The Forest Service is being sued by animal welfare advocates concerned about the possibility of Wild Mustangs being sold for meat. 20 more horses were gathered Monday from the Devil’s Garden Plateau Wild Horse Territory in Modoc County, bringing the total to 671. Forest Service contractors are using helicopters and other means to force a thousand horses into corrals. A number of the animals have been put down due to what officials call pre-existing conditions, and a few have been killed as a result of injuries sustained during the round-up. The Forest Service says that in 2016 they gathered 292 horses near the territory and marked 68 stallions, releasing them back onto the territory. On Monday several of those same stallions challenged the wranglers at the corrals. Officials estimate the range and the other wildlife that live there can only sustain around 400 horses at a healthy level, but an estimated 4000 horses have been counted. After the one thousand horses are gathered, there will be a 60 day period for open adoption of 300 of the horses, with the other 700 going to the BLM. Horses left over after the 60 days will be sold without limits for as little as One Dollar each. Fearing that they’ll be sold for human consumption, the Human Society and others filed a federal lawsuit filed last Thursday challenging the Forest Service plan. The Forest Service says the land can’t handle them and good homes are desperately needed.