Feral Horses in Miller Creek
Update 5/27/2026:
The county commissioners opened a public hearing on a draft resolution related to the feral horses at their June 11 public hearing meeting, and also took public comment. Click here to view the meeting recording.
The draft resolution is not final and could be updated based on resident feedback and other information.
The hearing is expected to be open for at least 30 days. Residents are invited to submit public comment on this draft resolution using the comment tool below. When another meeting is set, project followers will be notified of this meeting date. Follow this project page at the right-hand side of this page.
Click here to read the draft resolution.
Residents are welcome to come to the next public hearing meeting on Thursday, July 23.
- In-person location: Sophie Moiese Room, Missoula County Courthouse Annex, 200 West Broadway, Missoula
- Virtual option: Residents can attend the meeting via Microsoft Teams. To join the call on your phone, call 406-272-4824, Conference ID 467 457 758#. To join the meeting on your device, follow the links on the agenda that will be published at http://missoula.co/bccmeetings
Project Background
It is not clear under state law which agency, if any, has jurisdiction to manage feral horses in Montana. After discussing the issue with the Montana Department of Livestock, Missoula County convened the following agency representatives with subject matter expertise in land and livestock management, ecology and law enforcement:
- Dan Bugni, Lindsey Simon, Dustin Datisman, Jay Bodner, Tahnee Szymanski – Montana Department of Livestock
- Chuck Casper – MPG Ranch
- Natalie Sullivan – MSU Extension Office
- Randy Arnold – Missoula County Lands, Culture and Recreation
- Chris Lounsbury – Missoula County Commissioners’ Office
- Paul Pfau – Montana Highway Patrol
- Jeremiah Petersen – Missoula County Sheriff’s Office
- Bryce Christians – Missoula County Ecology and Extension
- Chet Crowser – Missoula County Office of Lands and Communities
- Bart Morris – Oxbow Cattle Co.
The group discussed the following considerations:
History & Biology
Feral horses have been part of the Missoula County landscape for more than a century, with historical accounts dating back to the early 1900s. Private landowners have periodically conducted roundups of feral horses on their properties, The roundups most recently occurred in 1991, 2003, 2012 and 2023 (in the most recent roundup, the horses were sold to buyers interested in their rodeo stock lineage). Horses continue to remain in the area today, and a smaller band has moved closer to residential areas, raising new questions about safety and management.
- Horses require about 35 acres per head for sustainable grazing, based on the Animal Unit Month (AUM) standard.
- Development pressures are reducing available range.
- Populations can double every 4 to 5 years, and gestation lasts about 11 months.
- Several bands exist in the Miller Creek and surrounding areas, with some groups consistently in residential subdivisions.
Health Concerns
- Feral horses pose limited risk to other species, but domestic horses can be affected.
- Diseases of concern include EHV-1, influenza, equine infectious anemia, salmonella, pigeon fever and equine piroplasmosis (which can remain undetected for long periods).
- The spread of disease can impact the livelihood of landowners in the area who depend on domestic horses to conduct business.
- Vaccines exist for some diseases but are not fully preventative. There are also logistical considerations around how to contain and vaccinate the feral horses.
Public Safety
- A documented vehicle collision occurred in September 2025, resulting in the death of one of the feral stallions.
- Horses can weigh up to 1,500 lbs., creating significant hazards on roadways.
- Stallions may be aggressive and territorial, especially near homes.
- Horse bites are extremely strong — capable of crushing bone without breaking the skin.
- Dogs and horses do not mix well; protective instincts around foals increase risk to both animals.
Legal and Jurisdiction Considerations
- Horses are considered abandoned livestock, not wildlife. This differs from urban deer and other wildlife, which fall the authority under Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
- Jurisdiction primarily falls to private landowners, county and state entities, not federal. The horses primarily being on private property is the main complicating factor; if they were on public land, government agencies would have clearer jurisdiction.
- Relevant Montana Code Annotated sections:
- Abandoned Horses: MCA § 81-4-5
- Estray Horses: MCA § 81-4-6
- Herd Districts: MCA § 81-4-3
- Additional legal framework: Title 81, Livestock
Community Perspectives
- Many residents value the horses and want to see them documented and monitored.
- Others express concerns about safety, property damage, and disease transmission.
- Local agricultural producers worry about the spread of disease and other impacts on domestic horses and business operations.
Who's Listening
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Phone 406-258-3293
I live in upper Miller Creek and I can tell you that most of us LOVE to see the wild horses up there. The herd is healthy and producing healthy offspring proven by the 3 foals born this year. This herd has been here long before we were and instead of looking for ways to get them out of their territory we need to be seeking how to protect this herd. Missoula has much bigger problems that need to be addressed such has cost of living across the board. If Missoula is worried about wild animals in town maybe we should start with a population control plan for the deer which cause a much larger problem in the urban interface.
I would like to submit a comment that I do not want the horses from Miller Creek removed. There may be a very small population of people who don't like them but the majority of us enjoy having them around and they are not causing the problems people say they are. They are wild animals who deserve freedom just as we do and just as the deer who roam our city do. I have never seen anything done about the excessive deer population around the city. And that's because they're not causing a problem just like the horses aren't. Please focus your efforts on more concerning issues in Missoula. If people don't like living around wild animals they should stop spreading out into the wildland urban interface. Not move to somewhere wild and then demand all of the wild animals be removed from that area because they are a minor inconveniences. That girl who got "kicked" by a horse made a very poor decision and her parents clearly were not supervising her well. You should be more concerned about the parents who let their child approach a wild horse rather than the horse's normal reaction to being approached by a human.