Protesters came out in south Reno to push for more protections for the horses.

The Wild Horse Connection told us that six wild horses have been hit by cars in south Reno, just in the past month.

On Friday, an assembly was held in south Reno off Rio Wrangler.

People were warning drivers to slow down near wild horses. 

They were also asking for better fencing and for more help from the Nevada Department of Agriculture.

City of Reno Vice Mayor Naomi Duerr spoke to us about what is being done about this issue.

"[We're] filling in gaps on fencing for a seven-to-10-mile distance all the way from Hidden Valley, down to Geiger Grade and then even over to Virginia Street," she said.

The Vice Mayor said construction on that fencing will begin around March and should be finished near the end of summer. 

They are also working with the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) to get a cattle guard installed on Geiger Grade Road.

This group of horses on private land in south Reno is in the jurisdiction of the Nevada Department of Agriculture and are managed by the Wild Horse Connection. 

The Vice Mayor is hoping the Department of Agriculture can help with getting the horses away from the road.

"For years the Wild Horse Connection has been able to do diversionary feeding up in the hills to draw the horses off the roads," Vice Mayor Duerr said. "That has stopped this year we are waiting to see what the Department of Agriculture will approve in this region where we have so much congestion for diversionary feeding."

Vice Mayor Duerr said the best thing people can do is limit contact with the horses.

"One of the critical things is it is illegal to feed horses so don't do that," Duerr said.  

Duerr said feeding horses can bring them down to neighborhoods looking for more.

She also said people should not mess with the fencing.

"Don't cut fences, don't leave gates open," the Vice Mayor said. "Every time you do that, that's another avenue for horses to come into our community."

The Vice Mayor is also looking to give the horses more resources to avoid them going into neighborhoods.

"One of things we are looking at is creating altering watering places and places where they can access food that is not provide by humans or the grass on a median," Duerr said.

Until those issues can be resolved, Duerr is reminding drivers to not speed and drive defensively to best avoid hitting wandering horses.