Petition

To Whom It May Concern,

I am petitioning for Specially Protected Wildlife Status for the Yukon Wild Horses.

The Yukon Wild Horses consist of bands of horses that have lived in the wild for several generations without human help or intervention.
Wild horses have been a significant part of the Yukon’s paleontological and historical background. The Yukon Wild Horses are currently protected as “feral animals” under the Animal Protection Act, and therefore any investigations into suspicious deaths are treated as secondary, with minimal resources used for the investigation.

Unfortunately, we have evidence of horses being shot in the Yukon, and the numbers of wild horses have reached a critically low level.

We have determined that a special protection status is necessary to protect the Yukon wild horses to preserve and protect their safety and their numbers for future generations to enjoy.

What is involved in a Specially Protected Wildlife Status:

1. Yukon’s Wild Horses are a reintroduced native species. Wild horses originated in North America millions of years ago and lived in the Yukon during the Ice Age, at the same time as the Woolly Mammoth. Horses disappeared around 4,000 years ago from the Yukon, but were reintroduced to the Yukon during the Gold Rush and beyond. This designation would affirm the wild horses’ place in the Yukon.
2. Yukon’s Wild Horses would be included in the Yukon Wildlife Act and Regulations. All complaints would be investigated under the Yukon Wildlife Act. Investigations into any contraventions of the Yukon Wildlife Act would be handled by Conservation Officers and/or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
3. A specially protected wildlife status would be a helpful prelude to creating a Wild Horse Management Committee. With the horses being classified by the government as “feral”, it will be difficult to develop policies to support the horses as a reintroduced native species and give them the protection that they need.

The Yukon wild horses are beloved by local residents and people from other parts of Canada and the world. They are ambassadors for the Yukon, and have a great potential for generating income through tourism. The Yukon Wild Horses deserve to be designated as Specially Protected Wildlife–they add to the Yukon in a way that is special and beautiful. One way to help keep them safe is by designating them as Specially Protected Wildlife.

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