Wyoming: The National Agricultural Statistics Service recently released equine inventory and value of sales data for the first time. Estimates were prepared for all equine, both on farms and ranches and in other locations, as of January 1, 1998 and January 1, 1999. The January 1, 1999 equine inventory totaled 62,000 head, up 1,000 head from the previous year. The number of equine sold during 1998 was 5,000 head with a total value of $6.3 million. Equine include horses, ponies, mules, burros, and donkeys.

United States: Inventory of equine in the United States as of January 1, 1999 totaled 5.32 million head, up 1 percent from the 5.25 million head on January 1, 1998. Texas ranked first in equine inventory with 600,000 head followed by California, and Tennessee with 240,000 and 190,000 head, respectively.

The January 1, 1998 total equine inventory was 5.25 million head. Equine located on farms totaled 3.20 million head. Equine located on non-farm places were 2.05 million head or 39 percent of the total.

Equine sold totaled 558,000 head in 1998, an increase of 3 percent from the 540,000 head sold in 1997. Texas had the most equine sold in 1998 at 60,000 head followed by Kentucky with 28,000 head, and Michigan with 21,000 head.

Value of Sales from equine sold in 1998 was $1.75 billion, up 7 percent from of $1.64 billion in 1997. The top five States in value were Kentucky, Florida, Texas, California, and Virginia.