Hello and Happy Monday!
It has been a busy couple of weeks and a lot has happened. Many of you have asked questions and we want to take some time to both explain things further and answer some of the questions we have received regarding the current state legislation.
First, I want to go back to the 2023 North Dakota Legislative Session. Remember, our ND legislators are only in session, once every 2 years, for 80 days.
In 2023, the North Dakota legislators unanimously passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 4014 (SCR 4014). This was a resolution asking our federal legislators to help make sure that the wild horses in Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s South Unit and the longhorn cattle in the North Unit remain in the park.
This was a direct result of Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s announcement in December of 2022 where they stated that they would be eliminating ALL the wild horses and longhorn cattle from the park’s boundaries.
When the park made that announcement, our legislators were getting ready for their session. Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates worked hard with our legislators to draft a resolution, as well as find sponsors and co-sponsors for the resolution. At the time, our goal was simply to get our state legislators to ask our federal delegates for their help to get the park to allow the horses and longhorn cattle to remain in the park.
First, I want to say that a resolution is simply a request. There is nothing to enforce – this is not a law. From the state’s website:
”Resolutions propose constitutional amendments, express opinions, request actions, congratulate, or console. Resolutions do not have the effect of law. Resolutions are the vehicles used to propose constitutional amendments for voter consideration. Resolutions are used to request an interim study by the Legislative Management on a specific subject. Resolutions frequently express legislative opinion to Congress or other federal offices with regard to federal programs or policies.”
Second, many people often ask why the longhorn cattle were included.
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is in the western part of the state and is the #1 tourist attraction in our state. The park is divided into the South Unit, where the horses reside, the North Unit, where the longhorn cattle reside and the Elkhorn Ranch site. The longhorn cattle are a tourist attraction in the North Unit and for the towns surrounding the park, similar to the way the horses are a tourist attraction in the South Unit and for the towns that surround that park. The two parks are not connected in any way and there is over a 2-hour drive from one park to the other.
Since Theodore Roosevelt National Park was established to preserve the history of President Theodore Roosevelt’s time in North Dakota, that history includes BOTH the wild horses and the longhorn cattle. Both have been allowed to remain in the park since the parks were fenced in 1947, and have been revered as a “historical and cultural” resource by Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
For legislators on the western side of the state, the longhorns are just as important to their constituents as the horses are to our local legislators. It gave strength to the resolution to combine the two, especially because the park listed both in their Environmental Assessment. This was one answer to the park’s newly released document that addressed both.
SCR 4014 is STILL in effect.
As we heard from several of our legislators during committee and senate floor hearings, there continue to be significant concerns about the management of the wild horses – specifically the concerns about sterilization with GonaCon.
That is why during the 2025 North Dakota Legislative Session, Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates once again drafted legislation and contacted our legislators to find sponsors and co-sponsors for SCR 4006.
SCR 4006 is a resolution asking for federal protection for the wild horses of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Please note the difference from SCR 4014. We are no longer simply asking for the horses to remain in the park, we are asking for federal protection to help preserve and protect this herd.
SCR 4006 is being brought before the legislators because, as the resolution states:
“there are significant concerns regarding the management of the wild horse herd by Theodore Roosevelt National Park and the long-term health and preservation of the herd”
What are some of those “significant concerns”?
The #1 concern that Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates has is the aggressive use of GonaCon on this herd. We are more than capable of reading scientific papers on this subject. We have also spoken with Dr. Dan Baker from Colorado State University, since he was the head researcher on this experiment. You can watch that video on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/kdLHvgVmIuw
We also hosted Ginger Fedak during our virtual summit to discuss not only GonaCon, but also PZP. You can watch that video on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/H0iigWwM9WE
As part of our preparation for our testimony for SB 2331 (which we will talk about tomorrow) we asked subject matter experts to speak to the committee.
Erik Molvar, Executive Director of Western Watersheds Project (WWP) who is also a wildlife biologist, was one of the subject matter experts we contacted to testify.
I want to note here that WWP does NOT take a stance on wild horse management. Their concerns about the TRNP wild horses have to do with management practices that appear to be aiming to eliminate a species, or significantly reduce their numbers. Either of those actions would have a negative impact on Theodore Roosevelt National Park as an ecosystem.
Erik discussed concerns during his testimony about the “heavy handed use of GonaCon” by the National Park Service and his belief that if they are allowed to continue these practices, they will be managing this herd to extinction.
GonaCon, Erik stated, “Is known to cause fertility problems for the long term in wild horses, including permanent sterility.”
Erik also shared some new data that has come out that shows that 278 wild horses are needed for genetic viability. Erik clearly explained during his testimony that this means 278 breeding animals. He went on to explain that if you have animals that are subjected to birth control, those numbers would be subtracted from the breeding population.
In TRNP the number of mares that have been subjected to birth control are ALL of the approximately 142 female horses with the exception of the 4 fillies born in 2024. EVERY OTHER MARE HAS RECEIVED AT LEAST ONE DOSE OF GONACON!
Erik also shared that there currently is no data on how much bigger the population needs to be to compensate for mares on fertility control.
We also want to state that we are not saying that there should be at least 278 horses in TRNP – we are pointing out valid concerns and scientific data, by subject matter experts, about the future of this herd.
Erik shared this information during his testimony for SB 2331. We will list all the links where you can watch the testimony of SCR 4006 and SB 2331 at the end of this blog.
Can you see why this management practice that the park has not only embraced over the last 16 years is cause for SIGNIFICANT CONCERNS, then, when the park admitted to CHWHA in private meetings that they:
- Have no idea if mares treated with GonaCon will EVER return to fertility
- Plan to continue their aggressive use of GonaCon in 2025
- Are working to “Halt the reproduction of this herd”
We hope you can see WHY Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates – and now our North Dakota state legislators have SIGNIFICANT concerns about the current management of the wild horses in TRNP.
Senate Concurrent Resolution 4006 passed the North Dakota Energy and Natural Resources Committee with a DO PASS vote. It then passed the full North Dakota Senate UNANIMOUSLY on February 12th.
The resolution will now move to the North Dakota House for committee hearings and a vote by the full House.
IF the House votes to pass the legislation, the Secretary of State will sign the resolution and as stated in the last paragraph of SCR 4006:
“the Secretary of State forward copies of this resolution to the Secretary of the Interior, the Director of the National Park Service, the Superintendent of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the House Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation, the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks, and to each member of the North Dakota Congressional Delegation.”
Then, all those people will also be aware of the concerning management practices of the wild horses at Theodore Roosevelt National Park AND that the state of North Dakota is asking that these historic wild horses be federally protected.
NOTE: Wild horses in national parks are NOT protected under the Wild and Free Roaming Wild Horse & Burro Act.
We will discuss SB 2331 tomorrow. There are many layers to this bill and we will also discuss what the senate vote means for SB 2331.
We hope this answers your questions. Feel free to email us at info@chwha.org with any additional questions you may have.
Thank you for your support and have a great week!
Testimony on SCR 4006 can be found here under the video tab: https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-video/bv4006.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=4006
Testimony on SB 2331 can be found here under the video tab: https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-video/bv2331.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=2331
If you click the video camera icon, it will open that specific testimony up.
Leave a Reply