How Wyoming Uses Wild Horses To Help Prison Inmates

Riverton Wyoming, a minimum security prison helps reform inmates by teaching them farming, ranching, and wild horse training.

You won't find a fence at the prison.

Most of these inmates are at the end of their sentences. They don't want to blow it now.

So here is a chance to finish their time and leave on good terms.

Part of the work they do at the end of their sentence is tame wild mustangs.

These horses are used for many things, including NYC police patrols.

Recently, this prison was featured on 60 Minutes.

Mostly because their approach to prison reform is uniquely Wyoming.

Another group training and caring for Wyoming's wild mustangs is the Wyoming Mustang Association.

This group is not associated with the prison. They just love the horses.

Founded in 2018, the Wyoming Mustang Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that hosts events, clinics, shows, and volunteer opportunities throughout the year to promote the wild horses and burros we all love.

The club works closely with the Bureau of Land Management and the Mustang Heritage Foundation for several annual events including Wyoming Mustang Days and the Wyoming TIP Challenge.

The WMA hosts events throughout the year including BurroCross hikes and skill-building clinics.

The current President and Secretary of the Wyoming Mustang Association are named Marillyn. She lives in Kinnear, WY (a tiny town between Riverton and Dubois).

Originally from Illinois, she moved to Wyoming in 2012, where she then started observing mustangs in the wild.

It was easy for Marillyn to fall in love with a stallion in Stewart Creek (that is still wild) and started learning more about mustangs and visiting different HMAs.

On the group's website, there is a page that is all about their members and why they joined, plus the work they do with Wyoming's Mustangs.

The group's stated goal is: