Brumby Requiem
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| Public domain image |
2020 was not a good year for Australia. First, the horrendous bush fires that started in November 2019, an environmental disaster that claimed too many human and animal lives, to the extent that some endemic species may have been wiped out. Then the covid-19 epidemic. And now, as the whole world is still fighting the virus, a new tragedy is about to strike Australia. The cull of brumbies.
Brumbies are feral horses, the descendants of those who escaped during the colonisation of Australia. They are, in a way, the Australian equivalent to the American Mustang. Like the Mustang, they have shaped the land on which they roam and are part of its heritage and history. The origin of their name is uncertain. One theory is that it could come from an Aboriginal word, “baroomby”, which means “wild.”
In a few hours now, several hundreds of those horses (if not more) are going to be killed. Helicopters will be sent to shoot them down. Hunters will be stalking them to destroy them. All the brumbies from the Bogong High Plains, a region of Victoria’s Alpine National Park will thus be culled. And they will not be the only ones, in spite of a public outcry and the fight led, over several years, by the Australian Brumby alliance to stop the massacre.
There are reasons behind this decision. Brumbies are seen as an invasive species threatening the ecological balance of the environment which they have made their own. Some claim that they destroy the vegetation and put endemic species at risk. Others point out that this reasoning is flawed and that horses are not as destructive as cattle, for instance. The debate is endless. It often becomes political. It tears people apart, while the horses blissfully unaware of their impending fate, live out their last hours.
I first learnt of the plight of the brumbies on social media. Amidst posts on Covid-19, on lockdown, on how to deal with all this as a horse-lover, mentions of the brumbies snuck in. I looked into it. And I was horrified. I have never been to Australia. I have never seen a brumby. But I care about horses. And no horse-lover can remain indifferent to what is happening. Maybe because it’s not just Australia.
In a way, though it is extreme, the cull of the Australian brumbies is representative of the way horses, feral or tame, are treated all over the world. Maybe there are too many brumbies (and maybe not, I leave this to scientists to decide), but that is a man-made problem. Men brought horses to Australia. Men used horses, men discarded them. Now, men see the horses as a problem. So men plan to kill the horses. I can’t help but compare in to the fate of racehorses: overbred, overused, discarded, sent to slaughter. And this pattern is repeated in many different countries, with many different types of horses.
As if they were not living beings. As if they were not capable of feeling, of suffering. As if there was no other way.
The man-made problems created around horses require a solution that is not a massacre. The brumby population is deemed to be out of control? Then why are there no birth control plans instead of mass shootings? For instance, castrated stallion = no foals. Of course there are difficulties. Of course it’s not necessarily easy. But killing them is too easy.
Destroying what is perceived as redundant, killing sentient beings because men have decided they were pests is neither humane nor morally defendable. It is especially disturbing where horses are concerned. Horses have been domesticated for generations. They have served humans faithfully. In the case of the brumbies, they have faced many hardships and learnt to survive in a sometimes hostile environment. They did not choose that. They did not decide to become a pest. Men turned them into that. And it is part of a wider problem: after all, the species that inflicts the most damage on the environment is Man.
A quick search on the internet shows that brumby shootings date back to the 19th century and were often seen as sport. Yes, it must be huge fun to shoot down helpless foals and terrified mares.
But apart from the cost in equine lives, this cull will have human consequences. Many Australians love the brumbies which are part of their heritage. The news that they are to be killed is causing much distress.
Some people are especially sensitive to this subject because they have adopted brumbies that once ran wild and feel that these horses deserve another fate. Others do not have horses but are used to watching the brumbies on their outings to the National Parks. Maybe they have seen the same herd over several years. They have come to know certain horses as well as if they were theirs. They have watched foals grow. They know each individual horse, its story, its character…
And now those horses they love will be killed. Horror, anger, incomprehension… These will last long after the last brumby has been culled. The destruction of the horses will leave an open wound, on the country and on those who did their utmost to save them.
What have we done, what are we doing with our horses, all over the world? What is wrong with people? Do we need more destruction, especially in a time when what we should do is be united and take care of the nature around us? The debate is not so much political, or even environmental, as ethical. And one question should be kept in mind: how will actions such as this one be judged by future generations?
#brumbylivesmatter
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