**The Four Mile Wild Horse Gather concluded as of September 15, 2021**

The Bureau of Land Management Boise District, Four Rivers Field Office, on September 14, 2021, began the capture of approximately 189 wild horses and removed approximately 173 excess wild horses within and outside of the boundaries of the Four Mile HMA. The population before that gather was approximately 210 wild horses. The Appropriate Management Level is 37-60 wild horses. The helicopter gather lasted 2 days.

Purpose of Gather:

The purpose of the gather was to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, and to restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act and the Cascade Resource Management Plan. The primary issue in this HMA was the availability of water and forage.

Forage is allocated for 37 wild horses or 444 Animal Unit Months (AUMs) in the Four Mile Herd Management Area (HMA). Monitoring data indicate that when the total horse population begins to reach the upper limit of 60 animals (720 AUMs), resource conditions begin to decline, especially in areas near water sources. 

Details of Gather:

This helicopter gather began on September 14, 2021 and lasted 2 days. The population of the Four Mile HMA before the gather was approximately 210 wild horses. The Appropriate Management Level is 37-60 wild horses. Approximately 189 wild horses were expected to be gathered, and an estimated 173 horses will be removed from the range. Of the remaining horses, eight mares treated with fertility control and eight studs will be released back to the HMA. Horses removed from the HMA will be transported to the Boise Off-Range Corral Facility, where they will be prepared for BLM adoption and sales programs.

Public Observation: 

Public observation opportunities are offered at this gather. 

All media and public visitors to the gather must sign up by emailing BLM_ID_WHG@blm.gov. Be sure to include your name, email, phone number and the number in your party. Viewing will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis as parking space is limited at the viewing areas.

If confirmed to attend the gather, meeting time and location instructions will be e-mailed. All confirmed visitors, including media, should call the Wild Horse Gather Info Line at (208) 735-2077 for an update on the next day’s gather activities, meeting times and location. Gather operations are dependent on the weather and could change with little or no notice.

All visitors will need to sign in on the visitor’s log sheet and attend a short briefing for the day. BLM staff will lead the visitor caravan out to the public viewing location.

View the Visitation Protocol and Ground Rules and Know Before You Go documents to learn more. 

Follow along with the gather on Facebook and Twitter by following @BLMIdaho. 

Adoption Information: 

Animals removed from the Four Mile HMA will be made available for adoption or purchase at the Boise Off-Range Corral Facility through the Wild Horse and Burro Adoption and Sales Program. Visit www.blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro/adoptions-and-sales to learn more! 

Background:

The Four Mile HMA consists of 18,800 total acres (16,761 BLM acres, 925 acres of State of Idaho (IDL) lands, and 1,114 acres of private land). It is located approximately 20 miles north of Emmett, ID, within the Willow Ridge grazing allotment, and is bordered on the east by Big Willow Creek and on the west by Four Mile Creek. 

Wild horses in the Four Mile HMA are descendants of domestic horses that were released into the wild in the 1800s and early 1900s. For many years, local residents captured the wild horses and bred them with a variety of private stock. Wild horses in the HMA represent a variety of colors and coat patterns, including grey, bay, sorrel, black, appaloosa, and pinto. Adult horses in the HMA weigh an average of 1,000 pounds and stand between 14 and 15.5 hands, with some individuals standing 16 hands and weighing over 1,200 pounds. Animals in the herd are healthy, with high reproductive rates. 

The last wild horse helicopter gather on the Four Mile HMA occurred in 2009, when 123 horses were captured, 112 horses were removed, and 11 horses were released back into the HMA.