2025 Sand Wash Basin Wild Horse Gather
Purpose of Gather:
Through increased fertility control and by conducting smaller bait trap gathers when necessary, the BLM seeks to manage and maintain a Sand Wash Basin wild horse population within an appropriate management level of 163-362 animals and avoid a large scale gather. There are currently an estimated 487 wild horses both inside and outside the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area based on a the 2025 Wild Horse and Burrow Population Estimates published in March.
Details of Gather:
The BLM seeks to manage and maintain a Sand Wash Basin wild horse population within an appropriate management level of 163-362 animals and avoid a large scale gather. There are currently an estimated 487 wild horses both inside and outside the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area based on a the 2025 Wild Horse and Burrow Population Estimates published in March. While conditions allow, up to 60 horses may be gathered.
Public Observation:
The BLM will conduct this operation using water and bait traps consisting of a series of corral panels stocked with water and hay. Because of the nature of the bait and water trap method, wild horses are reluctant to approach the trap site when there is too much activity; therefore, only essential gather operation personnel will be at the trap site during operations. No helicopters will be used.
Adoption Information:
Gathered horses will be transported to the Canon City Off-Range Corral. Upon arrival at the facility, the horses will be checked by a veterinarian and readied for the agency’s wild horse adoption and sale program. BLM will announce adoptions as they are scheduled via the BLM website and social media channels. To learn more about adopting a wild horse, please visit the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program Adoption webpage.
Background:
The Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area is in northwest Colorado, about 45 miles west of Craig. The appropriate management level is 163-362 animals on a total of 157,730 acres, including 154,940 acres of public land, 1,960 acres of private land and 840 acres of state land. The herd management area's ridges and mesas are covered in sagebrush and bunchgrass, saltbush and pinon-juniper woodlands. The climate is typical of the Rocky Mountain region's cold deserts, with warm summers and very cold winters.
- Oct. 3, 2024 (included as part of fiscal year)
Thursday, Oct. 3
Animals Gathered: 2 (2 Stallions, 2 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 0
These totals are included as these horses were gathered in fiscal year 2025. Since the 2024 Sand Wash Basin bait trap gather spanned FY24 and 25, these totals are noted on both gather pages.
Daily Gather Details
- July 7, 2025
Monday, July 7
Animals Gathered: 9 Wild Horses (3 Stallions, 5 Mares, and 1 Foal)
Animals Shipped: 0
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 8, 2025
Tuesday, July 8
Animals Gathered: 3 Wild Horses (3 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 5 Wild Horses (2 Stallions, 2 Mares, and 1 Foal)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 9, 2025
Wednesday, July 9
Animals Gathered: 4 Wild Horses (4 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 7 Wild Horses (4 Stallions, 3 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 10, 2025
Thursday, July 10
Animals Gathered: 8 Wild Horses (1 Stallions, 5 Mares, and 2 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 4 Wild Horses (4 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 11, 2025
Friday, July 11
Animals Gathered: 0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 8 Wild Horses (1 Stallions, 5 Mares, and 2 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 13, 2025
Sunday, July 13
Animals Gathered: 0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
- July 14, 2025
Monday, July 14
Animals Gathered: 6 Wild Horses (2 Stallions, 3 Mares, and 1 Foal)
Animals Shipped: 0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
- PZP: 0 (0 Mares)
- PZP-22: 0 (0 Mares)
- GonaCon: 0 (0 Mares)
- IUD: 0 (0 Mares)
- Sterilizations: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
- Other: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)Animals Released: 0
Deaths: 0
Gather Status
As of July 10, 2025
Animals Gathered: 34 (15 Stallions, 15 Mares, and 4 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 28 (13 Stallions, 12 Mares, and 3 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: 0
0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Released:
0 Wild Horses (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0
-Sudden / Acute: 0
-Pre-existing / Chronic: 0
Scroll to the bottom of this gather page for detailed “Daily Gather Reports"