By Shannon Lukens. File photo courtesy Bureau of Land Management.
The Bureau of Land Management is using water and bait trips to capture the wild horses in the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area. This is in north Moffat County. It started Monday, July 7. Up to 60 horses may be gathered. They will be taken to Canon City and checked out to possibly be adopted.
Right now, the BLM estimates there are 487 wild horses both inside and outside the Sand Wash Basin. The best number to manage the horses is 163 to 362.
U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Program
Press Release from the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management; July 8, 2025.
Announcement
BLM Colorado Little Snake Field Office
July 7, 2025
BLM to conduct bait trap gather in Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area
Craig, Colo. – The Bureau of Land Management began a bait trap wild horse gather July 7, 2025, in the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area. While conditions allow, up to 60 horses may be gathered.
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.
For more information about the BLM’s Wild Horse and Burro Program, and to learn about opportunities to adopt, https://wildhorsesonline.blm.gov/
-BLM-
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.