Feral Horses in Miller Creek
Project Background:
Missoula County is currently exploring options to address concerns around a band of feral horses that roams between the Miller Creek area of Missoula and south into the Bitterroot Valley. The feral horses, believed to be descended from rodeo stock from a former ranch that existed in Miller Creek in the 1970s, have become increasingly present in densely populated residential areas over the last few years.
Residents have raised concerns about the feral horses related to public safety, spread of disease, their impact on area livestock, and increased habituation to people and human food sources. The County has also heard from residents who enjoy the feral horses' presence in their neighborhoods.
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 plans to convene agency representatives with subject matter expertise in land and livestock management, ecology and law enforcement. This group will explore potential options for managing the feral horses and provide staff with their recommendations.
The County will engage the public on any potential recommendations sometime in early 2026. This will likely include a public event highlighting the recommendations and providing residents with a chance to bring any questions or concerns to staff.
The county commissioners would then consider adopting the recommendations at one of their public meetings, which take place most Thursdays at 2 p.m. Information on future meetings will also be posted on this page.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Are the people in the advisory group being paid?
A: No, they are volunteering their time and expertise or are participating as part of their regular job duties.
Q: Aren't these horses protected under federal law?
A: No, the federal Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 does not apply to these horses. The band of Miller Creek horses, and the larger herd that roams between Upper Miller Creek and Florence, occupy a mix of private and state land. The 1971 Act only protects mustangs and burros on land owned by the Bureau of Land Management or the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Equines protected under this federal law are relegated to federal herd management areas. Miller Creek and the Bitterroot/Sapphire region are not herd management areas. Free-roaming horses that are not part of these federal herds are under the jurisdiction of state law.
Q: Can residents petition to have the horses removed?
A: Yes, there is a process to petition the commissioners under a state law first enacted in 1925: MCA 81-4-503. The commissioners have received no such petition. Missoula County’s goal is to avoid this scenario by exploring a proactive management plan.
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Please leave the horses where they are. Education possibly needs to be done. By pictures I am seeing and what I am hearing is that people are petting and feeding them. That should stop. Also maybe post signs stating to not feed and pet them. Also, post signs stating that they are in the area and to slow down. Post signs saying stay at least 50 feet away. I take pictures of wild horses in Arizona and that is some of the tings they do. If you want more information please email me at mtbluebird27@yahoo.com.
Are these descendants of Oral Zumwalt's herd? They belong here. Development should back off. Montana should never be for sale.
LEAVE THEM ALONE!!! they have been here long before anyone. It was their home first. they are a beautiful part of missoula history.
Sterilize mares so herd doesn't multiply. Sell off foals through BLM. Let the rest be.
First their not feral their wild. Second their not coming into the residential area humans are making their area their own. Developers bought the land subdivided it for humans. What did you think would happen. This is not going to end well for them. Please consider them as the first priority on your decision.
I’m betting that review group is made up of people that belong to the Cattle Associations. They only vote one way…round up the horses and send them to auction where most of them will be sold by the pound and sent to Canada and Mexico for slaughter. This isn’t going to be in favor of the Wild horses just from the way they are talking bad about them. God bless them all….they are about to go through the most traumatizing event of their life. Foals will be torn from their mothers, and family bands will be split apart. Most likely they will be mistreated, and several killed during the roundup process. It is people encroaching on their lands….not the horses encroaching on the people.
Horses do not destroy the land like cattle do because their manure deposits 70% of what they eat back to the land, seeds and all, which fertilizes the land. Horses also roam rather than stay in place and go to water, drink, dip and leave. Cattle stay in one area for long periods of time, often standing in the water for days destroying the water quality and riverbanks. Cattle rip the grasses out of the ground with their tongues destroying grasslands, allowing bad grass to overtake the land. Their digestive systems destroy seeds and other nutrients which is not helpful for the land.
This is all about the money for the ranchers, not about saving wild horses. We see it time-and-time-again with our public lands and BLM.
Leave the horses alone
Leave them alone and start addressing the deer population. They are attacking pets in yards and walkers. If people quit approaching the feral horse. Hints way they call them feral. They won’t get hurt. The 1 car accident was so to the driver speeding. Do something about the careless drivers. The deer are bringing in the mountain lions.
Leave them be! This is what keeps Missoula beautiful! They have survived for 50 years already, they will keep surviving. They help to reduce potential for burns as they eat the brush and grass.
The horses should be left alone if possible. If not, then move them somewhere they can live peacfully and NOT be adopted or bought, still left feral.
Leave them alone, let them be free.
So because of other people passing building permits instead of rejecting building proposals, and permits… In and around or for Missoula to continue to grow into the fields that these wild/feral horses, deer, elk, foxes, and other wildlife have used to roam freely, they are now in jeopardy of being removed from those of us who love them and appreciate them. It’s almost like we are being punished because they decided to grow Missoula into these areas!!! We are also being punished for the grizzlies. We are also being punished for the growth as well as the mountain lions and the wolves heaven forbid that they roam our forest. Oh no, let’s just remove them instead of not populating such areas! I say start spreading it out throughout Montana keeping down into the lower flats and leave the forest to the wildlife leave the fields open for them to roam freely as they have done for decades and Possibly for centuries!!
These beautiful horses have lived free many years. Are you going to do this with the in town deer.
I say NO, leave them alone
Do not remove them!!! They deserve to be free and humans need to understand they are animals. Just like you wouldn’t go pet a deer DON’T go pet them! They’ve done nothing wrong. If we are concerned about wild animals let’s deal with the out of control deer population…not the wild horses
Ask the tribe if you can put them on Wild Horse Island
Learn the history of of these animals. Then remove them.
The horses were there before the houses and people. However, urban growth in the area is inevitable. A solution that allows the horses to graze the native range and people to coexist is necessary to preserve what has become a cultural icon for Missoula (Wild horses being iconic to the American West in general). I think homeowners need to fence out the horses, as is done in subdivisions where homes are built in grazing allotments. Introduced lawn grasses are not nutritious for horses, but are attractive because they are irrigated and tender.
It may be necessary to thin the horse herd for safety and range health. It is also critical that the landowners receive education about the herd and how to behave around feral animals.
Lighting the roadway would increase safety in the area, to prevent vehicle/wildlife/horse accidents.
An "Adopt A Horse" Program could be started to help with the expenses of both people & herd management.
Above all, some agency or committee made up of citizens, organizations, and agencies needs to take on the jurisdiction of the horses. Perhaps a nonprofit?
Leave them alone! They were there first. People should be teaching their kids not to touch them just like bears, lions and other wild animals. My kids knew not to feed the neighbors horses or pet them without permission. Missoula thinks they have to manage everything but they end up managing nothing and just making things more difficult...in this case it will be more difficult for the horses. The people should learn to live with them and enjoy them.
Please ignore the safetyists who are over hyping “dangers” all of the sudden and educate people to pay attention and keep their kids away. The loudest most vocal voices are creating hysteria over these horses who have been here for decades. This is Montana not suburban Waukegon Illinois.
Leave the horses alone Montana is open range you don't like them fence them out ...
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