province and it’s once again causing concern. (Image courtesy of Darrell Glover)

“There is no logging taking place,” said Forests and Parks Minister Todd Loewen.

This time, the province says no horses will be killed – instead some will be given birth control and others will be adopted.

Glover has rescued a few abandoned foals, but says not all wild horses are adoptable and a reduction in the population could lead to their demise.

“By removing their bloodlines, it’s essentially a cull anyway,” Glover said.

The province says wild horses are destroying land.

“Wild horses are a factor, like other things,” Loewen said.

Wild horse researchers disagree.

“It’s not based on science,” said Glover, who has been keeping records of the population and its environmental impacts for 10 years.

Alberta’s wild horses are once again being targeted by the province and it’s once again causing concern. (Image courtesy of Darrell Glover)

“(Wild horses) are part of the ecosystem and they provide benefits to the ecosystem,” wildlife biologist Wayne McCrory said.

McCrory’s latest report follows one he wrote in 2015, revealing the lack of evidence supporting a cull.

Wild horses caused very little damage to the land, according to this report.

The study found that most of the damage was caused by factors such as clear-cutting, oil and gas development, off-road vehicles and livestock.

“(The province) should be focused on restructuring health from cumulative effects, not just scapegoating wild horses,” McCrory said.

Alberta’s wild horses are once again being targeted by the province and it’s once again causing concern. (Image courtesy of Darrell Glover)

The minister says he consulted a committee which accepted the plan once the horse population reached a certain threshold.

“Everyone on the committee knew exactly how the numbers were going to be calculated,” Loewen said.

Some members of this committee disagree.

“There’s a lot of disagreement,” Glover said.

Glover and McCrory say bears and cougars, the elements and humans are already diminishing the population and Alberta should pass legislation to protect its wild horses.

“Once they’re gone, you won’t be able to replace this unique species,” Glover said.

The province has not said when it might implement population control plans.

Committee members suspect that could happen this winter.