The Rocky Mountain Horse
Photos and Story by Lyn Odom-Cherenzia

Tradition has it that around the turn of the century a young horse appeared in Eastern Kentucky that gave rise to a line of horses that have been prized and treasured in this part of the country (Kentucky) ever since. The basic characteristics are a medium sized horse of gentle temperament with an easy ambling four beat gate. This gait made it the horse of choice on the farms and the rugged foothills of the Appalachians. It was a horse for all seasons. It could pull the plows in the small fields, work cattle, be ridden bareback by four children to the fishing hole, or to town comfortably on Saturday. They even performed well hitched to the buggy Sunday morning to go to church. Fancy barns and stalls were not necessary. Because of it’s cold-blooded nature, it tolerated the winters in Kentucky with a minimum of shelter. Naturally out crossing with local horse did occur but the basic characteristics of a strong genetic line have continued. {Sic] the Rocky Mountain Horse Association.]

Sharon Dalrymple and Shelley Watanabe are traveling the country to promote the Rocky Mountain breed. They have recently purchased a farm in Versailles, Kentucky, where seven of their brood mares are due to foal. “We fell in love with these horses when we decided to search earnestly for a pleasure horse that was gentle and had the stamina to be ridden all day.” says Shelley. With their single foot gait, these hearty animals can really put on the miles in a single day. If fact many Rocky mountain Horse owners keep mileage records by honor system and turn them in to the association to be posted at the end of the year. Some of the categories recognized are: Riding/Driving Pleasure, Competitive Riding, Endurance Riding, Juvenile Rider, Adult Rider and Senior Rider. The versatility of the Rocky Mountain Horse is enjoyed and perused by horse enthusiasts across the country.

Several horse breeds have been introduced into the Rocky Mountain breed, such as Morgans, Tennessee Walkers, Paso Fino’s and Missouri Foxtrotters, and they too make a wonderful working pleasure horse, but to be registered into the Rocky Mountain Horse Registry the horses must fall into certain guidelines and characteristics: 1. The horse must stand between 14.2 and 16hh with a wide chest sloping 45% on the shoulder, bold eyes and well-shaped ears. 2. A NATURAL ambling 4-beat gait (single foot or rack) with no evidence of pacing. The pace must have 4 distinct hoof beats of equal cadence and rhythm. 3. Good temperament and easy to manage. 4. A solid body color. Facial markings are acceptable at a minimum and there should not be any white above the knee or hock.

The most common color of the true Rocky Mountain Horse is chocolate brown with a flaxen mane and tail. This unusual characteristic makes the Rocky Mountain Horse stand out in a crowd. In recent years dapple-grays have been surfacing throughout the breed. With the “no white” rule within the registry, you see that the dapples still may only have white markings below the knee and hock or on the head. The variations in the chocolate color are apparent also. It runs from a deep rich chocolate to a lighter, almost bronze color. The manes are always lighter than the body. A deep slate gray as well as deep chestnut and bay black are popular too.

The Rocky Mountain Horse’s throat latch and neck are deep and heavy and their head carriage is more erect than most pleasure breeds. They are sure footed on rough ground and with the natural four beat gait. The minimum effort of horse and rider makes covering a lot of ground less tiring. Their long strides and short backs make for less bounce in the saddle. They have tough feet, some owners preferring to keep them unshod. They are long in the pastern, fore arm, gaskin and hind cannon, but short in the fore cannon. They are rounded in the croup and buttock, but tend to be fairly straight in the crest and loin. This makeup of the Rocky Mountain Horse makes for a compact, deep body that uses less energy to move forward, thus the smooth endurance of this generally quiet breed.

Sharon and Shelley are looking forward to the foal due May from their Rocky Mountain mare Sewell’s Blaze of Glory, affectionately known as Betsy. Two of their other horses, geldings Shere Khan (Poo Bear) and Choco Doc Brandy (Doc) are getting to move from the South Texas farm to the green rolling hills of Kentucky to the new broodmare farm already established there. Betsy and her new foal will be the first mother and foal to decorate the Versaille, Kentucky farm with many more mares and foals soon to follow.

We wish Sharon and Shelley great success in their endeavor to promote this fantastic breed of horse.

Information on the Rocky Mountain Horses can be found on a wonderful website that has several links to a huge body of information about the horses at www.naturalgait.com and at www.rmhorse.com.

(Back to Breeds)

(Home)