Nevada - Home to the Nation's Horses
(Information and graphics courtesy of BLM,
National Adoption Center at
Palomino Valley, NV.)
Nevada is home to most of the nation's wild horses and burros. In fiscal year 1988 the estimate was 26,160 horses and 1,318 burros. Most horses are located on the public lands administered by the BLM's Battle Mountain, Winnemucca, Las Vegas and Carson City Districts. Las Vegas District has the highest population of burros in Nevada.
In Nevada, wild horses and burros are found in about 100 Herd Management Areas. One area, the Nevada Wild Horse Range has been established to be managed primarily for wild horses. The 394,000-acre range in the northeast corner of Nye County is cooperatively managed by the BLM, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Air Force, the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Department of Defense.
Early explorers' journals indicate horses were in northern Nevada by the 1820s. Peter Ogden's 1828 journal talks of discovering and capturing horses apparently abandoned by Indians.
In several areas of Nevada, ranchers turned loose many breeds including Shires, Percherons, Hambletonians, Morgans and Irish stallions and mares to set a standard and pattern in herds in their geographic areas. As the cavalry, ranchers or miners demanded horses, many were trapped and trained for the purposes of man.
Burros were first brought to the "New World" by early Spanish explorers and were used by prospectors and sheep herders.
Goals for management in Nevada over the next five years include:
Assure safe and humane treatment of animals.
Bring population numbers to a level which ensures a "thriving natural ecological balance."
Base management proposals on quantifiable background information on the animals and their habitat.
Impliment positive habitat and population management practices which are technically sound.
Inform and educate the public on all aspects of the management program.
Most gathers of excess animals in Nevada utilize a helicopter, although some anmals are gathered by "water trapping." When a helicopter gather is in progress, the BLM has inspectors on-the-ground and/or in a monitor helicopter to oversee safe and humane treatment.
With few exceptions, all excess wild horses and burros gathered in Nevada are brought 10 the Palomino Valley Wild Horse and Burro Placement Center north of Sparks where they are readied for adoption. The animals receive an identification number (freeze mark), vaccinations, the age is determined and they are classified for adoption.
Among some of the more visible horses adopted from Nevada are the mounts of the Marine Corps Mounted Color Guard. The Guard appears in parades throughout the West, including the Rose Parade in Pasadena. Four of the Guards' palominos are adopted wild horses.
Another unusual horse, the Bashkir Curly, is found in some herd areas in central Nevada. Some of these anuimals, which are descendants of Russian horses, have been adopted andare seen in parades and horse shows. Look for an unusual coat of tightly curled hair, a kinky mane and a wavy tail.
In 1971 Congress passed legislation to protect, manage and control wild horses and burros on the public lands. The Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act declared these animals to be "living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West."
Congress further declared it is the "policy of Congress that wild free-roaming horses and burros shall be protected from capture, branding, harassment, or death..." and that they are "...an integral part of the natural system of the public lands."
Bureau regulations require that herds of wild horses and burros be considered comparably with other resource values within the area. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) maintains and manages wild horses or burros in "herd management areas."
In the ten states where BLM manages horses, there are 270 herd areas, but through its planning process BLM has decided to manage in the long-term for 199 Herd Management Areas.
By law, the BLM supervises the removal of horses or burros. These animals are gathered "...in order to preserve and maintain a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship in the area."
The Act allows the Secretary of the Interior, and thus the BLM, to offer excess animals for private maintenance and care. Between fiscal years 1972 and 1988, a total of 91,419 animals had been adopted. Leading the states with the most number of horse adoptions are Texas, followed by South Dakota, California, Oklahoma and Oregon. Californians have adopted the most burros.
The BLM maintains a number of permanent centers where animals are available for adoption all year long. Satellite adoptions are sponsored at locations convenient to the public. A typical satellite adoption is held on a weekend in an area where adoption demand has been identified.
To adopt a horse or burro, an individual must be at least 18 years of age, have no convictions for inhumane treatment of animals and have adequate facilities and means of transportation to provide humane care and proper treatment for the animal. Parents or legal guardians may adopt a horse or burro and allow children to assist in caring for and training the animal.
An adoption fee of $125 per horse or $75 per burro is charged at all adoption centers. Unweaned foals accompanying a mare or jenny will be sold only with their mothers. Progeny of adopted wild horses or burros which are born in captivity are not considered to be "wild and free-roaming" and are, therefore, the property of adopters.
One year after signing an adoption agreement, the adopter may receive title to the horse or burro provided that the animal has received proper care and maintenance.
To adopt in Nevada, write: Palomino Valley Wild Horse and Burro Adoption Center, P.O. Box 3270, Sparks, NV 89432. Telephone 702 673-1150.Palomino Valley Adoption Center
Adoptions at the Reno National Wild Horse and Burro Show
This is not a BLM operated or BLM sponsored site. It is run by private wild horse and burro enthusiasts. We are thankful to the BLM for providing the information which is presented here. We also hope to soon be posting information pertaining to HMAs in other states.
