America's Sweetheart -The Paint HorseIt all began in 1519 when Hernando Cortes, a Spanish explorer, brought a few spotted horses with him to America when he came to explore the new world. Since then, the Paint horse has grown to be an American favorite, easily recognizable by its bold color scheme. There are several characteristics that define the Paint horse. First, each Paint horse has a stock horse type body frame similar to that of the Quarter horse or Thoroughbred. Second, they all have a coat color of white spots or splotches mixed with spots or splotches of some other color. The most frequent colors include bay, brown or black. Less often these color combinations include buckskin, gray or palomino. Other color combinations may also be seen but are much less frequent. The Paint horse should not be confused with the Appaloosa, which also has spots. Paint horses differ from Appaloosas in that the Appaloosa has spots only on its hind quarters where the Paint horse is spotted or splotched all over. Since its introduction to the United States, the Paint horse has been an important part of American history. In the 1800's when free roaming herds of horses still had free reign in the largely unpopulated West, many of these horses bore the color scheme of the Paint horse. The Indians took a fancy to these boldly colored horses and included many in their own stock. In fact, the Comanche Indians, considered by some to be the finest horsemen of all Indian tribes, had many of these horses in their herds. Their favoritism for this breed is shown by their drawings of the spotted horses included on buffalo robes used for record keeping, according to information posted on the American Paint Horse Association’s website. Until recently, however, there was no breed registry specifically for Paint horses. In 1940, the American Quarter Horse Association was created to preserve horses with a stock type body. Sadly, this association denied membership to horses with the coloring of the Paint horse. It was not until 1965 that the American Paint Horse Association was formed to help protect and preserve this unusually colored breed of horse. In order for a horse to be included in the American Paint Horse Association, it must meet certain bloodline requirements. First, the horse's sire and dam must both be registered with the American Quarter Horse Association, the Jockey Club or the American Paint Horse Association with at least one parent being registered with the American Paint Horse Association. Based on the number of new applicants each year, the Paint horse represents the fastest growing breed of horse in the United States today. Since its introduction to the United States in the 1500's the Paint horse has been a lasting favorite of Americans. Its mix of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse characteristics makes the horse very useful as a western stock horse, while its bold color scheme makes it stand out in a crowd. It is currently one of the fastest growing breeds in America. |
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