Almost Half of Wyoming’s 7,700 Wild Horses Set for Roundup

(Bloomberg) -- Ride ‘em cowboy!

A federal agency is planning to round up almost half of Wyoming’s herd of about 7,700 wild horses starting early next month -- and you might be allowed to bring one home.

“Wild horses that are removed will be checked by a veterinarian and made available for adoption to qualified applicants,” according to the Bureau of Land Management. In total, the agency plans to gather roughly 4,300 horses beginning Oct. 7 of which about 3,500 will be removed and 800 will be returned to the range. 

Wyoming’s total horse population is estimated at 7,741, according to government data. The national total is estimated at more than 71,000. Nevada has the most wild horses -- about 43,000.

The roundup is aimed at “managing and protecting healthy wild horses on healthy public rangelands in balance with available water, forage, and other authorized uses of the land,” the bureau said.

“Opportunities are available for the public to observe gather operations, provided that doing so does not jeopardize the safety of the animals, staff, observers, or disrupt gather operations,” it said.

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