Saving Canada's Wild Horses

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Saving Canada's Wild Horses Michelle Remillard has extensive experience as a policy leader, with a proven track record in leading complex, multi-stakeholder projects. Educate. Speak up.

Working collaboratively to increase public awareness, highlight the policy gaps for rule-makers and recommend solutions to protect and preserve Canada’s vulnerable, at risk wild horses. With an educational background in biological sciences and wildlife biology, advocating for Canada’s wild horses comes naturally. Michelle’s goal is to increase public awareness and hold decision-makers accountable where the policy decision-making process has fallen short. Participate. We owe it to our horses!

Where the forest breathes, an ancient spirit stands guard. (photo taken from a respectful distance using a zoom and ...
10/14/2026

Where the forest breathes, an ancient spirit stands guard.



(photo taken from a respectful distance using a zoom and heavily cropped)

Alberta's provincial Horse Capture Regulation and Stray Animals Act govern aspects of horse capture and handling - for A...
10/13/2026

Alberta's provincial Horse Capture Regulation and Stray Animals Act govern aspects of horse capture and handling - for ALL horses. This raises an important policy question: should Alberta Mountain Horses that have lived and reproduced freely on public lands for over 400 years be managed under the same legal framework as domestic livestock, or should Alberta establish a distinct category for free-roaming horses? Let your MLA, Minister of Forestry and Parks, and your Premier know how you feel!

(photo taken with a zoom, cropped, in the beautiful eastern foothills of Canada's Rocky Mountains)

Alberta’s wild horses are facing population reductions and the time to act is right now!Top officials rely on the advice...
10/01/2026

Alberta’s wild horses are facing population reductions and the time to act is right now!

Top officials rely on the advice they get from their advisory committees. But how rigorous, balanced, and accountable are those committees?

That’s the core focus of my recent Op-Ed in the Calgary Herald. If we want better outcomes for Alberta's wild horses, we need to demand better governance at the top.

How you can help: Reach out to your MLA, your MP, and Premier Smith. Let them know you're paying attention.

You can find my piece online by searching "Michelle Remillard Calgary Herald", or read it directly below:

09/27/2026

Timing is everything, and the most valuable asset when planning an event with Help Alberta Wildies Society.

Here's looking at you! A beautiful band seeking the coolness of the forest canopy during the hazy, lazy days of summer.(...
09/22/2026

Here's looking at you! A beautiful band seeking the coolness of the forest canopy during the hazy, lazy days of summer.

(taken from a respectful distance with a long lens)


Your letters are being read and responded to by the Shadow Minister for Environment and Protected Areas. Thank you Sarah...
09/16/2026

Your letters are being read and responded to by the Shadow Minister for Environment and Protected Areas. Thank you Sarah Elmeligi - Banff-Kananaskis MLA!

These wild foals! This is what Alberta - Canada - the world - will never see if the Alberta government carries out their...
09/12/2026

These wild foals! This is what Alberta - Canada - the world - will never see if the Alberta government carries out their agenda! Thank you Sandy Sharkey Photography.

URGENT - PLEASE let the Alberta government know you are against their plan to remove young stallions from the wild and u...
09/10/2026

URGENT - PLEASE let the Alberta government know you are against their plan to remove young stallions from the wild and use experimental contraceptives on the wild mares!

Write - call - email - visit - the officials in charge!

It doesn't matter how you let them know - it only matters that you do let them know. Otherwise CHANGE WON'T HAPPEN. Alberta's wild Mountain Horses depend on YOU!

Here is a letter you can use and adapt as you wish. Simply copy and paste into your email to Premier Danielle Smith. We will post this onto the Help Alberta Wildies Society page also.

THANK YOU from all of us!
Michelle
----------

Honourable Danielle Smith
Premier of Alberta
307 Legislative Building
10800 - 97 Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5K 2B6
Email: [email protected]

RE: Urgent Request to Halt Wild Horse Contraceptive Use and Reform Advisory Committee

Dear Premier Smith,

I am writing to urgently call for an immediate halt to your government’s plan, as reported by CBC News on September 8, 2026, to administer the contraceptive vaccine SpayVac-Equid to Alberta’s wild horses and remove young stallions from the wild.

According to the Wild Horses of Alberta Society (WHOAS) President Jack Nichol, this time the SpayVac vaccine will be used instead of Zonastat-H, and it will be administered by hand. This is cause for alarming concern since repeating the failed 2014 pilot program poses severe risks. SpayVac works by causing long-term ovarian shutdown, with studies showing pregnancy prevention lasting 3 to 7 years, unpredictable reversibility, and sometimes permanent infertility and ovarian damage. Furthermore, capturing and hand-administering this vaccine to wild bands guarantees traumatic social disruption, stress, and injury.

I urge your government to immediately halt all contraceptive and capture operations, pending an independent review - and reform the Feral Horse Advisory Committee (FHAC) based on three critical failures:

• Severe Conflict of Interest: WHOAS holds a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with your ministry that explicitly involves horse capture and contraceptive administration. Allowing a group that participates in a delivery mandate for these operations to sit on the advisory committee tasked with recommending management policies represents a severe conflict of interest.

• Failure of Advisory Committee Integrity: sound public policy also means government advisory bodies must adhere to rigorous and transparent vetting standards, and balanced composition. The current structure of the FHAC does not represent balanced perspectives nor the independent scientific expertise necessary to ensure decisions are evidence-based and grounded in unbiased wild horse ecology and humane welfare standards.

• Insufficient Baseline Data: Major wildlife management decisions require verifiable population baselines, independent herd viability models, and public transparency. Proceeding with horse captures and multi-year chemical contraception without subjecting protocols to independent peer review undermines public trust and scientific integrity.

Alberta’s wild horses are a cherished part of its natural heritage. Policy decisions regarding their future must be grounded in transparent science, rigorous vetting and genuine public accountability.

Thank you for your time and attention to this urgent matter. I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your City/Town, Alberta]

[add these email addresses to your CC list]:
• Honourable Todd Loewen, Minister of Forestry and Parks, Email: [email protected],
[email protected]

• Alexandra Miller-Tait, Executive Director, Lands Delivery and Coordination South, Forestry and Parks, Email: [email protected]

• Mike Alexander, Director, Range Conservation and Stewardship, Forestry and Parks, Email: [email protected]

• Feral Horse Advisory Committee Secretariat, Email: [email protected]

• Sarah Elmeligi, Shadow Minister for Environment and Protected Areas, Email: [email protected]

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Ottawa, ON

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