RENO, Nev. (AP) — Extended drought in parts of Nevada and the West may force a delay in the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s plans to cut back on wild horse roundups and place more emphasis on fertility control to keep herd populations in check.
BLM plans fewer mustang gathers each of the next three years in 10 western states with an estimated 37,000 horses and burros.
But BLM Deputy Nevada State Director Raul Morales says they may have to resort to emergency roundups used in the past to rescue parts of herds already hurting for water in the Jackson Mountains 60 miles northwest of Winnemucca.
Morales says a third of the 600 animals in that herd may have to be gathered sooner than planned if Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate in the weeks ahead.
