On July 7, The Cloud Foundation and Front Range Equine Rescue filed a federal lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service with regard to protecting America's most famous wild horse herd ("Cloud's herd") in the Pryor Mountains of Montana.

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The two Colorado non-profits joined forces, charging the BLM with gross violations of the 1971 Wild Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act, and the Forest Service with refusing to grant legal access to range land to wild horses as entitled them per the 1971 Act.

The court filing occurred as a result of the BLM ignoring the many comments, made at both public meetings and in writing to their 2006 Environmental Assessment (EA) for Cloud's herd, and announced they were going ahead with stage one of a phased removal that will bring the herd to non-genetically viable numbers of under 100. The immediate plan calls for the summer removal of 22 age-specific horses as well as continuing a method of birth control on mares over age 11 (PZP darting).

"BLM seems committed to using this herd as a "living laboratory" for experimentation of wild horse herds in the West," states Ginger Kathrens, Executive Director of The Cloud Foundation.

"Cloud's herd is symbolic of the systematic destruction of all wild horse herds. If we don't take strong action now, we will lose an integral part of our American heritage," indicates Hilary Wood, President of Front Range Equine Rescue.