Wild Horse Numbers in Alberta: Government and Advocates Clash
Provincial count jumps to 2,072 across mountain zones, but advocates say the numbers are biologically impossible and the science is flawed.
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Alberta's wild horse debate has become a numbers game — and nobody agrees on the count.
The provincial government released its latest feral horse survey in April, reporting at least 2,072 wild horses across six equine management zones in the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains — the highest count ever recorded. Populations in the Sundre, Ghost River, Elbow, and Clearwater zones are at levels the government says are "not ecologically sustainable."
But Darrell Glover, founder of the Help Alberta Wildies Society (HAWS), disputes the figures entirely. His organization, which tracks horses year-round using drones and 80 trail cameras in the Sundre area, counted just over 1,000 horses in that zone — about 150 more than last year. The government's count for the same zone: 1,300.
"Totally unrealistic and unbelievable, and physically and biologically impossible," Glover said of the government's numbers.
The disagreement hinges on survival rates. Glover, a retired rancher and pilot of 50 years, says mares produce one foal per year, but the vast majority are killed by predators within days of being born. "Every single foal would have to survive, and every single mare would have to have a foal that survived, and that's not the case," he said. "There is no way that the wild horse population is increasing in that fashion."
The Alberta government stands by its methodology. The province's aerial surveillance is conducted annually by trained staff using consistent methods endorsed by the Office of the Chief Scientist, a provincial spokesperson said. "Better weather and snow conditions this year may have made feral horses easier to locate," they added, accounting for higher counts.
Glover played a key role in developing the province's horse management plans and was consulted on the survey methodology. Still, the gap between his ground-level tracking and the government's aerial count raises questions about how Alberta moves forward on management decisions — whether through capture, contraception, or other means.
Both sides agree horses have roamed Alberta's wilderness for generations. What they do next depends on whose numbers carry more weight.