BLM to begin emergency wild horse water and bait trap gather in the Nevada Wild Horse Range
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LAS VEGAS - The Bureau of Land Management’s Southern Nevada District will begin an emergency wild horse gather on or about August 1 from the Nevada Wild Horse Range in Nye County, Nevada, as there is not enough water to support the number of horses in the area. The gather will be conducted by Warner Livestock using the bait and water trap method; no helicopters will be used. The BLM plans to gather and remove approximately 800 excess wild horses.
The Nevada Wild Horse Range encompasses 1.3 million acres and has an Appropriate Management Level of 300-500 wild horses. With a current population of approximately 1,355 wild horses, valuable resources have been depleted, affecting the health of those animals. The Nevada Wild Horse Range is over-populated and animal conditions are declining due to range degradation and lack of sustainable water resources. Due to the restricted access of the Nevada Test and Training Range, livestock grazing on the Nevada Wild Horse Range has not been authorized since 1956.
The BLM’s goal is to help as many horses as possible while protecting the habitat for other wildlife, including water sources and vegetation. Without emergency action, the condition of the wild horses in the Nevada Wild Horse Range is expected to deteriorate, potentially resulting in the death of some of the horses within a few weeks.
Due to the restricted access of the Nevada Test and Training Range, only those personnel deemed essential to the gather will be permitted to participate. In addition, the bait and water trap method requires horses to adjust to the hay and corrals in a quick and safe manner, and wild horses are reluctant to approach the trap site when there is too much activity.
Horses identified for removal will be transported to Palomino Valley Holding Corrals near Reno, Nevada, and Ridgecrest Holding Corrals located in Ridgecrest, California, where they will be checked by a veterinarian and readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro adoption program. For information on how to adopt or purchase a wild horse or burro, visit www.blm.gov/whb.
Gather reports and additional information will be posted on BLM’s website at https://go.usa.gov/xUwgz. For more information, contact John Asselin, Public Affairs Specialist, at (702) 515-5046 or jasselin@blm.gov.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.