Wild horse advocates from The Cloud Foundation maintain that the horses, which reside in the Pryor Mountains of Montana and Wyoming, are genetically linked to a herd brought to the U.S. by Spanish colonists. | Photo: iStock

A federal district court judge has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from gathering horses from the Pryor Mountain herd in advance of the court’s permanent ruling on the round-up.

Wild horse advocates from the Cloud Foundation maintain that the horses, which reside in the Pryor Mountains of Montana and Wyoming, are genetically linked to a herd brought to the U.S. by Spanish colonists. The Foundation sought the injunction to prevent the gather slated to take place on Sept. 2 on grounds that it would harm the horses.

In issuing the order Judge Susan P. Watters said the BLM failed to manage the herd for both rare genetics and the unusual colors