DAYVILLE, Ore. — With the prospect of mass starvation looming, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management are preparing to round up hundreds of wild horses from burned-over rangeland in western Grant County and relocate them to holding facilities until they can be adopted or the landscape recovers.

Starting Monday, Nov. 25, the agencies plan to begin what they’re calling an “emergency gather” of 350-400 horses from the Murderers Creek Joint Management Area south of Dayville.

The Murderers Creek JMA, cooperatively managed by the Forest Service and BLM, includes a mix of federal, state and private ground that is currently home to about 650 feral horses, according to a census done this fall. The area also supports herds of deer, elk and bighorn sheep, as well as cattle. 

But this summer’s 176,000-acre Rail Ridge Fire burned large swaths of the JMA’s rich grasslands, leaving the horses competing with native wildlife for drastically reduced grazing resources along the South Fork John Day River and the flanks of the Aldridge Range.

“It took out all the forage in the winter range — where the horses go to in the wintertime, that forage is gone,” said Ann Niesen, supervisor of the Malheur National Forest.

“It’s also winter range for (deer and elk) as well.”

Contractors have already begun setting up temporary corrals that will be baited with hay and water. Gates can be shut electronically to hold the horses until they can be loaded on trucks for transport to holding facilities in Burns, Oregon, and Alturas, California, where they will be cared for until they can be adopted or until the burned-over landscape has recovered enough for some of them to be brought back to Murderers Creek.

“They’re professionally run facilities,” Niesen said. “They’re set up to care for the horses, to give vet care, to feed (them).”

None of the animals will be euthanized, Niesen stressed.

“We don’t do that,” she said.

How many horses will ultimately be returned to the JMA is an open question. The Forest Service and BLM are in the process of updating the management plan for Murderers Creek, part of which involves determining how many wild horses the area can sustainably support.

The plan is expected to be finalized this winter.

“It’s just unfortunate the fire happened and we didn’t have that done,” Niesen said. “Once we sign the decision, we would be able to adopt out the excess horses.”

Meanwhile, federal land managers are also evaluating the extent of fire damage in the area to determine when grazing allotments can be reopened to cattle. Many local ranchers rely on access to public lands to provide vital summer forage for their stock. At this point, it’s not yet known how long it might take before the grass is firmly reestablished on some of those burned-over allotments.

“It does come back, though,” Niesen said. “That’s the good news.”

The Murderers Creek wild horse herd has been a bone of contention over the years, with some stock-growers arguing the animals do significant damage to the landscape. In 2009, Dayville-area ranchers Loren and Piper Stout filed suit against the Forest Service, claiming the agency’s mismanagement of the herd violated the  Endangered Species Act.

Horse-gathering operations could continue up to the end of February, federal officials said in a news release. No activities will continue beyond that point to avoid disturbing the animals during foaling season.

Roping from horseback will be used if necessary, officials said, but unlike past gathers, no helicopters will be involved this time.

The public is asked to stay out of the area until the work of gathering is completed. Weekly updates on the operation, as well as information on adoption opportunities, will be posted online at tinyurl.com/4euway4u.