Call to Order
The 1st meeting of the Free-Roaming Horse Task Force was held on Tuesday, August 23, 2016, at 1:00 PM, in Room 131 of the Capitol Annex. Representative Fitz Steele, Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Jared Carpenter, Co-Chair; Representative Fitz Steele, Co-Chair; Senator Robin L. Webb; Representatives David Hale and John Short; Bill Bissett, Phillip Brown, Ginny Grulke, Steve Hohmann, David Ledford, Dan Mosley, Lori Redmon, Robert Stout, and Karen Waldrop.
Guests: Karen Gustin, Executive Director, Kentucky Equine Humane Center; Patricia Cooksey, Assistant Director, Kentucky Breeders' Incentive Fund, Kentucky Horse Racing Commission; Jonathan Lang, Deputy Executive Director, Kentucky Horse Park
LRC Staff: John Ryan, Tanya Monsanto, Jasmine Williams, and Becky Lancaster.
Overview of Issues Relating to Free-Roaming Horses
Karen Gustin, Executive Director, Kentucky Equine Humane Center (KyEHC), stated that, when a coal mine completes its operation at a mine, it revegetates the land to mitigate for resource impact. Often those areas may be the only flat places in eastern Kentucky. Horse owners may turn horses out onto the reclaimed mine land during the summer to graze on flat land. Before winter, the owners bring the horses back to their land. This has been a very accepted practice. However, when the economy started its downturn in 2008, many horse owners left their horses on the land permanently because they were no longer able to care for or pay for them.
There are three categories of horses that are on the mine sites: domesticated, feral, and wild. Domesticated horses are owned, ridden, and cared for by their owners. Feral horses were domesticated at one time but have been turned out and left on the mine site. Wild horses are born in the wild and may never see people. KyEHC got involved with these horses in the winter of 2012. A group of horses in Knott County were in the roadways, causing a public safety hazard. Knott County Animal Control Department gathered 27 horses and asked for help from KyEHC and Kentucky Humane Society (KHS) to rehome and manage the horses. All of the horses were cared for by the end of the 90-day hold period.
There are many humane organizations involved with the free-roaming horses of eastern Kentucky: Kentucky Equine Humane Center, Kentucky Humane Society, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), Kentucky Horse Council (KHC), Almost Home pet shelter, Dumas Rescue, and county animal control offices. KyEHC is one of the largest all-breed horse rescues in Kentucky. KyEHC takes in horses that are abused, neglected, abandoned, or owner surrendered.
Many people and organizations in eastern Kentucky are concerned about the horses on the reclaimed mine sites. There are three main issues: public safety, health and welfare of the horses, and over-population of horses on mine sites. Stallions are being turned out onto the mine sites and are reproducing at a high rate. Approximately 70 to 80 percent of the mares in eastern Kentucky on mine sites are in foal or pregnant. When KyEHC acquires a horse, it is immediately examined by a veterinarian and wormed, and receives vaccinations and a plan of treatment or action for its care. Salt blocks are dropped at the mine sites in the winter. Horses are starved for the salt supplement and often fight and kick to get to the salt.
One challenge is to find out if someone owns a horse on the mine sites. Owners do not want to be identified because of liability issues if a horse causes damage or injury. KyEHC has tried to get to know the people and owners in eastern Kentucky by letting them know they are there for the welfare of the horses not to prosecute owners. Many of the free-roaming horses make great candidates for adoption and trail riding horses. In the last three years, KHS has handled approximately 20 horses. KyEHC has taken in 43 horses from eastern Kentucky that were abandoned on mine sites; 13 horses were owner-surrendered and 30 were received through county animal control departments.
KyEHC has joined with the ASPCA and the KHC in organizing four geld and wellness clinics in eastern Kentucky. They have concentrated their efforts to the Langley, Hazard, and Prestonsburg area. The four mobile or stationery clinics have serviced over 100 horses. Services provided at the clinic are castration, vaccination, worming, and dental floating. KyEHC also partners with other organizations to provide veterinary care with the eventual goal of adoption. Clinic funding is provided by KyEHC, KHS, ASPCA, KHC, private donors, veterinary discounts, Eastern Kentucky County Animal Control, Almost Home pet shelter, and Dumas Rescue.
In response to questions from Steve Hohmann, Ms. Gustin stated there is no estimate on how many horses are free-roaming in eastern Kentucky. Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) is conducting a research project to get a count of all the free-roaming horses in Eastern Kentucky. It is the hope of KyEHC that, through the grant program, EKU students will be able to do aerial surveys to count the horses.
In response to a question from Senator Carpenter, Ms. Gustin stated the issue of free-roaming horses impacts approximately ten counties.
In response to a question from Representative Steele, Ms. Gustin stated the pictures in her presentation were taken in the Plant Ridge and South Fork areas of Breathitt County.
Ginny Grulke, Executive Director, Appalachian Horse Center (AHC) testified the size and population of free-roaming horses in eastern Kentucky has changed. Now that stallions are also being turned out and abandoned, a herd of mares can double its population in four years. The involvement of the horse owners in eastern Kentucky would help to create the best solution to this issue. AHC started from a coalition of people that recognized Kentucky should look at the free-roaming horses as an asset to the state instead of a liability. There are many jobs in central Kentucky for and regarding horses, and AHC hopes to bring those and other jobs to the eastern Kentucky area. The AHC will offer horse tours, hands-on horse activities, and trail rides to tourists.
Revenue from the AHC will cover operating costs and pay for additional community services such as equine therapy for people with special needs, substance abuse programs, host 4-H clubs, and provide field experience for veterinarian technical college students. Another goal of the AHC is have an equine entrepreneurial institute that would bring people in the equine business together to discuss pros and cons of horse related businesses, the capital needed, and other issues related to starting an equine related business.
AHC looked at existing tourist opportunities in other states to show that the AHC would be a profitable venture. The Chincoteague Ponies swim event in Virginia brings in an average of 100,000 people for two days in July every year. People come to the see the ponies swim the Assateague Channel and to auction or purchase foals with at an average of $2,500 each foal. In South Dakota, tourists pay $75-$150 each to travel in a van with a guide to see wild mustangs. In the Bahamas, people see wild, free-roaming pigs. Eastern Kentucky has people who need jobs, love horses, and are hospitable to visitors. AHC wants to capitalize on the existing equine industry, free-roaming horses, and beautiful natural resources of eastern Kentucky.
The AHC selected a site in Breathitt County, in the South Fork area, to build the complex. A landowner has donated 100 acres to AHC. AHC estimates they will have 100,000 visitors per year by the fifth year of business. AHC did a break-even analysis and noted that 28,240 visitors will be necessary for the center to break even and pay expenses each year. Kentucky has been reacting to the problems of free-roaming horses, but if it is proactive and manages the horses, the practice of free-roaming horses can remain in place.
Discussion of Possible Solutions: Legislative/Non-Legislative Recommendations, Task Force Goals, and Objectives
Lori Redmon, President and CEO, Kentucky Humane Society (KHS) stated she has worked on the issue of free-roaming horses for three years. She has listened, researched, and conducted interviews with many people, including state legislators and local horse owners, to better understand the situation and find solutions for the free-roaming horses. One challenge is that the environment cannot sustain the horses during some parts of the year. The free-roaming horses are coming into the roadways, pushing out wildlife, and destroying natural habitats because there is not much vegetation left to sustain them. Another challenge is that owners are leaving stallions out at the sites and there is indiscriminant breeding among the horses.
Stopping or slowing the growth of the free-roaming horse herds should be a priority of task force. The KHS and KyEHC have conducted gelding clinics funded by the KHC, ASPCA, and private donors. One of the stationary clinics offered in the eastern Kentucky area serviced 43 horses in one day. Mobile clinics have gone to mountain top sites and locations adjacent to reclaimed mine sites for convenience to the horses and their owners. The KHS has existing relationships with local veterinarians to pay them directly for gelding that needs to be done between free clinic dates. The KHS and local volunteers have set out diversionary hay, feed, and salt to keep the horses on the mountain and out of the roads. She is working on grant program approval for those supplies to continue to be set out this winter. The goal by 2017 is to have a network of people--first responders who are familiar with horses--located in the four corners of each county. The first responders would be able to quickly respond if a horse is ill, at risk, or a safety concern. A long-term goal is to have population mapping and an inventory of the free-roaming horses in eastern Kentucky. Ms. Redmon recently went to three counties that included four reclamation mine sites and counted 220 free-roaming horses.
In response to a question from Representative Steele, Ms. Redmon stated the three counties she covered were Knott County, Breathitt County, and Floyd County.
Ms. Redmon stated that she has created an identification system that will identify a horse in a photo with a number that will inform them of the county, site, and date where the horse was first sited. Her goal is to create traceable information on horses that have been abandoned in eastern Kentucky. The term abandoned will need to be specifically defined and what that title will mean for the horse, owner, and parties involved in the horses’ care plan. KHS has donors interested in assisting with an aerial count with thermal imaging, which is needed to tell the difference between body mass of a horse, elk, or deer. KHS is interested in working with EKU, its students, and the aviation department to count the horses. EKU has been given grants to fund the project. KHS has a commitment from a local pilot to assist with the aerial count. KHS also has access to 4x4 vehicles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), and drones to secure a count of the free-roaming horses.
Ms. Redmon stated another goal for the Free-Roaming Horse Task Force would be to determine what percentage of herd growth is acceptable during a specified timeframe. The specified percentage and timeframe will help to measure success rates of the plans implemented. One option to halt herd growth is contraceptives for mares, however funding is an issue. Funding is currently through philanthropy, individual and organization donors, foundations, and animal welfare agencies. KHS also receives help from local equine veterinarians. The act of dumping horses on mine sites need to be stopped but from a legislative or law enforcement position.
In response to a question from Representative Steele, Ms. Redmon stated that a helicopter would be a better option than a 172 plane for an aerial account of the horses. At this time, she only has access to a plane.
In response to questions from Dr. Robert Stout, Ms. Redmon stated that injectable contraceptives for mares, porcine zona pellucida vaccine (PZP), and a booster vaccine have worked for the Bureau of Land Management. The appeal of the contraceptive PZP is that it is not permanent and gives the mare a break from breeding to heal and regain strength. She also stated mass collection and holding indefinitely had not worked for the Bureau of Land Management. Ms. Redmon stated she has met with local residents and noted they do not want their horses to be collected unless there is a welfare issue and the KHS has permission from local law enforcement. People running breeding operations on the mine sites. The breeders collect foals that are of good value to sell, and they abandon foals that have physical deformities, average color, or poor confirmation. The issue of making owners accountable for breeding would need to be addressed with a legislative solution.
In response to questions from Representative Hale, Ms. Redmon stated the KHS does not have law enforcement abilities, it is not a municipal agency. KHS is a private sheltering organization at the state level. KHS can advocate for horse welfare but cannot pick up a horse without signed stray hold paperwork from the local county judge-executive or animal control officer. Dr. Stout stated that abandonment is a legal term with a definition in KRS Chapter 257. Failing to provide food, water, shelter, and health care for animals meets the definition of abandonment.
In response to a question from Representative Hale, Representative Steele stated that Dr. Karen Waldrop, Deputy Commissioner of the Fish and Wildlife Department, is a member on the Free-Roaming Horse Task Force.
Ms. Redmon said that holding a horse for 15 days is expensive. County authorities do not have the money to cover the costs to hold and care for those horses. Stallions are more expensive to hold because they require special equipment. Owners do not want to be identified, have the horses marked, or acknowledge that the horses are roaming on the reclaimed mine sites because they could be held liable for the horse or its damage.
Bill Bissett said task force should hear from other county officials, not only judge-executives, who are working directly with the issue of free-ranging horses.
Representative Steele said that there are many volunteers working with horses in eastern Kentucky. Free-roaming horses are a state and local issue, and both governments should work together to create a solution. The task force will start the discussions and dialogue of what needs to be dome to solve the problem of free-roaming horses in eastern Kentucky.
Senator Carpenter stated that he attends cattle and horse sales in Richmond. People with horses in trailers have gone inside the venue to watch the sale and then returned to their trailers to find other abandoned horses inside them. If the horses do not have true market value, they are considered a cull, and some feel they do not serve a purpose to the people of the area.
Senator Robin Webb testified that she is an owner, breeder, and exhibitor of Tennessee Walking Horses. She is Kentucky’s representative on the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association executive board and on the by-laws committee. She was the former section chair of the Kentucky Bar Association Equine Law section for two terms. She practices administration law and contract law representing horse owners, trainer, and breeders. She worked as general counsel for the fourth largest coal company with sites in eight states. She has served as president of the National Assembly of Sportsmen's Caucuses (NASC). She was the drafter of the stray and abandoned legislation that passed and is now law. She fights animal rights advocates so that people can proceed to own, utilize, and enjoy recreation with their horses. She stated Kentucky has good care standards for animals. She said that Dr. Robert Stout has volunteered to manage the website where abandoned animals are posted.
She stated she is former resident of and practices law in Knott and Perry counties. She hopes the task force will consider private property interests, horse owners, breeders, and exhibitors in eastern Kentucky. She hopes the task force will help to maintain the cultural standpoint that horses helped to create eastern Kentucky. The horses were valuable to the railroads and worked in the coal mines with people. She will bring legal insight and represent the people who have horses and live in that area. She will promote the horses, equestrian sports, tourism, trail-riding opportunities, and trail towns.
Roll Call
The secretary called the roll.
Adjournment
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 1:15 p.m.