The Arapaho Ranch recently held a horse reduction sale at the ranch. Forty mares and ten yearlings were auctioned off. The ranch had close to 200 horses at one time.
Horse manager Alex Friday, an enrolled member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe, plans on developing an equine program at the ranch, which includes a youth program. Friday would like to see the younger generation involved in everything from feeding, exercise and grooming to riding a horse. Until then Friday plans on gettng the ranch's horse stock down to a more manageable size.
"Good horses sell, and that's how its always been", said one onlooker.
A good crowd of horse enthusiasts gathered at the ranch to buy a horse or to watch as others entered into a bidding war. People from all around the area came to look for trail horses and work horses, and just about everything in between.
One mare had been on the ranch for the past 16 years and was remembered by one gentleman as he had ridden her when he was a young man working on the ranch. The Arapaho Ranch was purchased by the Tribe back in 1940 and is on the oldest cattle ranches in Wyoming.
Over the course of three hours the auctioneer, Shawn McWilliams, played to the crowd, doing his best to raise the bidding.
"This is one broke, broke, broke horse," said McWilliams.. "Good for old grandpa's, they say."
One gentleman came up from Fort Washakie to watch the horse reduction sale and ended up buying two of the ranch's horses. Even those who didn't buy a horse enjoyed watching.
Click Here to view the photo gallery from the Horse Reduction Sale