Adopt a Pony

Legend has it the Ocracoke Banker ponies arrived in the Outer Banks with shipwrecked explorers in the 16th or 17th century, and they’ve called the Ocracoke Island home ever since. While many of these early ponies were claimed by residents, some were left to roam wild. The National Park Service took over their care and maintenance in the 1960s to keep them safe as the island’s human population continued to grow.

Now you can help these beautiful and unique ponies by symbolically adopting an Ocracoke pony! Your support of the ponies – individually or the herd – will help to pay for their ongoing care and feeding.

When you Adopt A Pony with a gift of $50 or more, you will receive an adoption certificate and a picture of your pony or the herd to keep. Learn more about the history of the ponies here.