POWELL, Wyo. (AP) — Some people are opposing a proposed wild horse roundup in the Pryor Mountains because they fear the animals will end up being euthanized, but a federal official said killing the horses is not part of the plan.

The Bureau of Land Management field office in Billings, Mont., has proposed gathering 38 wild horses from the Pryor Mountain herd.

Public comments were taken on the plan up until mid-July.

In June, a bureau advisory board in Reno, Nev., proposed euthanizing wild horses as a strategy to cope with the cost of placing captured horses in long-term care when they were not adopted.

The bureau does have the authority under existing law to kill its wild horses, said Jim Sparks, field manager for the Billings BLM office.

But the agency plans to put the Pryor horses up for adoption, and the bureau has never had trouble finding homes for Pryor horses, Sparks said.

In addition, the plan is to gather young horses that would be more attractive to potential buyers, he said.

Currently there are about 170 horses in the Pryor herd. The agency’s ideal number for the herd is 85 to 105, Sparks said.

Once the bureau issues a final decision, the roundup could begin soon thereafter.

Sparks said the bureau received around 400 public comments on the proposed roundup with 99 percent opposed to the gather.

Sparks estimated that only one or two responses arrived from Wyoming residents.

Information from: The Powell Tribune, http://www.powelltribune.com