February 21, 2003

By Roni Bell Sylvester wpduck@msn.com or 970-284-6874

P.O. Box 155

La Salle, Colorado 80645

Feral or ferine: Gone wild -- used to describe animals or plants that live or grow in the wild after having been domestically reared or cultivated.

Once upon a time, many settlers used horses to help tame their lands.

Although these horses were domestic, many spent their non-working days grazing on vast unfenced pastures, until they roamed beyond the call.

And like a parentless child, they eventually became feral, and procreated mightily.

One day some snake oil salesmen, looking for something new to promote, noticed them. They speculated that -- if packaged and marketed creatively -- these herds could be moneymakers.

So, crafting a romantic perception around these horses, embellishing them with claims of being rare, exotic, etc., they named them "wild" and took the concept to town.

Selling their "wild" horse product over and over, proved indeed to be their good horse to ride.

Taking some of their newly reaped riches, they filed lawsuits, which forced the government into agreements to protect these alleged "wild" horses -- further insuring their opportunity to continue selling the erroneous perceptions -- and ensuring that their product would continue to be available to sell!

With a nonprofit status, they kept most monies from the sales.

The way this odd government-promoter partnership appears structured, the weight of all the work -- plus fiduciary responsibility of boarding feral horses -- falls solely upon the government, and private and public lands usage owners.

The feral horses got posters of themselves.

Now, this arrangement might have worked, if the ones paying the bills were rightfully allowed to exercise needed actions such as: administer birth control, cull or move the feral horses.

But the promoters stopped such handling by suing on each point.

By paralyzing all sensible handling of these horses, the ferine horse promoters could be directly responsible for the rapid depletion of resources essential to many living things.

Some examples:

livestock, wildlife, and overpopulated feral horses, stressed from competing for forage and water during this drought;

taxpayer costs generated by Department of the Interior's burden of unjust suits and complaints;

and most tragic of all,

the starvation of the feral horses.

This shabby treatment of feral horses by their promoters, should be stopped.

Immediately.

A person who truly loves something, is a benevolent, responsible caretaker.

Some ideas on solutions:

Properly and accurately refer to said horses henceforth, as "feral, or ferine."

Identify those individuals who have stated interest in keeping feral horses, and bind them as "contracted keeper" of a feral horse, imposing a nonrefundable deposit, and thereon monthly boarding fees -- as mandatory.

A one-month default by contracted keeper on monthly payment would cause immediate termination of contract and all rights to handle said horse would revert -- wholly and privately -- to the government and the private and public land usage owners, where the horse resided.