Horses are some of the earliest residents of Los Angeles. Ancient horses appeared to have roamed the scrub forest of the Los Angeles basin from 25 to 5 million years ago.  Horses have served many roles in Los Angeles from farm animals, to racing, to pulling some of the Red Line’s first streetcars, to participating in recreation and sporting activities, to helping the Los Angeles Police Department’s mounted unit with crowd control today.

Horse Licenses

Horse owners in the City of Los Angeles must license their equine aged 12 months or older each year.  Equine are defined as any horse, pony, donkey, burro, or mule. Equine licenses are $14 a year (LAMC 53.15.1).  The money collected from Equine Licenses is deposited into a fund under the Recreation and Parks Departments and is used to maintain public trails and equestrian parks.

Click here to access a City of Los Angeles Department of Animal Services equine license application.

Horse Adoptions

As the Great Plains of the North America shrink, the wild horses that remain are losing the land they graze on.  The Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has established the National Wild Horse and Burro Program for those individuals who wish to adopt a wild horse.

California is a leader among the Bureau of Land Management's 12 western states with over 1,000 animals adopted annually.  Over 200 trained volunteers assist with adoptions, gentling horses, and providing foster homes. 

There are twenty-two wild horse and burro herd management areas located throughout Southern California. Professional Wranglers perform roundups throughout the year in order to keep these herd management areas in thriving ecological balance with their habitat. At the Ridgecrest Corrals located near Death Valley California, captured animals are prepared for adoption, including vaccinations, worming, blood tests and branding. During this 30 - 45 day period, the animals are fed daily, which helps to acclimate the horses to eat domestically grown hay. On an average year, the corrals will prepare more than 1,000 animals.

For more information about California wild horse adoptions or tours of the Ridgecrest Corrals, please click here to visit the California BLM website.

Not interested in adopting a wild horse?  Then how about a racehorse?  The New Vocations for Racehorse Adoption Program will also match potential adopters with retired racehorses.  For additional information on the racehorse adoption program and how to acquire a retired racehorse go to www.horseadoption.com.
For More Information about Horses and Horse Services in Los Angeles:

Click here to learn more about the City of Los Angeles’ Departmental Air Rescue Team (DART),an emergency response unit that is trained to deal with equestrian emergencies and rescues.

Click here for more information about the L.A. Equestrian Center

Click here for the Southern California Equestrian Directory of stables and horseback riding lessons in Los Angeles.

Click here to learn about the history of the horse from the International Museum of the Horse.