There Are No Wild Horses - Equines, Domestication, and Living Free
If I make the statement “There are no wild horses,” people look at me like I grew an extra head…or possibly a set of horse ears.
Then people go “What about?” and start listing the wild horses they know about.
I’m going to make a case here, and yes, I will talk about the Przewalski’s horse, more correctly known as the takhi.
But at the basic level – trust me when I say there are no truly wild horses left on this planet.
Przewalski’s Horse
The local name for this equine is the takhi. Native to the central steppes of Asia the takhi was never domesticated. It’s small, stocky, and longer lived (in captivity) than domestic horses. It has a different number of chromosomes.
So, is it truly wild? This is a borderline case, because the takhi became extinct in the wild in 1969. Reintroduction efforts since the 1990s have restored the takhi to its native range, although it remains rare. And all of these horses are descended from 13 horses captured in about 1900.
Another thing about the takhi is that while it is a different species…66 chromosomes rather than 64…if you let a takhi and domestic horse mate, the offspring have 65 chromosomes…but are fertile. Other equine crosses, regardless of what species you use, are not fertile. The extra chromosome disappears in another generation (when breeding with horses) and you just have a regular horse.
In other words, the takhi is not a separate species but rather a subspecies of horse. Why the takhi was never domesticated is unknown.
Oh, and it gets worse.
Not a single one of the Przewalski’s horses alive today is pure. All of them have Equus caballus blood. This is kind of like a lot of the plains bison having European cattle for ancestors.
So, our last true wild horse? It’s contaminated. Sorry, guys. And this was the best candidate we had.
What about other “wild” horses and ponies?
The Wild Ponies of Britain
Let’s go to another candidate – the wild ponies found in high altitude parts of Great Britain…primarily Wales, the West Country, and the Scottish Highlands.
Unfortunately, these adorable little guys? Not remotely wild. Even the rare and lesser known Carneddau Pony, which is considered the purest of the British ponies?
Not remotely wild.
Let’s take the Exmoor Pony as an example. These tough little guys live on Exmoor in north-eastern Devon and western Somerset. They’re lovely little guys who are known for being solid enough to carry an adult even though they top out at 12.2 hands (4’2 at the withers).
In the Domesday Book in 1086, ponies were recorded on Exmoor. These ponies appear to have been feral and as Exmoor was a Royal Forest were declared as property of the King. However, other ponies on Exmoor were grazed by their owners for a fee.
Yup.
Their owners.
In the 19th century, the Exmoor Pony was selectively bred for its type, including the characteristic mealy muzzle. Piebald ponies were excluded (this is true for most of the British native horse breeds. Ask me why. Bring alcohol).
All but a few semi-feral ponies on Exmoor today are owned by local farmers, who raise them on the moor to keep their toughness intact.
The same is true for Dartmoor, New Forest, Welsh Mountain…you get the picture. Britain’s wild ponies are naturally raised herds, with the surplus animals routinely being taken off and sold.
Ah, but that’s Britain. You’re waiting for me to go talk about Mustangs, aren’t you.
Invasive, Feral, Beautiful
Mustangs are feral horses. They are not wild horses, they are not native to where they are living, and in some cases actually constitute an invasive species. Which is why we need to control their numbers…which isn’t working so well. The best way to control the numbers of feral horses is to use them as remounts, but not all removed Mustangs can be trained and the demand is lower than the supply.
Most, though, want this icon of the American west to remain. But where did our Mustangs come from?
It’s pretty simple. Mustangs are descended from horses brought to the Americas, originally by the Spanish (those herds which have a high percentage of Spanish blood are called Spanish Mustangs, although you’ll find some of the purest of those somewhere I’ll talk about later). These horses escaped or were released. The word “mustang” is from the Spanish “mestengo,” which essentially meant “masterless livestock.” I.e., feral animals. (Feral cows would also be mestengo, but the word came to refer exclusively to horses).
On parts of the range, there are also burros, wild donkeys, and in very rare cases, where those ranges overlap, somebody rounds up a mule!
These horses are free-roaming and unhandled, but they aren’t wild, and while they are a little tough to train, they train up…the same as any other horse, in the end, because they are domesticated horses.
You can, it seems, abandon horses for generations and then offer them an apple.
Barrier Island Ponies
Less well known are the feral horses that live on the Atlantic Coast, mostly on barrier islands. Except for one particular population, thanks to a famous children’s book.
Hands up who hasn’t read Misty of Chincoteague.
Feral ponies live on Assateague Island are are considered the same population as the ponies on Chincoteague.
Who are, by the way, not remotely wild.
In fact, Chincoteague Ponies are not feral. Like the “wild” ponies of Exmoor, they are a managed herd, rounded up every year with the surplus foals being taken off and sold. I’ve even ridden one. He’s kind of an asshole, but you can’t really tell he was born “feral”. The Fire Service that manages the Chincoteague Herd brings them in when they need veterinary attention.
They’re not feral. They’re naturally raised.
Oh, and I promised you some Spanish Mustangs in an unexpected place. A couple of years ago, somebody DNA tested a jawbone of a Spanish horse found in Haiti. Its closest genetic relative: The Chincoteague Pony.
The local “myth” about the original pony herd being Spanish horses that escaped a shipwreck might not have been proven, but it’s certainly looking more likely!
Chincoteague Ponies are, genetically, about 80% Iberian horse, with the rest being a mixture of Arabian, Thoroughbred, and…Shetland.
Probably why the one I know is kind of an asshole. Horse people call them Shitlands for a reason.
So, nope, still haven’t found any. Let’s just go with one more example.
Beautiful White Marsh Horses
The Camargue Horse, which is always gray, is an ancient pony breed that lives in the marshes of southern France and is…
…not remotely wild. The origins of the breed are unknown…local fancy is that they were a gift from Neptune.
These horses have a strict studbook and the inferior examples are removed from the marsh. They’ve also been cross bred with random horses that found their way to the marsh, although they remain a “primitive” type.
They’re the only surviving European stock horse breed. Not remotely wild, but interesting nonetheless.
There’s other feral horses, but none of them are wild…ranging from the naturally raised horses of England to the “wild” Przewalski’s horse.
We caught them all and put bridles on them a long time ago.