BLM hosts open ranch day, wild horse adoption event near Laramie
BLM’s Deerwood Ranch event put 20 wild horses within reach today, with free tours, on-site applications and a look at a herd of more than 350 near Laramie.
Deerwood Ranch opened its gates west of Laramie today for a free BLM Wyoming open ranch day and wild horse adoption event that gave Albany County visitors a direct look at federal horse management in their own backyard. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 599 State Hwy 11, the ranch offered tours, wagon rides through the resident herd and a chance to meet about 20 wild horses available for adoption or sale.
BLM says Deerwood Ranch is home to more than 350 Wyoming wild horses and has served since 2012 as the bureau’s first wild horse ecosanctuary. The site sits about 30 miles west of Laramie and has become a regular public draw: at a 2025 Deerwood event, BLM said about 300 people attended, with 25 animals available, including 20 young horses and five gelded burros.
The event also showed how the federal program works on the ground. BLM manages wild horses and burros on 25.5 million acres of public lands across 10 Western states, and says animals are removed from overpopulated herds to help maintain healthy wild horses and burros on healthy public rangelands. Deerwood is one of the few places in the region where that policy meets a local audience face to face, from ranch families to horse owners to anyone considering whether an untrained horse fits their property and skill level.
For people thinking beyond a visit, the practical details matter. BLM said applications for the Deerwood event were approved on site, and the national Wild Horse and Burro Program sets adoption requirements through its program resources. The animals at Deerwood were described as untrained, which makes the event more realistic for experienced horse people, ranchers with the facilities to handle a young horse and families prepared for the time and expense that come with a wild horse.
The event’s timing, free admission and on-site application process turned Deerwood into more than a public outing. For Albany County, it was a working example of how federal land policy, local livestock culture and the regional equine economy intersect just west of town.
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