Alberta government says wild horse population has reached 'unacceptable' levels, advocates disagree

It's hard to miss the horses on the way to the mountains.

They've established free-roaming populations throughout the foothills and grasslands of Alberta's eastern slopes, with herds of wild horses almost guaranteed to be seen off Highway 1 west of Calgary year-round.

But the abundance of what the Alberta government calls "feral horses" has reached "unacceptable" levels, according to the province's horse management strategy.