Rocky Mountain Horse

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Rocky Mountain Horse
ambling gait
Breed standards

The Rocky Mountain Horse is a

ambling gait known as the "single-foot". Originally developed as a multi-purpose riding, driving and light draft horse, today it is used mainly for trail riding
and working cattle.

Breed characteristics

ambling
gait under saddle. This horse exhibits the "chocolate" color, with flaxen mane and tail.

Rocky Mountain Horses stand between 14 and 16 

black base coat. Although uncommon, this gene has been found in over a dozen breeds, including the Rocky Mountain Horse.[2] Minimal white markings are accepted by the registry, although leg markings may not extend above the knee. The physical characteristics are somewhat variable, due to the disparate breeds that created the Rocky Mountain Horse.[1] The Rocky Mountain Horse is known by enthusiasts for its hardiness and ability to withstand winters in the mountains.[3] It is also praised for its good nature and affinity for humans.[4]

Rocky Mountain Horses have the highest risk of any breed for the genetic

placode was suspected.[6]

The breed exhibits a natural

rack.[7] In comparison, the average medium trot speed is 6 to 8 miles per hour (9.7 to 12.9 km/h).[10]

History

The mane and tail of "chocolate" colored horses are several shades lighter than the coat.

Eastern

Spanish horses from the southern United States and English horses from the North. American Saddlebreds, Tennessee Walking Horses and Missouri Fox Trotters also originated in the same general geographic area, from the same mixing of Spanish and English blood.[1] Rocky Mountain Horses have a similar history to the Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse, and together are sometimes called "Mountain Pleasure Horses".[11] The Rocky Mountain Horse originated in eastern Kentucky from a foundation stallion brought to the Appalachian Mountains from the Rocky Mountains around 1890. Brought to the area as a colt, oral histories state that the "Rocky Mountain Horse", as he was known, possessed the preferred chocolate color and flaxen mane and tail found in the breed today, as well as the single-foot gait. He was used to breed local saddle mares, and due to the small area in which he was bred, a local strain of horse originated.[12]

This foundation stallion produced a descendant, named Old Tobe, who became the more modern father of the Rocky Mountain Horse breed. Old Tobe was owned by a resident of Spout Springs, Kentucky named Sam Tuttle. For most of the 20th century, Tuttle was a prominent breeder of Rocky Mountain Horses, and helped to keep the strain alive during the Great Depression and World War II. After World War II, despite declining horse populations in the US, Tuttle kept his herd, and continued to use Old Tobe as a breeding stallion.[1][12] Tuttle held the Natural Bridge State Park concession for horseback riding, and used Old Tobe for trail rides in the park and for siring additional trail horses,[1] the latter until the stallion was 34 years old. Old Tobe died at the age of 37.[4] The presence of the single-foot gait makes it possible that the breed is in part descended from the Narragansett Pacer, a breed known for passing its gaited ability on to other American breeds.[3]

In 1986, the Rocky Mountain Horse Association was created to increase population numbers and promote the breed;

American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, meaning that the estimated global population of the breed is fewer than 15,000, with fewer than 800 registrations annually in the US.[13]

The breed was originally developed for general use on the farms of the Appalachian foothills, where it was found pulling plows and buggies, working cattle and being ridden by both adults and children. Today, it is still used for working cattle, as well as endurance riding and pleasure riding.[14] The breed's gait and disposition make it sought out by elderly and disabled riders.[4] Each September, the Kentucky Horse Park hosts the International Rocky Mountain Horse Show.[7]

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 1580176135
    .
  2. PMID 17029645
    .
  3. ^
    ISBN 1564586146
    .
  4. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7603-3499-7
    .
  5. PMID 19099555
    .
  6. ^ Jessica Fragola; Leandro Teixeira (June 23, 2017). "Microphthalmia with multiple ocular abnormalities in 11 horses: a novel syndrome". Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 58 (8): 1725.
  7. ^ a b c "Rocky Mountain Horse". International Museum of the Horse. Retrieved 2017-01-02.
  8. ^ a b Strickland, Charlene (1998-06-01). "They've Got the Beat: Gaited Horses". The Horse. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
  9. ISBN 9780060931148
    . Retrieved 2012-05-09.
  10. ^ "Tips and Hints for Endurance Riding". The Old Dominion Endurance Rides, Inc. Retrieved 2012-05-06.
  11. ISBN 1580176135
    .
  12. ^ a b "History of the breed". Rocky Mountain Horse Association. Retrieved 2012-04-20.
  13. American Livestock Breeds Conservancy
    . Retrieved 2012-04-27.
  14. ISBN 9780806138848
    .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rocky Mountain Horse.

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