One time, two times, three times the power « Straight from the Horse's Heart

One time, two times, three times the power « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "What is the difference between a wild horse and a captive horse? What is the difference between a trained and an untrained horse? What is the difference between a mare and stallion? What is the difference between a horse tortured by the BLM and a horse tortured by a killer buyer? The correct answer is NONE."

A Report from “Mustangs on the Hill” « Straight from the Horse's Heart

A Report from “Mustangs on the Hill” « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "It was a big day for wild horses in Washington D.C. on Tuesday as The Cloud Foundation staged its “Horses on the Hill” event and the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board met giving barely a listen to activists protesting wholesale roundups decimating herds in the American West."

Advocates from across the U.S. lobby Congress on September 29 to protect America’s Wild Horses and Burros « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Advocates from across the U.S. lobby Congress on September 29 to protect America’s Wild Horses and Burros « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Washington DC - Wild horse and burro advocates from across the country will gather in Washington DC on September 29 to lobby on behalf of S.1579, the Restore Our American Mustangs (ROAM) Act. They will also ask Senators to halt the Bureau of Land Management’s devastating practice of “managing” wild herds into extinction."

Straight from the Horse's Heart

Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Over the Labor Day Weekend of 2009 the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) bumbled an ill-conceived and mismanage round up of the world famous “Cloud’s Herd” of the Pryor Mountains in Montana. Ignoring their studies and the advice of experts they stampeded horses down 5,000 feet of rocky mountainside in 95+ degree heat only to break apart family bands, pump the mares full of PZP and injure the horses. Despite public outcry, orders from a Congressman and questions from Senators the local BLM office in Billings destroyed this beautiful herd.

This presentation was written in honor of Cloud’s herd and the pictures are exclusively from that “gather”. Get outraged, get mad and then get on the phone and call your elected federal officials and tell them that enough is enough."

Update: Wild Stallion Conquistador sold but Forest Herd kept together

Update on Pryor Mountain Herd auction from The Cloud Foundation

All 57 either adopted or sold to good homes.

4 bands of Forest Service horses, 15 total including Floyd and Conquistador and his mare will be kept together at ranch of Laura Pivonka.

Ember and Image get to stay together, have a great home, also adopted into great homes were Arrow, Rain, Helena Montana, Stiles, Cassidy, the lame foal with his mom, who is looking better, and Ginger got Sax.

Conquistador had the record bid – $2500

Huge thanks to all the Freedom Fund donors and all the supporters who made this possible – this is a big win.

The Cloud Foundation
107 South 7th St
Colorado Springs, CO 80905
719-633-3842
719-633-3896 fax

Horseback Mag Exclusive: Wild Horse Roundup What I saw

Author and activist R.T. Fitch and his wife Terry spent six days on Montana's Pryor Mountain during the BLM roundup of the wild horses there. The following is his take on what transpired.

Wild Horses: They keep Coming « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Wild Horses: They keep Coming « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "There was nothing that we could do to stop them; the wild horses just kept coming. Driven by the mean beat of the helicopter blades they ran before us and into the pens as they screamed for their lives."

The question is not: « Straight from the Horse's Heart

The question is not: « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "he question is not: “do you support horse slaughter.”

The question is: “do you support the cruel, terrifying transport for days without food and water in their journey to death?”

The question is: “do you support the torture and abuse of the killer chutes, even for crippled horses, pregnant mares, wild horses, protective mares with foals by their sides?”

The question is: do you support the horse slaughter factories that lie to their consumers about the many chemicals that taint the horse meat, and call it Organic"

Commentary: From Cloud’s Herd point of view « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Commentary: From Cloud’s Herd point of view « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "I have been saying it all along! The BLM,US Forest Service,US Fish Game and Wildlife,and the United States Geographical Science service, donot have a specific formula to determine accurate AUM’s (Animal Unit Month).For those of you who do not know what an AUM is, I will sum it up in a nut shell for you. It’s how much a foraging species eats on a month to month basis. The BLM and ecologists blame the degradation of the rangelands on wild horse overgrazing.They claim that the wild horse infringes on other native species foraging rights. They also claim the wild horses eat rare and protected vegetation that grows on the rangelands. Nothing, and I mean nothing is further from the truth than those fabricated analysis’s."

BLM Capture of Iconic Wild Horse Herd Sparks Controversy « Straight from the Horse's Heart

BLM Capture of Iconic Wild Horse Herd Sparks Controversy « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "LOVELL, WY– September 17, 2009 — Once wild and free, living in spectacular sub-alpine meadows designated by Congress as their home, 57 wild Mustangs now wait in dusty pens in the 90 degree heat. The BLM pens sit at the base of the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range of Wyoming and Montana. The corrals offer no shade for the wild horses, now branded, with ropes and numbers around their necks. 19 year-old Conquistador is no longer a proud band stallion. He is number 5336. 21 year-old Grumpy Grulla is no longer a lead mare. She is number 5321."

The High Cost of Lameness on the Mountain, Oops, He’s Not Lame « Straight from the Horse's Heart

The High Cost of Lameness on the Mountain, Oops, He’s Not Lame « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "HOUSTON, (Horseback) – Employees of the Bureau of Land Management’s Billings, Montana, office hit a windfall as the summer months on Pryor Mountain came to an end. They had to work on the Labor Day holiday, September 7, and by federal regulation received double their regular pay, piling more costs onto an already expensive outing for the agency."

While Cloud was running for his life, BLM employees were awash with double-time pay « Straight from the Horse's Heart

While Cloud was running for his life, BLM employees were awash with double-time pay « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Mustangate; Yet another chapter

It appears that the more you study the BLM’s bumbled round-up of Cloud’s herd in the Pryor Mountains the more it just doesn’t look, taste or smell right. Every action, each flawed decision leaves an after taste of possible corruption, collusion and derision in the mouth of American tax payers."

Coming to PBS – Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Coming to PBS – Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Considering the occurrences of the past week it is heart wrenching to view the preview of PBS’s upcoming premier of Emmy Award winning cinematographer Ginger Kathrens’s third Wild Horse installment, Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions."

Cloud Capture Draws Capitol Attention « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Cloud Capture Draws Capitol Attention « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "HOUSTON (Horseback) – The hasty labor day “gather” of the iconic equine star of the PBS “Nature” series, Cloud, has sparked interest and consternation from coast to coast as wild horse lovers rally to put a halt to Bureau of Land Management “gathers” on the nation’s public lands."

CLOUDS GATHERING OVER BLM HORSE PROGRAM « Straight from the Horse's Heart

CLOUDS GATHERING OVER BLM HORSE PROGRAM « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "It is recognized by most wild horse advocates that the herds of wild horses that roam on our public lands require some degree of management. Herd population growth, loss of predators, intrusion by other land uses, extreme weather events, and the horses’ inability to migrate to new ranges due to man-made barriers require some intervention so that the horses remain in balance with range resources. It is in the application of horse management techniques where the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has demonstrated both competent resourcefulness and gross incompetence. The recent roundup of the iconic “Cloud” and his herd in the Pryor Mountains have provided a shining example of incompetence."

Cattleman Ken McNabb in bed with the BLM « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Cattleman Ken McNabb in bed with the BLM « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "While Emmy award winning cinematographer Ginger Kathrens was held in a designated “protest area” , during the Pryor Mountain round up, and required to have “security” escort herself and a small group of professional photographers, writers and authors about the Britton Springs BLM holding facility; cattleman and purported horse trainer Ken McNabb and his family were granted free and unfettered access to the entire facility. Mr. McNabb’s children had free rein to run and play anywhere they wanted while the unbiased professionals were held under close watch and moved only when they could be escorted by security on this publicly owned property. Is this not a contradiction of terms, morals and clear acts of discrimination? We think so."

Cloud Update: Footsore and Lame in the Mountains « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Cloud Update: Footsore and Lame in the Mountains « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Cloud, the world’s most famous wild horse, was released from the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) holding pens on September 09, 2009. Cloud’s family was ripped to pieces by the BLM leaving him with only half of his band’s population and all of the mares chemically sterilized with PZP. There is little hope that Cloud’s bloodline will be able to survive this brutal and unwarranted attack perpetrated by the very federal agency that is charged, by law, with protecting our wild horses and burros, the BLM."

Letter from Ginger Kathrens « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Letter from Ginger Kathrens « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "We have always believed that 20 young Pryor wild horses ages 1-2 could be successfully adopted even during these rough economic times. Now BLM is holding 57 horses and three foals at the Britton Springs Corrals located at the base of the mountain. Most are over 1-2 years of age. We continue to push for BLM to return the oldest back to their home."

Cloud’s Herd: the death of a promise « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Cloud’s Herd: the death of a promise « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "here was a feeling of foreboding doom running through the occupants of a small motel room in distant Lovell, WY on the eve of September 2nd, 2009. Many had worked for weeks preparing a legal case to block the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from capturing and removing the world’s most famous herd of wild horses from their designated sanctuary in the Pryor Mountains – Cloud’s Herd. Only a few hours earlier, they had learned that their attempt to stop the madness had failed and the government agency would commence the brutal “gather” the following day. They huddled together in hopes of formulating a plan, a focus point on which they could rally around; even though they felt the cold bite of virtual steel handcuffs on their wrists."

Fight continues to save Cloud’s herd « Straight from the Horse's Heart

Fight continues to save Cloud’s herd « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "Dear Supporters,
We’re sorry to announce that the District Court judge in DC denied our request for a temporary restraining order today
and the roundup of Cloud’s herd is to start tomorrow. You can read the court documents here. BLM’s reasoning for this roundup is pathetic. Please don’t give up - we are doing everything we can to monitor this operation and influence the outcome. Young foals only DAYS OLD are on this mountain. Horses in their LATE TEENS and TWENTIES will be removed- this is unacceptable."

The BLM, Uranium and the Pryor Mountains: a perfect mix for a Collusion Cocktail « Straight from the Horse's Heart

The BLM, Uranium and the Pryor Mountains: a perfect mix for a Collusion Cocktail « Straight from the Horse's Heart: "So out of the clear blue sky the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decides to round up the small, yet internationally famous, wild horse herd in the Pryor Mountains, MT while the public screams stop and they refuse to listen. We think that there is something that does not smell, or taste, just quite right, here."