17 Wild Horses Shot

[kgcayenne]

Don’t hunters require permits? Therefore, wouldn’t slaughtering animals sans permit and leaving them to rot be oh-so-slightly illegal?

It's not illegal to shoot horses because they aren't a native species. It actually happens quite often. We only hear about it when the rancher doesn't hide the bodies very well. This isn't France so people don't eat the meat though, so very poor taste and wasteful.

The province is in a bind here. They could make it illegal, but doing so would mean the province would have to cull horses themselves since horses are a non-native species and tend to overpopulate and then overgraze the fragile grasslands. They would rather ranchers and others do their dirty work from them.

Are you saying it IS legal to exterminate non-native animal species on crown land/property one does not own? I’m not certain that is totally allowed.

[Glacier]

Are you saying it IS legal to exterminate non-native animal species on crown land/property one does not own? I’m not certain that is totally allowed.

Yes on crown land, just as you're allowed to exterminate feral cows and pigs. No on someone else's land, at least not without their permission.

And I'm NOT recommending it at all, nor that it's ethical. Only that it's legal to hunt them, and doesn't need a tag. Same goes for the likes of wolves, raccoons, and skunks.

EDIT: I could very well be wrong. Doing some Googling shows that the province has allowed killing of feral swine, but it might be that horses have to be designated a pest, which I can't find evidence for. I did find this document from 1895 from Her Majesty Queen Victoria... https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/docu ... 1151300953

[Anonymous123]

They’re not “ wild horses”, they’re feral horses. That doesn’t make this any more acceptable.

[Fancy]

There's been an update:

Senseless, inhumane': Wild horses found shot dead in B.C. were scattered over vast area

https://www.castanet.net/news/Kamloops/ ... rea#416284

[Beerhunter341]

Any idea on the health of the horses before they were shot? I enjoy seeing the horses roaming around but they are a nuisance at times. Many have been hit by cars leaving Penticton. Some that I have seen, looked to be starving.

I'm not condoning this but it seems odd that someone would take on such a task. Almost seems like a culling of the heard.

[DarbyD]

Don't forget they were on Crown Land not Private land.

[Fancy]

Don't forget they were on Crown Land not Private land.

Ranchers can use crown land for grazing.

[DarbyD]

Researcher says there is a need for protections for wild horses:

https://www.castanet.net/news/Kamloops/ ... r-Kamloops
Wayne McCrory, who has been studying horses in the province for about two decades, says he was shocked to learn the animals had been shot to death.

Wild horses are an important part of Canadian heritage, First Nation culture and the ecosystem, and need legislation to protect them, he said in an interview on Wednesday.

"It's time to ramp up protection, both federal and provincial, in my opinion, to stop this senseless slaughter when some trigger-happy person just decides to take the law into his own hands," McCrory said. "In Canada, whether it's a species at risk, wild horses or old-growth (trees), it just takes a lot of political will on the Canadian public to see that happen."

[Fancy]

Wouldn't matter if they are protected or not - a trigger happy person doesn't abide by the rules.

[Glacier]

Wouldn't matter if they are protected or not - a trigger happy person doesn't abide by the rules.

I'm not so sure. It really depends who this was and what their motive was.

When the province opened up the wolf hunt three ranchers shot over 100 wolves. They didn't shoot any (or at least that I'm aware) when there was no open season on wolves. If you make something illegal you don't get rid of it entirely but you reduce how often it's done. Plus, you have tools to prosecute those who do it.

[Babba_not_Gump]

What if this was a native Indian who did it?
Consequences? Not likely any coming from the White man's justice system.

This will have happened on some tribe's territory which pretty well gives them carte Blanche. And our gun laws are less restrictive with them.

Just throwing this out there.

[DarbyD]

https://www.castanet.net/news/Kamloops/ ... r-suggests
BC Cattlemen's Association general manager Kevin Boon finds it hard to understand why someone would shoot and kill so many horses.

"To take out that many horses at one time or any wildlife wouldn't be typical," he said.

Cattlemen in B.C. are under stringent rules and regulations when it comes to disposing of any carcass to avoid attracting prey to the range.

"If there was some cause where they were really damaging or [the horse was] hurting, they would go to authorities and ask for help in removing these problem animals, so I don't see this being someone local," Boon said.

Boon said he doesn't want to speculate as to who killed the horses, but said he does not believe it was a rancher or farmer from the area

...
Many of the area's ranches are more than a century old and are generational farms or ranches. Boon said that means it's a tight-knit community that works together.

"They work and talk together with the First Nations in the area — they're their neighbours as well," he said.

[marvin gardens]

RCMP and the B,C. Conservation Service are investigating the killing of 17 wild horses near Wallachin, 65 km west of Kamloops.
First reported by the Tkemlups RCMP the horses are part of a much larger herd that roams up to north western B.C.
The animals are believed to be from a feral herd that originated in Russia.

[Glacier]

What if this was a native Indian who did it?

That is certainly a possibility. I know a native guy my brother went hunting with once. Never again because he shot at everything that moved. Coyotes, a bear, deer, grouse, etc. And just left them to rot except for the deer.

He got this terrible scumbag entitled attitude from his dad who is white.

But maybe these horses weren't shot by people at all.

A friend of mine went for a walk today in the Chilcotin grasslands and came across multiple dead horses that were killed by wolves.

[Fancy]

Horses were shot. There’s a huge difference between a wolf kill and a rifle kill.