 |
RE: [RC] [RC] natural horse wormers? - Smith, DaveEric: Ed gave a very good overview of the history of the horse in the America's. I would only add that the horse evolved in North America and recent fossil discoveries in Alaska prove it was essentially a modern horse when it went extinct here -- most likely at the hands of early Asian hunters spreading into the New World. The question of the level of evolution and development of the North American horse when it was eliminated by man is politically important in that there are those of us who believe that the reintroduction of the modern horse was simply a return of an animal to its birthplace -- along the lines of the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone Park. Unfortunately, federal guidelines disagree. Under federal law, the wild horses of the west are considered "feral". As feral animals, they are restricted from most federal and state parks -- even though there is overwhelming evidence that they had once lived and thrived in many of these sites. In fact, California State Parks recently removed 40 wild horses from the Anza Borrego Desert State Park under the argument that as "feral" animals, they had no right to be there. If the designation of "feral" were removed, federal and state land management agencies would have to treat mustangs like they treat elk, deer or buffalo and the legal range of wild horses would increase dramatically. As to whether these horses, after nearly five centuries of running free in the west (with continuous additions of new stock), can be considered "wild," I simply invite you to try to get close enough to photograph one. These are wild animals in every sense of the term. Their populations increase and decrease in natural cycles that follow drought and good rain years. If you are interested in America's wild horses, I highly recommend the documentary "Cloud". After viewing that film, you will have no doubt that the mustang is as wild as the antelope, bear and deer. -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Eric Rueter Sent: Tuesday, April 10, 2007 3:14 PM To: rides2far@xxxxxxxx Cc: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: [RC] [RC] natural horse wormers? What do you (the collective you) consider a horse's "natural environment"? I know that I have always tended (without really putting much thought into it) to consider the Western states as their natural environment. However, if I remember what I was taught in primary school (back in the days of chalk and slate), the horses that currently inhabit the western states are really ferral horses, and are not native to that area. So, Are there any truly "wild" horses left in the world, and what is their natural environment? Can the ferral horses (or any long term domesticated animal like cats and dogs) ever really be considered "wild/natural" after thousands of years of domestication? Eric Rueter 865-599-3594(C) 865-986-5966(H) 865-988-4134(W/F) On Tue, April 10, 2007 17:53, rides2far@xxxxxxxx said: there has never been any evidence that "natural" wormers, such as DE, actually work, or that natural antibiotics, such as echinacia, work either. I was very surprised to hear this from her. I think "Nature's wormer" is for the horse to be free range and not have to graze around his own manure. Since we invented fences, they're no longer in a "natural environment". Hello Ivermectin! :-) Angie =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
|