Horses have a champion in Titus

The 31 deaths of wild horses during the ongoing federal Bureau of Land Management roundup in our state are troubling. Thankfully, though, U.S. Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., has been a champion for protecting wild horses and burros.

Titus has been at the forefront of addressing the wild horse and burro issue, working with Democrats and Republicans alike to find real solutions. She has played a key role in urging the BLM to move toward in-the-wild fertility control, a more humane, effective and scientific alternative to brutal roundups. And she introduced the Wild Horse and Burro Protection Act to ban the use of helicopters in wild horse management.

By contrast, Elko county commissioners and some state legislators are calling for eliminating wild horses, and even supporting slaughter. That’s entirely out of touch with the public, as 86% of Nevadans oppose the notion of slaughtering these American icons.

These same politicians call for the continuation of unsustainable roundups and the costly confinement of wild horses within holding facilities. This approach, however, hasn’t worked, yet has cost taxpayers almost $900 million in the past decade. Without the use of fertility control vaccines to stabilize the population, populations continue to grow — and the unsustainable cycle of roundups continues unabated.

Titus goes above and beyond to do what is right. She should be applauded for her dedication to ensuring the humane management of America’s wild horses and burros.

The writer is Nevada state director of the American Wild Horse Campaign.