Sand Wash Basin HMA Wild Horse Roundup Reports

Welcome to our roundup reporting page for the Sand Wash Basin Herd Management Area in northwestern Colorado, where you will find eyewitness reports, photographs, videos, and daily updates as the Bureau of Land Management carries out a helicopter roundup.

The operation began on September 19 after being delayed by two days. The BLM estimates that 505 wild horses live in and around the 157,730-acre HMA, while the agency’s established Appropriate Management Level is just 163 to 362 horses.

The BLM plans to gather approximately 300 wild horses, permanently remove about 245, and return 55 to the range. Twenty-two of the returned horses are expected to receive fertility control treatment. Horses selected for removal will be transported to the Rock Springs Wild Horse Holding Facility in Wyoming before being placed into the federal adoption and sales system.

The roundup will disrupt established family bands and permanently remove nearly half of the estimated herd from the landscape. Our field observers will attend whenever access is provided to witness helicopter drives, monitor horse welfare, document roundup conditions, and provide the public with transparent, independent reporting.

This page will serve as a living record of the Sand Wash Basin roundup. Throughout the operation, we will publish daily capture, removal, release, fertility-control, and mortality totals, along with photographs, videos, and firsthand observations from the field.

We hope these reports bring greater transparency to the removal and strengthen the call for humane, science-based management that protects wild horses and prioritizes keeping viable herds free on the range.

The Sand Wash Basin roundup concluded on Friday, September 25, with
approximately 300 horses gathered. 245 will lose their freedom forever.

Friday afternoon, 33 stallions were released back to the Basin, including familiar
favorites Meteor, Sante Fe, and Dorian.

On Saturday, September 26, an additional 22 mares were returned to
the Basin, bringing the total planned releases to 55 horses.

The released horses are a 3:2 ratio of stallions to mares mandated by the BLM.

From the observer onsite for AWHC this week: One particularly emotional story involved the approximately three-week-old foal of Dorian and Rosie. Rosie was not with Dorian’s band when they were gathered, and successfully avoided the trap, but her foal was with the band. Dorian was with the group of released stallions. While both Dorian and Rosie remain free in the Basin, their foal, now separated from Rosie, was transported to Grand Junction where he is now in a loving foster home.

With the gather now complete, the focus for the Sand Wash basin volunteer team, and others, turns to the horses returning home to Sand Wash—and to those beginning very different journeys away from the Basin.

September 25, 2026

Animals Gathered: 61 (27 Stallions, 26 Mares, and 8 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 78 (35 Stallions, 35 Mares, and 8 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
Animals Released: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0

September 24, 2026

Animals Gathered: 88 (37 Stallions, 43 Mares, and 8 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 18 (9 Stallions, 7 Mares, and 2 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
Animals Released: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0

Observer onsite witnessed a mare in the holding pen with an acute eye injury, blood running down her face and there is concern she has lost her eye.

There is still no information published by the BLM about the 7 year old bachelor with the broken leg at temporary holding that was going to be euthanized, leaving questions as to whether he is being allowed to suffer in holding or whether his death is being withheld from public information.

September 23, 2026

Animals Gathered: 14 (7 Stallions, 5 Mares, and 2 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 67 (44 Stallions, 15 Mares, and 8 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
Animals Released: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0

Heavy rainstorms had moved through overnight and roads were muddy, and in some places impassable. This prevented moving planned operations to inside the HMA. Horses gathered today came from the far northwest area outside the HMA near Dry Creek.

Observers had a much better view of the trap than previous days.

One pinto yearling was observed limping with an injury to her left hind leg. Observers were informed it did not appear to be life threatening.

Observers were informed that the request for public viewing to be extended two days, since weather prevented operations and viewing the first two days, was denied. The 24th will be the last day for public viewing. The roundup may continue through Monday if BLM does not reach its goal of approximately 300 horses before then. Another roundup where a significant portion of the operations will occur without the transparency of public viewing.

September 22, 2026

Animals Gathered: 82 (39 Stallions, 34 Mares, and 9 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 52 (5 Stallions, 35 Mares, and 12 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
Animals Released: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0

Approximately 14 people were present at the observation site, including advocates and members of the media.

After operations were complete, observers were allowed to go to temp holding and watch loading. Stallions in one of the compartments appeared agitated with fighting and movement inside the trailer. A horse appeared to go down in the trailer and one of the contractors climbed up to look in the trailer and one was heard to say “they’re standing on him” and then to “get ‘em out”. At one point it seemed a second horse had gone down but was not verified.

Horses in the rear compartments were unloaded, however when loading resumed significant commotion began again. At that point the contractors determined that transport to Rock Springs would not occur today and the horses were uploaded.

Due to the high solid sides on the trailer, observers could not see inside and not able to determine if the downed horse got back up on his own. When asked if any of the horses had been injured during these incidents, the response was that they weren’t sure.

They were informed that a 7 year old bachelor would be euthanized due to a broken leg.

A photographer observing horses in the Basin reported seeing another 7 year old bachelor stallion limping with what appeared to be a broken leg. They were told that BLM personnel attempted to locate the horse but were unable to find him.

At the end of the observation period, BLM had not yet provided its daily injury report.

September 21, 2026

Animals Gathered: 82 (39 Stallions, 34 Mares, and 9 Foals)
Animals Shipped: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Animals Treated with Fertility Control: (0 Stallions, 0 Mares)
Animals Released: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)
Deaths: 0
- Sudden / Acute: 0
- Pre-existing / Chronic: 0

The site was outside the HMA. Observers were approximately two miles from the trap site. The trap itself was not visible because it was obscured by pinyon trees.

After operations ceased for the day, observers were allowed to visit temporary holding. The local org, SWAT, report an injury to a known mare with a degloving of the front of her right hind canon bone, with severe swelling. BLM was notified of the injury, though the extent of it was not yet known.

September 20, 2026

Animals Gathered:

No operations due to rainy weather creating poor conditions. Daily activities are listed as “reconnaissance only”.

September 19, 2026

Animals Gathered: 11 (5 Stallions, 3 Mares, and 3 Foals)

Observation was not allowed due to rainy weather creating poor road conditions, per BLM.