Kyrgyz horses for Wolf Control?

[FourBee]

Wolf predation seems to be at the top of ranchers concerns in the north Western parts of the United States .   While reading about how these cattle ranchers are trying to protect their livestock in the dark wee hours of the morning, one article in particular caught my attention of looking into the use of horses.    Seems that over in China a certain group of Asians use a breed of horses called the Kyrgyz to protect their flocks of sheep and herds of cattle.   These small stocky built horses are known for their fierceness and ability in fighting wolves more so than other breeds of horses.   The people of the region do not have guns, so they mount on these steeds armed with clubs and chase the wolf packs until they finally run them down and club them to death.  That alone would be quite a feat for a horse and rider.   But what I found after doing some research is that these asians don't just use any horse to watch over their flocks and herds, but select stallions to do the job.   Makes me wonder if that would actually a be feasible solution in the U.S.A.

[Cabin4]

What about the option of trained dogs to guard the heard?

[Black Eagle]

I've ridden a lot of those Kyrgyz stallions -- my daughter-in-law is from there and never had fewer than 60 horses when she was growing up -- and it is an absolute joy.  I love to go to the Kyrgyz Republic because there are lots of guns, great fly fishing, and fantastic horses. [I am a horse fanatic.] My son taught in both Northwestern China [Urumqi] and Kyrgyzstan [Bishkek] and they do have a huge wolf problem. The only difference is, in Kyrgyzstan they hunt wolves off horses but with rifles. In China, they run them down and club them.

As you probably know, horses get their confidence and their "fearlessness" from the rider. My horses are all geldings but I've used them to chase lions in Colorado for years. I quit hunting lions many years ago but I still like to follow them and watch them. My horses have no fear of mountain lions at all as long as I am on them and we've accidentally come too close to several of them. By the way, I'll be out with my youngest, and newly started, horse tomorrow morning looking for lions in the Colorado snow.    

[Black Eagle]

Now why in the world would the program censor the word "chase." 

[Oldshooter]

Now why in the world would the program censor the word "chase." 

I dunno, but my mind was running wild before you posted what it was ! 

                 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Around here they use donkeys to keep the coyotes at bay, a donkey wont let a strange dog or human get in the pasture without raising cain.

[lee1954]

Is there some horses that would help us with the greeny weeny wolf lovers?

[Graybeard]

Obviously it DID NOT censor the word chase as it has been used several times now in this thread. Clearly you typed something else, what I have no clue. At any rate as you can see I've put that word in place of censored word and it takes it just fine.

You must have inadvertenly typed in something else.

[Cabin4]

Is there some horses that would help us with the greeny weeny wolf lovers?

It so much a problem with the eco nazi wolf lovers as it is simply an issue of gaurding a heard. A rancher can't be with his heard 7x24x365.

[beerbelly]

Those ol boys out west did a real good job of wolf control until the goverment stuck it's nose into it.
                                  Beerbelly

[Cabin4]

Those ol boys out west did a real good job of wolf control until the goverment stuck it's nose into it.
                                  Beerbelly

I agree. But we all know what the ranchers are dealing with now and that is a rouge government hell-bent on eco-isam at all costs. So the ranchers are needing to adapt as best they can. The wolf's are back and the days of trying to wipe them out are over. An investment in a pack of irish wolf hounds that are trained to guard a heard is an option. These are very smart dogs who's original breeding was done in Scotland/Ireland/England to fight off wolfs and protect live stock heards.

The concept of using a horse seems to me to require a rider. Well, that don't sound like a reasonable 7x24x365 program to me.

[blind ear]

In my area of the Mississippi hills there are a lot of donkeys and a few Pyranees dogs for control of cayotes, and of course most everyone has a hyper viper of some kind, mostly 243s, (bigger dureing deer season). eddie

[schutzen]

Think about this:  Has introducing a non-native species ever been the solution to any problem?

1) Wild horses in the western US -left by the Conquistadors
2) Kudzu - early 20th century answer to erosion
3) Constrictor snakes in the Everglades - unwanted pets dumped by idiots
4) Dodo's - eradicated by rats and feral hogs escaped from ships stopping for fresh dodo meat
5) Feral hogs - escaped form confinement or drop by farmers when the price of hogs dropped below the cost of feeding them

The list goes on and on.  The answer is not introducing a new non-native species in the environment.

Break out the rifles boys.  Rarely can you hunt a species to extinction.  An exception may be game animals for food, but not unless we have a 1930’s style depression.  Sport hunters and ranchers will never kill out the wolf population.  On the other hand, poisoning and destroying their dens can very easily eradicate them.  Personally, I would like to see them hunted for control purposes so we all can co-exist.

[Oldshooter]

1) Wild horses in the western US -left by the Conquistadors

a problem?


Uhhhhhhhhh!..... Dee's family may not agree with that statement.  




FOR CLARIFICATION: I was not being serious about the wild horses not being a problem. It was poor attempt at a humorus response. guess you gotta put a smiley face    on those if you're not good at it.

[schutzen]

The Bureau of Land Management is using your tax dollars to corral and feed thousands of wild horses because they are out breeding the range lands capacity to support them.  And yes, part of this is done to assist the cattle ranchers who lease grazing land from BLM.  The point is the wild horses have very few natural predators and are out multiplying the capacity of the grazing lands.  Even if all the cattle are removed and the price of beef jumps 5 fold, the wild horses will soon out strip the lands capacity to support them and they will starve.

In past years portions of the herds were rounded up and slaughtered for dog food, but this has become an unpopular solution with the “feel good” set.  Sorry if I have offended anyone, but that’s the way it is, you can not have everything.  If we want economically priced beef for our tables we will have to continue the practice of renting grazing land to cattle ranchers.  The alternative is the Japanese system where beef is $50-100 per pound.  Personally I like steak at $5-7 per pound.

[AtlLaw]

When I was into horses as my receration they had an "adopt a mustang" program to try to get as many as they could off the range.  I understand wild burros are about as bad... 

[Sourdough]

Wild Horses and Burros are definately a problem.  I spent three years removing them from Southern New Mexico.  Hardly made a dent.

Wolves have a simple solution when it comes to handling herd protectors.  When they are repealed by trained dogs, they simply go out and gather bigger packs.  eventually they outnumber and over whealm any group on dogs.  I've seen packs of Wolves ranging in the 20s and 30s.  Right now there is a pack of 20 odd wolves running the Salcha River area, near my home.

Plus there is not a horse alive that could effectively run down a wolf in the Wyoming, and Montana, mountains.

[Oldshooter]

1) Wild horses in the western US -left by the Conquistadors

a problem?


Uhhhhhhhhh!..... Dee's family may not agree with that statement.  




FOR CLARIFICATION: I was not being serious about the wild horses not being a problem. It was poor attempt at a humorus response. guess you gotta put a smiley face    on those if you're not good at it.

 



It goes here I guess

[Sourdough]

I remember when they rounded up Wild Horse Annies herd after her death, many were geldings, and many more were wearing brands.

The horses I rounded up were all inspected for brands and tatoos.  Almost a third were ranch horses that had been stolen by the herd Stallion.  They were returned to the ranches they had come from.  Remenates of the Spanish horses, not hardly.  Those are the scrawney Indian Ponies you see pictures of from the late 1800s.  Most ranchers shot or poisoned those scrub horses, as they were no good in their openion.

The wild horses of today are escaped or lost ranch horses.  Some with good breeding.  That's why the horses of today are far differant than the ones that ran wild 150 years ago.