Contraception Of Dartmoor Ponies

There's been a lot of publicity this week (again!) surrounding the contraception scheme on Dartmoor and how it is likely to fail without more support.  It's so frustrating because I don't understand why the BBC are so biased in their coverage and will not do a more widespread, balanced report on these issues.

So many of the breeders have removed or vasectomised stallions and this is one of the best ways to stop breeding (by separating mares and stallions) but there is a small core of people who refuse to remove their stallions...which then go and cover everyone else's mares resulting in hundreds and hundreds of unwanted foals.  These people effectively sabotage the efforts of the responsible breeders and they have quite clearly shown that they are more committed to setting up a permanent slaughterhouse than they are to stopping breeding on Dartmoor...but you will never hear a reporter question any of these issues.  Why can we not hear reporters asking more probing questions...Why do you keep your stallions out on the moor, chose a scheme that is likely to fail (you know that most breeders are unwilling to pay for the drugs because the ponies aren't worth anything, and it' s unpractical) and sabotage the responsible breeders causing them to have unwanted foals...surely to legitimise your plans for a slaughterhouse and permanent meat outlet????  If you really were committed to stopping breeding, wouldn't you take your stallions off the moors too???  Where's Jeremy Paxman when you need him!

Having been around these issues for a while now I think the only real answer is for all the ponies on Dartmoor to be owned by a central organisation (such as the national park) who then take responsibility for the welfare and management of the herds.  People love coming to Dartmoor to see the ponies but I think they'd love coming even more if they knew the ponies were being ethically managed - living in the park as conservation grazers keeping Dartmoor as it should be and not constantly part of one scandal or another.  There are separate commons where the stallions could be kept.  There could be a managed policy of responsible breeding only - almost with a "breed to order" type system - for the moor and some to private homes.  Then of course, they would argue how would it be funded...but I do think people would donate to a system that ensured the ponies a life on Dartmoor, where they should be - with ensured welfare and ethical management.  The ponies are supposed to be the symbol of the national park and if they are considered special enough to be the symbol of the park then they should have a more central and more ethically managed role.

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