Sheepshead/Heath Creek HMA Emergency Wild Horse Roundup Reports

Welcome to our roundup reporting page for the Sheepshead/Heath Creek Herd Management Area in southeastern Oregon, where you will find eyewitness reports, photographs, videos, and daily totals as the Bureau of Land Management conducts an emergency helicopter roundup.

The operation began September 4. The BLM estimates that approximately 1,200 wild horses live in the HMA and plans to gather and remove up to 499 horses. Captured horses will be transported to off-range holding facilities for evaluation, with some later made available for adoption.

The BLM says the emergency action is a response to severe forage and water shortages following an especially dry winter and recent wildfires. According to the agency, only two of the herd's usual 63 water sources remain available.

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 Sheepshead/Heath Creek roundup. Throughout the operation, we will publish daily capture and removal totals, photographs, videos, and firsthand observations so the public can follow events as they unfold.

We hope these reports bring greater transparency to this emergency removal and strengthen the call for humane, science-based management that protects wild horses and keeps viable herds on public lands.

Monday, September 7, 2026

Animals Gathered: 72 (33 Stallions, 27 Mares, and 12 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)

Deaths: 0

- Sudden / Acute: 0

- Pre-existing / Chronic: 0

Sunday, September 6, 2026

Animals Gathered: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 60

Deaths: 0

- Sudden / Acute: 0

- Pre-existing / Chronic: 0

Saturday, September 5, 2026

Animals Gathered: 60 (20 Stallions, 26 Mares, and 14 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 37

Deaths: 1

- Sudden / Acute: 0

- Pre-existing / Chronic: 1, Blue Roan, age 20, Blindness (eye abnormality) right eye

Friday, September 4, 2026

Animals Gathered: 38 (9 Stallions, 19 Mares, and 10 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 0 (0 Stallions, 0 Mares, and 0 Foals)

Deaths: 0

- Sudden / Acute: 0

- Pre-existing / Chronic: 0