Palomino Valley Center

BLM suspends Pine Nut Mountains HMA wild horse gather due to weather

BLM press release: CARSON CITY, Nev. – The Pine Nut Mountains Wild Horse Gather will be suspended today due to weather. The gather may be resumed later in 2019 sometime after foaling season. The gather ran from February 7 through February 19.  The BLM gathered and removed 340 excess wild horses from public and private lands in and outside the Pine Nut Mountains Herd Management Area in western Nevada.

The purpose of the gather was to address public safety and natural resource issues. Due to overpopulation, increasing numbers of horses have left the HMA in search of food and water, creating traffic hazards, conflicts with local property owners, and other public safety issues. Within the last year, three horses have been killed in vehicle accidents outside of the HMA. In addition to making the public safer, the gather was also conducted to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, including bi-state sage grouse habitat. The gather also helped restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Removing excess animals will also enable significant progress toward achieving the Standards for Rangeland Health identified by the Sierra Front-Northwestern Great Basin Resource Advisory Council.

Wild horses removed from the range were transported to the Palomino Valley Off-Range Wild Horse and Burro Corrals in Reno, Nev., to be readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro adoption and sale program. Wild horses not adopted or sold to good homes will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.

Additional gather information is available on the BLM website at https://go.usa.gov/xEXxR

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Pine Nut totals: 340 removed (148 Stallions, 152 Mares, 40 Foals), no deaths.

The weather in the area is expected to get a lot wetter as the next two weeks roll by.

The next helicopter roundups proposed by BLM will likely be announced in May or June, to begin July 1, 2019. BLM can use a helicopter to remove wild horses from July 1-Feb 28. 

Before the next roundup schedule is announced take a minute to learn about the fight for a humane handling policy.

We have proposed amendments. One such change should be the definition of “foaling season.” Foaling “season continues” through August and begins in earnest in mid February. Helicopters should only fly (we don not like it at all, but if they do) from Sept 1 – Jan 30. More info on the fight for humane handling  HERE. 

Range management is under intense political pressure. What comes “next” for wild horses can feel complicated in you do not understand.  Learn more, critical information HERE. 

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