LAS VEGAS ( KLAS ) — After completing a major roundup north of Ely in early December — 2,196 horses — the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will start 2025 off with a smaller roundup, expected to gather 144 wild horses in Eureka County.
The Fish Creek Herd Management Area in Eureka County covers 230,675 acres, and officials intend to cut the herd to around 100, sending the rest of the horses off for adoption at a corral near Winnemucca. A helicopter will be used during the roundup, according to the BLM.
The roundup is scheduled to begin on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025.
BLM concluded the Triple B Complex roundup on Dec. 4 on 1.2 million acres in White Pine and Elko counties. That was a much larger operation, reducing the herd by more than 2,150 horses. Officials treated 23 mares with a birth control drug called GonaCon, releasing them back into the wild along with 16 stallions.
During the Triple B roundup, 27 horses died . BLM said 20 of those deaths were due to chronic conditions that made it more humane to euthanize the horses than return them to the wild. Seven horses were euthanized after severe injuries during the roundup.