El2-Boarder & Trainer, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 10, 2003
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Penn State Researchers Working On
Contraception For Wild Horses
UNIVERSITY PARK
(Centre Co.) It’s a long way
in terms of miles, habitat
and species from domesti
cated ponies in the verdant
meadows of central Pennsyl
vania to wild mustangs in the
parched high deserts of Arizo
na, California, Nevada, New
Mexico and Wyoming, but re
search under way in Penn
State’s College of Agricultural
Sciences is bringing them
closer together.
Researchers hope that con
traception methods that seem
to work in a small herd of po
nies kept in a lush, partially
wooded pasture at the Penn
State Horse Farm not far from
Beaver Stadium can be ap
plied to hundreds of thou
sands of wild horses out West
where overpopulation is
straining habitats and wildlife
management budgets.
“A pony is considered to be
any horse that is less than 14.2
hands (58 inches) high,” ex
plains Nancy Diehl, assistant
professor of equine science.
“Actually, ponies are a lot
closer in size to the mustangs
than the 1,200-pound quarter
horses we have at Penn State.
It makes sense to do our re
search with ponies. We cur
rently have a herd of 14 po
nies 13 mares and a
stallion.”
Most contraception work
with wildlife and that is
what the wild horses of the
West are considered has
been done using vaccines,
according to Diehl. Penn State
Distinguished Professor Gary
Killian, who has done exten
sive contraception research
with white-tailed deer, has
teamed on the pony project
with Diehl, whose expertise is
horse behavior.
“We are inserting intraute
rine devices (IUDs) very simi
lar to the ones that prove so
effective in preventing human
pregnancies,” says Diehl, who
is a veterinarian. “We are try
ing this new approach because
the vaccines only seem to pre
vent pregnancies for a year or
so. This appears to be a long
er-lasting, more effective
method of dealing with wild
horse overpopulation in the
West.”
Under federal law, wild
Wood
Shavings
Pine Bales
3.25 cu. ft.
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horses are managed different
ly than any other wild mam
mals whose numbers become a
problem. The Wild Free-
Roaming Horses and Burros
Act of 1971, as amended in
1976, prohibits the killing or
slaughter of any wild horses or
burros. They can be collected
for adoption by private citi
zens and thousands annual
ly are but that program is
limited by the difficulty and
unpredictability of the taming
process.
“The reality is that not
nearly enough wild horses are
adopted to control the wild
populations, and many west
ern states now collect thou
sands of the animals and keep
them in holding facilities that
are humane, but crowded and
demoralizing to the captive
horses,” says Diehl, who jour
neyed to the Reno, Nev., area
last year to assess the situation
firsthand.
“From a behavioral stand
point, the holding facilities are
disasters for the horses they
hold. The states are doing the
best they can, but the horses
collected can never be released
back into the wild, and most
are there for as long as they
live.”
The lUD approach is prom
ising, but Diehl and Killian
know that inserting them in
wild horses won’t be as easy as
with domestic ponies.
“The ponies are docile and
just stand there,” says Diehl.
“With the wild mustangs, they
would have to be inserted as
part of a program that involv
es capturing and adminis
tering anesthesia to take blood
samples, etc. We are working
with the state wildlife agency
in Nevada, and professor Kill
ian went to the West and in
serted IUDs in IS captured
mustangs last year.
“They are presently being
monitored. Officials in the
state agencies seem to be en
couraged by methods we are
developing. We are working
closely with Nevada’s state
veterinarian and researchers
at the National Wildlife Re
search Center in Fort Collins,
Colo., who are collaborating
in the study.
Wild horses are reproduc
ing at an alarming rate. Wild-
life management officials are
concerned because the herds
have been increasing by 15 to
20 percent per year, doubling
their population every four
years.
Before the federal protec
tion was passed, wild horses
were victims of ruthless and
indiscriminate slaughter for
commercial purposes and
their numbers plummeted.
Although horses evolved in
North America, no one is sure
why they didn’t exist on this
continent at the time of Euro
pean exploration.
Spanish explorers reintro
duced horses to North Ameri
ca beginning in the late 15th
century, and Native Ameri
cans helped spread horses
throughout the Great Plains
and the West. Until as recent
ly as the mid-20th century,
horses continued to be re
leased onto public lands by the
U.S. cavalry, farmers, ranch
ers and miners.
For Diehl, it won’t be
enough to learn that the IUDs
just prevent pregnancy. She
must be certain they don’t
wreck the wild horses’ social
structure. “There are many
questions to be answered,” she
says. “We want to know that
they stay in and work under
natural breeding conditions.
We need to know that they
are safe for the horses. We are
monitoring the ponies really
closely, and the IUDs so far
are preventing pregnancies.
We won’t be able to do that
with the wild mustangs.
“But we also want to be
sure they won’t effect their
normal behavior,” she adds.
“Wild horses have a very im
portant social structure that is
made up of small groups con
sisting of a stallion and a
harem of mares. We want to
see the affects of mares not
getting pregnant. There no
doubt will be more wear and
tear on the stallions. We will
be monitoring their behavior
as well as their physiology.
We must be sure not to alter
the harem structure, because
if we change the harem
structure, we change
wild horses as we know
them.”
Haflinger Ponies
(Continued from Page Ell)
sound mind and sound body
animals.”
They begin breeding mares
mid February through June.
Ideally the foals would be
bom early in the year so they
are strong and ready for the
winter, besides being larger
more filled out in the show
ring than their younger coun
terparts.
Last year the farm’s entire
foal crop was sold off of the
farm to other Haflinger
breeders but also first-time
buyers. Allebach especially
enjoys introducing new buy
ers to the breed, and works
hard to match ponies with
buyers.
“When somebody walks
onto the farm, we ask a lot of
questions about their goals,
what they want to do with the
pony, or how it will be housed
before we tell them what is for
sale,” he said.
In 1996, when they began
work on the Haflinger farm,
the animals were very expen
sive, according to Allebach.
“The market has settled
out, but they’re still not ex
tremely cheap,” he said.
“Some are still expensive, but
they are also priced so people
can buy for normal pleasure
animals.”
A gelding sold as a pleasure
animal will bring a few thou
sand and “a good breeding
mare will start up from
there,” he said.
A mature breeding mare
can be $5,000 and up, and
“great mares will be $lO,OOO
and over.” Stallions are in the
same bracket.
“The American market is
different than the European
market,” he said. “Americans
want a blaze face but that’s
gradually getting to be less
important. Also, Americans
like white manes and tails.”
As time goes on, the copper
color is becoming more popu
lar, according to Allebach.
“The foals can be bom one
color but that changes a lot,”
he said.
Show ring success helped
Allebach decide to ship
semen, which the farm sells
for $5OO, all over the U.S.
The farm’s primary sire,
“Musketeer,” nicknamed
“Turbo,” is a current national
lod e stone
farm
JOHN MARTIN / JOCELYN MARTIN
Hunter / Jumpers
iJnitxaation
Plaining
JS&ourincj
champion.
The Show Ring
The show circuit has tested
and proved the breeding deci
sions made on the farm.
“We’ve shown at the nation
al show six years since we’ve
started and had six grand
champion stallions with four
different stallions,” according
to Allebach.
In addition, for three years
they also had the reserve
champion stallion.
The farm’s Haflingers com
pete in the show ring from Au
gust through November.
“We don’t want to interrupt
our family life or the day-to
day raising of ponies,” he said.
“We want it (exhibiting po
nies) to complement, not take
over what we do we breed
and raise ponies, and provide
customer support.”
Allebach is joined by his
wife, Melissa, who also helps
on the farm, along with their
sons Jared, 13; Jesse, 11; and
Abraham, 3.
For the Haflinger breed, the
U.S. and Canada conduct both
draft and light type shows. In
the draft classes, the ponies are
shown in halter and hitch
classes and are judged on hav
ing high-headed, high-step
ping style.
In the light classes, the po
nies are shown in halter or
pleasure driving and should
look relaxed, “just like a Sun
day afternoon drive,” he said.
Turbo’s versatility allows
the stallion to be shown in both
classes, as Allebach changes
the animal’s shoes and Melissa
takes out the braids so the
pony can transition from the
draft show to the pleasure
classes.
Allebach, who grew up
around draft horses, trans
ferred his knowledge to
judging Haflingers. “I started
doing Haflinger shows because
they’re shown like draft
horses,” said Allebach.
He judged the national
show, which travels to a differ
ent state each year, in 1992.
It was in the show circuit
that he met Red Deibler, who
asked Allebach to help him get
started with owning several
animals.
In addition to managing the
Haflinger operation, he also
helps ms father with the fami
ly’s nearby Percheron farm.
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