A Visit to the Wild Mustangs of Eastern Oklahoma

There are few things more peaceful to me than a relaxing drive out of the city to get into nature and out of my head. One of my favorite destinations is just outside of town, where I go to see the wild mustangs of Eastern Oklahoma.

The herd of approximately 2,000 horses can be seen by travelers on the Creek Turnpike east of Tulsa, but I much prefer the slower drive on surface streets where I can enjoy the scenery at a more leisurely pace.

The wild mustang preserve covers hundreds of rolling acres over several miles, and while the land itself is private property, with so little traffic it’s very easy to pull over whenever you like to take pictures.

Here’s how you get there: from 193rd Street, simply head east on 31st as far as you like (or until you see cattle instead of horses), take the road south a mile, and then head back west in a big slow loop.

Or just pull over where the road ends, turn off your car, and listen to quiet sound of horses snuffling and whinnying to each other.

The Wild Mustangs – Where Did They Come From?

To be completely accurate, mustangs are not actually “wild.” They are feral, meaning that they were once domesticated but have reverted back to a wild state. And interestingly, although mustangs are a quintessential symbol of the American West, they are not native to the continent at all.

It is believed that the ancestors of modern mustangs arrived in the Americas with the Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century. According the American Museum of Natural History:

Hernando Cortez, the Spanish conqueror of Mexico, is generally credited with being the first to land horses on the North American mainland. When animals escaped from an expedition north from Mexico led by Francisco Vasquez de Coronado in 1543—accounts of the exact date and number of horses vary—they formed the basis of the continent’s first feral horse population. These became known as “mustangs,” from the Spanish word “mesteño,” meaning “wild.”

Between 1600 and 1850, vast herds of mustangs, totaling millions of horses, ranged from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. Their number was constantly added to by new escapees and animals deliberately turned loose. Native Americans, who had become acquainted with the horse in Spanish frontier settlements, soon learned to break and ride mustangs. By the late eighteenth century, these horses formed the basis of the Plains Indians’ warrior and buffalo-hunting cultures.

But with the development of modern ranching, these emblems of the American West came to be regarded as pests that competed with domestic stock and depleted the range. Between the 1920s and the 1950s, mustangs were rounded up and slaughtered without limit. Many were sold for pet food. Eventually, though, the tide turned. In 1971, when about 17,000 feral horses were left, the US Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act mandated the protection of these animals as a “national heritage species.”

The Wild Mustangs – How Did They Get To Oklahoma?

Thankfully, these beautiful animals have been saved from extinction thanks to the activism of individuals like Wild Horse Annie and Nevada Representative Walter Baring. However, the lack of public grazing land for mustangs to roam free means that wild herds must be closely managed by the Bureau of Land Management to maintain a healthy population.

Part of this population management includes annual roundups of wild mustangs from overcrowded areas in the American West and relocation through adoptions, private sales, and transfers. (Catch this great PBS documentary about America’s wild mustangs and BLM adoptions HERE>>)

According to BLM data, the nationwide population of wild mustangs was a little over 82,000 in 2022.  About 20,000 of those animals were removed from public lands, and about 7,800 were placed into private care through adoption, sale, or transfer.

But…what happens to the remaining horses who don’t find new homes through sale or adoption? They are relocated to private ranches around the country, where their continued lifelong care is funded through government subsidies.

And that’s how the wild mustangs of Eastern Oklahoma arrived at the Hughes ranch lands in Catoosa and Bartlesville.

Wild Mustangs – What We Saw

The mustang herd east of Tulsa is made up of older, male geldings. They will live out the remainder of their lives in relative peace and safety, as close to “wild” as possible with minimal human interaction. They are provided with supplemental hay during the winter, but the rest of the year they graze and roam, limited only by the occasional fence line along the road.

These mustangs are probably used to the sound of distant cars, but they were definitely more cautious when I parked on the roadside and got out to take pictures. The herd temporarily froze and watched me for several minutes until they seemed to realize I meant no harm.

Most slowly went back to grazing, while a few kept a look-out on their unusual visitor. (Also, notice the deer in the photo below. We saw lots of those, too!)

One handsome boy was more curious than his herd mates and came up to the fence to take a closer look at me.

An Ice Storm and a Second Visit

Oklahoma weather can change in a moment, and after a mild sunny day we were pelted with an ice storm that shut down local schools for four days.

After one stir crazy week stuck in the house, I took the opportunity to head back out to the wild mustang preserve, this time with Z as my photographer.

I wondered how the horses were doing with the ice and sleet, but I needn’t have worried. Fluffy and velvety in their thick winter coats, they were perfectly content in the weather.

I admit though, as much as I love the romance of truly wild horses, I was happy to see dozens of mustangs grazing along a line of recently provided hay.

We also found one old boy all by himself resting under a tree. He slowly got up and trotted away as we watched, and I was genuinely regretful that we’d disturbed him on such a cold, icy day. Even with hip bones jutting, he moved with slow dignity and graced us with a final look that reminded us of the majestic black stallion he once was.

What We Learned

Although the wild mustang populations receive no veterinary care, hoof maintenance, or vaccinations, these animals often live up to 30 years, a very old age for any horse. Centuries of natural selection have made mustangs incredibly self-reliant, strong, and sturdy, with few natural predators.

And yet, mustangs have perhaps not forgotten their connection to humans. Each year, thousands of these wild horses are rounded up, adopted, gentled, and trained to once again trust and work in partnership with people.

Thousands more are saved through ranchers like the Hughes family and are given the opportunity to live much like their ancestors did. In doing so, they allow us both a glimpse of the past and hope for the future of these majestic animals.