In 1900 there were 2 million wild horses in America. Now just 40,000 remain. The government wants to reduce this to 20,000, but even this does not satisfy ranchers who want the cull extended. Drought and low returns from their stock have forced ranchers to demand more grazing land, but animal welfare groups blame farmers for overstocking. Andrea Loccoco runs the Campaign to Save Wild Horses and claims that “even if you were to remove thousands of wild horses it would have virtually no impact.” The Lakota Indians may have found the answer: a tourist industry that would allow the mustang to flourish. Native American Chief Raymond explains: “Our people used the Mustang for every reason in our life. Without it, I feel that my ancestors would have died out years ago.” It appears that it is now up to the native Indians to save the horses from extinction.

Produced by ABC Australia