The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), due to on-going drought conditions resulting in insufficient water to support the wild horses in Nevada’s Big Sand Spring Valley, will begin gathering and providing emergency care for up to 300 wild horses.

The gather was expected to begin on Sept. 20 in the Pancake herd management area (HMA) located about 30 miles west of Ely or 80 miles northeast of Tonopah, Nevada.

An estimated 1,800 wild horses reside within the Pancake HMA based on a March 2016 inventory flight; more than 1,000 of the horses were in the Big Sand Spring Valley area. The BLM said the HMA has an appropriate management level of 240-493 wild horses. Precipitation in May and June 2016 filled or partially filled catchments in the Big Sand Spring Valley area which normally provide water for a large portion of the resident horse population in the area. However, these catchments are now dry which has resulted in additional horses seeking water at the few available spring sources

The BLM said that without emergency action, the condition of the wild horses in the Big Sand Spring Valley is expected to deteriorate and potentially result in the death of some of the horses within a few weeks