For a funeral, since I'm in a bit of a funk.
In place of actual content, have a couple of links:
First: the first link that came up on Google about a coyote in a New York City parking garage a few days ago.
Second: take a serious warning from this tragic accident, and don't let this happen in your home.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Breed All About It: Rocky Mountain Horse
Today we're going to take a look at another uniquely American breed of horse, the Rocky Mountain Horse.
Much like the Quarter Horse these sturdy equines were bred to be multi-use, versatile beasts with the ability to work every day. Unlike Quarter Horses, they weren't intended for the races. Rather they were bred to be an all-around versatile beast of burden, sure footed and easy to ride.
The Rocky Mountain Horse is a gaited horse... meaning that it has a natural way of propelling itself across the landscape that fits a particular rhythm and is, reportedly, quite comfortable to ride for long periods. This gait is- regardless of what breed of gaited horse we're talking about, and there are several- faster than a walk, more comfortable than a trot, but not as fast as a lope, or canter, if you prefer. The Rocky Mountain Horse is required to have a four-beat gait, meaning that, like at the walk, each hoof strikes the ground individually, rather than any two legs striding at the same time, as with the lope, which is a three beat gait. This gait is natural, present from birth, and cannot be taught. Each horse has its own "way of going," meaning that no two horses will have precisely the same gait or speed. Rocky Mountain Horses have been known to gait at up to twenty miles an hour.
In the late 1800's a stallion emerged into the limelight of the Kentucky horse world, which at that time was far more practical and far less race-focused than it is today. This horse came out of the Rocky Mountains, and was called "The Rocky Mountain Horse."
Other than his unusual coloring, and the fact that he was bred to a geographically small sampling of gaited riding horses in Kentucky, that's pretty much all that's known about the stud who gave rise to a handy little breed.
I mention the stud's coloring, because the rather startling colorations available in the breed today are one of it's most recognizable features. Since we're talking looks, I'll show you some pictures. (It has nothing to do with the fact that I think Rocky Mountain Horses have some of the neatest coat colorings in the horse world. Not at all. So hush.)
Above is a particularly striking example of the dark body/flaxen mane coloration that is such an amazing first impression of the breed. More common is the chocolate/flaxen combination:
More pairings of bold body colors with flaxen mane and tail are apparent in the breed, although by no means are they all so strikingly colored. A Rocky Mountain Horse can be any solid body color, according to breed standards, and facial markings are acceptable if not "excessive." No white markings are allowed above the knee or the hock, however.
The color combinations seen above are examples of a particular expression of the same gene that makes a horse dapple gray. In some horses (as a breed, notably, Lipizanners, but the gene and this expression of it are apparent in many different breeds) the gene can cause them to fade from a more standard coat color, gradually over a lifetime, to a washed out dappled shade of their original color. In others, it simply creates a ghost of dappling in the coat, and still others are born dapple gray.
Other standards for the breed include height, (between 14.2 and 16 hands*) and notably, a good temperament. Very few breed standards include temperament, considering that to be an area in which bloodlines can be allowed to differ.
Since the Rocky Mountain Horse was a very utilitarian breed, its numbers plummeted with the advent of better roads, automobiles, and tractors. At one point it was listed as an Endangered Species.
Today, though, the Rocky Mountain Horse Association is dedicated to preserving and propagating the sturdy little beasts. While they're not anywhere near as common as Quarter Horses or Thoroughbreds, they're making an impact in the world of the pleasure horse, as sure-footed trail horses and gaited show ponies.
* 1 hand = 4in. This measurement was originally, much like the cubit, more haphazard, being the breadth of a man's hand.
** Second image ganked shamelessly from Hidden Trails.com
Much like the Quarter Horse these sturdy equines were bred to be multi-use, versatile beasts with the ability to work every day. Unlike Quarter Horses, they weren't intended for the races. Rather they were bred to be an all-around versatile beast of burden, sure footed and easy to ride.
The Rocky Mountain Horse is a gaited horse... meaning that it has a natural way of propelling itself across the landscape that fits a particular rhythm and is, reportedly, quite comfortable to ride for long periods. This gait is- regardless of what breed of gaited horse we're talking about, and there are several- faster than a walk, more comfortable than a trot, but not as fast as a lope, or canter, if you prefer. The Rocky Mountain Horse is required to have a four-beat gait, meaning that, like at the walk, each hoof strikes the ground individually, rather than any two legs striding at the same time, as with the lope, which is a three beat gait. This gait is natural, present from birth, and cannot be taught. Each horse has its own "way of going," meaning that no two horses will have precisely the same gait or speed. Rocky Mountain Horses have been known to gait at up to twenty miles an hour.
In the late 1800's a stallion emerged into the limelight of the Kentucky horse world, which at that time was far more practical and far less race-focused than it is today. This horse came out of the Rocky Mountains, and was called "The Rocky Mountain Horse."
Other than his unusual coloring, and the fact that he was bred to a geographically small sampling of gaited riding horses in Kentucky, that's pretty much all that's known about the stud who gave rise to a handy little breed.
I mention the stud's coloring, because the rather startling colorations available in the breed today are one of it's most recognizable features. Since we're talking looks, I'll show you some pictures. (It has nothing to do with the fact that I think Rocky Mountain Horses have some of the neatest coat colorings in the horse world. Not at all. So hush.)
Above is a particularly striking example of the dark body/flaxen mane coloration that is such an amazing first impression of the breed. More common is the chocolate/flaxen combination:
More pairings of bold body colors with flaxen mane and tail are apparent in the breed, although by no means are they all so strikingly colored. A Rocky Mountain Horse can be any solid body color, according to breed standards, and facial markings are acceptable if not "excessive." No white markings are allowed above the knee or the hock, however.
The color combinations seen above are examples of a particular expression of the same gene that makes a horse dapple gray. In some horses (as a breed, notably, Lipizanners, but the gene and this expression of it are apparent in many different breeds) the gene can cause them to fade from a more standard coat color, gradually over a lifetime, to a washed out dappled shade of their original color. In others, it simply creates a ghost of dappling in the coat, and still others are born dapple gray.
Other standards for the breed include height, (between 14.2 and 16 hands*) and notably, a good temperament. Very few breed standards include temperament, considering that to be an area in which bloodlines can be allowed to differ.
Since the Rocky Mountain Horse was a very utilitarian breed, its numbers plummeted with the advent of better roads, automobiles, and tractors. At one point it was listed as an Endangered Species.
Today, though, the Rocky Mountain Horse Association is dedicated to preserving and propagating the sturdy little beasts. While they're not anywhere near as common as Quarter Horses or Thoroughbreds, they're making an impact in the world of the pleasure horse, as sure-footed trail horses and gaited show ponies.
* 1 hand = 4in. This measurement was originally, much like the cubit, more haphazard, being the breadth of a man's hand.
** Second image ganked shamelessly from Hidden Trails.com
Monday, March 22, 2010
Light Blogging
As something that calls itself real life interferes.
The next Breed All About It is written and ready to go up so I'll set it to publish tomorrow morning.
*For those of you using a feed or a reader to get the posts... Sorry. User Error in changing the date on the post. It'll go up again tomorrow.
The next Breed All About It is written and ready to go up so I'll set it to publish tomorrow morning.
*For those of you using a feed or a reader to get the posts... Sorry. User Error in changing the date on the post. It'll go up again tomorrow.
Friday, March 19, 2010
The Census
With all of the blathering about the census, federal funds, and the "omg fill it out or the government will have to spend money sending someone to your house to get the info" hysteria, it frankly amuses the hell out of me as I am out and about to see plastic bags plastered with "Census 2010" in red swinging in the breeze on doorknobs and fences in the country.
At houses that are boarded up, overgrown with weeds.
It's tempting, oh so tempting, to take one of those bags, fill it out saying that three ghosts live there, and send it in.
Incorporeal Americans? Bodily Challenged?
Ectoplasmically Talented?
What do you think?
At houses that are boarded up, overgrown with weeds.
It's tempting, oh so tempting, to take one of those bags, fill it out saying that three ghosts live there, and send it in.
Incorporeal Americans? Bodily Challenged?
Ectoplasmically Talented?
What do you think?
Back In The Saddle
Since I don't have an indoor arena with engineered footing and no-fire heaters, I don't get much riding in during the winter. Cold, snow, mud, wind, all of these things sap both my will to ride and my ability to do so, unless it's absolutely necessary.
When it's cold and your horse is feeling like kicking up his heels to warm up, and you're feeling like your nose is about to shatter and fall off your face, you just can't ride to the same standards as when you can actually feel your fingers and toes.
So I don't ride much during the winter, unless we get a rare day with warmer temperatures and no snow or mud on the ground. I'm extremely paranoid about treacherous footing when riding, simply because I'm not set up to stall a horse with a minor leg injury to keep them from moving too much. Being in a pasture rather than confined can turn a minor strain into something more serious in short order, so I watch my horse's legs. If we have to go into a muddy field to retrieve a straying cow, we go, with due caution, but I don't ride for fun when the footing is too bad.
So, Wednesday when we moved cattle, I had been off horseback for literally months, and I was so excited to finally get back on a horse and get back to doing what I love.
I rode Rebel, instead of my beloved and cow-loving Monkey for a couple of reasons. First, Monkey has been off for months as well, and if he was going to have a fit of exuberance about the spring day I'd rather it didn't happen when I have cattle to handle. Second, we have a bunch of little calves, the kind that don't always have the stamina to walk miles at a time, and sometimes those guys need picked up and given a ride in the trailer or the back of a pickup. The easiest way to get a hold of them without risking The Wrath Of The Mother Cow too much is to drop a rope over their heads while walking beside them on horseback. Monkey doesn't do ropes. At all.
Anyway, Rebel and I saddled up and started pushing cows. With wheat growing green and lush in the ditches, most of my job consisted of making sure that they didn't wander into the wheat fields and pushing and shoving them along as they dropped their heads to graze.
We didn't get too excited about getting anywhere in a hurry. Cattle who want to drop their heads and graze as they walk along are far less likely to go tearing off into the wild blue yonder for no real reason. Plus the slower pace means the calves can keep up.
Starting off we had Farmdad in the lead with cake in the back of the pickup. Our cattle love their candy so much they followed him like rats behind the pied piper for about five miles before the lead cow started eyeballing the wheat field across the road too much, and trying to slowly wander off.
At this point I was still helping push, with Farmmom in the other pickup, since the cows in back were more interested in the green stuff under their feet than the cake up ahead.
Once the lead cows got more interested in other things than the cake, I had a bit more of a challenge. I had to push in back to keep things moving, and also keep an eye on the lead cows to make sure they didn't take everyone off across the road.
When they started to wander that way, I had to get up to the front of the herd, which was strung out, before they could get too far.
Now, this can be a delicate balancing act, between getting there before they get out of the fallow field we were crossing and onto the road, and not startling the other cattle into going back the way we'd come or further into the field.
So I needed speed, but not too much speed. Luckily, Rebel was feeling very cooperative and listened to my cues well, keeping an eye on the lead cows we were going to head off while I kept an eye on the ones we were passing and adjusted according to their reactions.
All in all we moved the cattle seven miles in a little over four hours. Mom figures Rebel and I covered at least twelve miles, what with the back and forth behind the herd, circling around to keep the cows pointed in the right general direction when we'd stop and let them graze a few minutes to give the calves a rest, and the back and forth between pushing from the back and heading off the leaders before Farmdad went to the back to push instead of trying to lead them, leaving me to provide a block between the lead cows and the super juicy goodies across the road.
All in all it was a great day for a ride, I got a little sunburn on the back of my neck, my face, and my ears, and I discovered exactly how out of shape for riding I've gotten in the last few months.
But ya know what? Even though I was sore before I ever got off the horse, even though I knew I was going to pay dearly in muscle aches and bruises on my seat bones, I was smiling. Hell, I'm still smiling.
The first ride of the spring, my horse and I doing our work well, watching the calves at their mothers' sides, or pushing in front of the cows to try to get them to stop mom I'm huuunnngrryyyy!
I couldn't have asked for a better day. Everything went smoothly (ok except for the bull deciding he was done walking just short of the pasture gate and turning the lead cows back into the herd... even that was kind of entertaining, I mean, ever seen a bull work a cow like a working cow horse in competition?) and the day was lovely and at long last I got back in the saddle.
Unfortunately I had other things I had to do yesterday, and today a cold front moved in, dropping the temperature to ranges that I know better than to try to ride in with sore muscles, lest I get so stiff while riding that I can't get my leg over to get off.
Soon, though, the weather will warm back up and I'll get back in the saddle. Getting the horses back in shape and polishing their training, moving on to new things and hopefully getting some client horses in to work with.
Spring. I love it.
When it's cold and your horse is feeling like kicking up his heels to warm up, and you're feeling like your nose is about to shatter and fall off your face, you just can't ride to the same standards as when you can actually feel your fingers and toes.
So I don't ride much during the winter, unless we get a rare day with warmer temperatures and no snow or mud on the ground. I'm extremely paranoid about treacherous footing when riding, simply because I'm not set up to stall a horse with a minor leg injury to keep them from moving too much. Being in a pasture rather than confined can turn a minor strain into something more serious in short order, so I watch my horse's legs. If we have to go into a muddy field to retrieve a straying cow, we go, with due caution, but I don't ride for fun when the footing is too bad.
So, Wednesday when we moved cattle, I had been off horseback for literally months, and I was so excited to finally get back on a horse and get back to doing what I love.
I rode Rebel, instead of my beloved and cow-loving Monkey for a couple of reasons. First, Monkey has been off for months as well, and if he was going to have a fit of exuberance about the spring day I'd rather it didn't happen when I have cattle to handle. Second, we have a bunch of little calves, the kind that don't always have the stamina to walk miles at a time, and sometimes those guys need picked up and given a ride in the trailer or the back of a pickup. The easiest way to get a hold of them without risking The Wrath Of The Mother Cow too much is to drop a rope over their heads while walking beside them on horseback. Monkey doesn't do ropes. At all.
Anyway, Rebel and I saddled up and started pushing cows. With wheat growing green and lush in the ditches, most of my job consisted of making sure that they didn't wander into the wheat fields and pushing and shoving them along as they dropped their heads to graze.
We didn't get too excited about getting anywhere in a hurry. Cattle who want to drop their heads and graze as they walk along are far less likely to go tearing off into the wild blue yonder for no real reason. Plus the slower pace means the calves can keep up.
Starting off we had Farmdad in the lead with cake in the back of the pickup. Our cattle love their candy so much they followed him like rats behind the pied piper for about five miles before the lead cow started eyeballing the wheat field across the road too much, and trying to slowly wander off.
At this point I was still helping push, with Farmmom in the other pickup, since the cows in back were more interested in the green stuff under their feet than the cake up ahead.
Once the lead cows got more interested in other things than the cake, I had a bit more of a challenge. I had to push in back to keep things moving, and also keep an eye on the lead cows to make sure they didn't take everyone off across the road.
When they started to wander that way, I had to get up to the front of the herd, which was strung out, before they could get too far.
Now, this can be a delicate balancing act, between getting there before they get out of the fallow field we were crossing and onto the road, and not startling the other cattle into going back the way we'd come or further into the field.
So I needed speed, but not too much speed. Luckily, Rebel was feeling very cooperative and listened to my cues well, keeping an eye on the lead cows we were going to head off while I kept an eye on the ones we were passing and adjusted according to their reactions.
All in all we moved the cattle seven miles in a little over four hours. Mom figures Rebel and I covered at least twelve miles, what with the back and forth behind the herd, circling around to keep the cows pointed in the right general direction when we'd stop and let them graze a few minutes to give the calves a rest, and the back and forth between pushing from the back and heading off the leaders before Farmdad went to the back to push instead of trying to lead them, leaving me to provide a block between the lead cows and the super juicy goodies across the road.
All in all it was a great day for a ride, I got a little sunburn on the back of my neck, my face, and my ears, and I discovered exactly how out of shape for riding I've gotten in the last few months.
But ya know what? Even though I was sore before I ever got off the horse, even though I knew I was going to pay dearly in muscle aches and bruises on my seat bones, I was smiling. Hell, I'm still smiling.
The first ride of the spring, my horse and I doing our work well, watching the calves at their mothers' sides, or pushing in front of the cows to try to get them to stop mom I'm huuunnngrryyyy!
I couldn't have asked for a better day. Everything went smoothly (ok except for the bull deciding he was done walking just short of the pasture gate and turning the lead cows back into the herd... even that was kind of entertaining, I mean, ever seen a bull work a cow like a working cow horse in competition?) and the day was lovely and at long last I got back in the saddle.
Unfortunately I had other things I had to do yesterday, and today a cold front moved in, dropping the temperature to ranges that I know better than to try to ride in with sore muscles, lest I get so stiff while riding that I can't get my leg over to get off.
Soon, though, the weather will warm back up and I'll get back in the saddle. Getting the horses back in shape and polishing their training, moving on to new things and hopefully getting some client horses in to work with.
Spring. I love it.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Breed All About It: American Quarter Horse
Partially because horses are a subject I can talk about for days on end and partially because nothing interesting is happening around here lately to provide me with alternate blogfodder, I've decided to do a series of posts about various breeds, their origins, the reason they were developed, the breeding and cross breeding strategies if I know them or can find them, and my own personal opinion of them.
It won't be daily, and it might not even be weekly, but it'll give me a stand by filler so ya'll won't have to wait too long for something to read.
Today, we're starting with my personal all around favorite: the American Quarter Horse.
Today's Quarter Horse is a long trot from it's origins, starting in the days when the US was still a loose collection of colonies. The colonists, after painstakingly shipping Thoroughbreds across the ocean (crossing oceans with horses is an expensive and specialized process today, much less in the days of sailing vessels) bred their steeds to the Native Americans', which were descended from mounts traded for, stolen from, or escaped from Conquistadors. Those Spanish horses had, in turn, bloodlines of Barb, Arabian, and Iberian lines.
Convoluted, no? But much like your average mutt, the wide mix of genes that went into the creation of the Quarter Horse often created an animal superior in health and intelligence to its purebred counterparts. After many, many generations and breeding experiments, today's Quarter Horse has developed some genetic problems of its own, but we'll get to those later.
Originally, the cross was experimental, and practical. Those colonists who were knowledgeable about animal breeding knew that they had to introduce new genes, and they used what they had. They hoped to get a working horse (stout, well muscled Indian Ponies) that could still compete in a race (Thoroughbred.) Racing your horse, or betting on the race, was one of the most common entertainments. The course of the race might be a stretch of the road leading to town, out and back (or perhaps out, around the edge of town, and back into the other side of town,) or if it was a big deal, between two nearby towns. The most common distance was a quarter or half mile, that being a distance that would allow the horses to show their stuff, while still allowing several races to be run in the course of an afternoon.
In those days, the breed was called "The Famous American Quarter Running Horse"- famous for it's speed over the quarter mile, and the almost universal lack of the stamina to maintain that speed over the longer distances.
In the 1800's, as Manifest Destiny swept across the land, so too did the Quarter Horse. Pioneers needed a versatile, hardy horse that was willing to work, and they found it in the unique Quarter Horse breed. As people settled and began raising families, and cattle, the cowboys tending to and moving the herds found another serendipitous trait of the breed- cow sense.
In the wide open spaces of the frontier, new challenges were found in dealing with cattle. The amount of room, lack of fencing, and general differences between tending animals in well-established areas in Europe and working with what you had in the Wild West required new techniques, new abilities, new horses.
As these things were worked out, partially through trial and error, and partially through skills used for generations by Spanish herdsmen it became apparent that the Quarter Horse was uniquely suited to the work. The compact, build allowed for quick movement, the thick muscling allowed the horse to hold their ground when attached to the opposite end of a rope from a large steer or cow.
Their intelligence allowed them to learn the behavior of the cattle, how to handle them. Those who picked this up quickly were bred to others with the same trait, until the behaviors that make for a good cow pony today can be observed in foals, as they begin to stray from their dam's side and play.
Another important point in the development of the American Quarter Horse is the breeding for personality- the cowboys needed a very specific kind of horse out there on the open range. They needed a steady horse that wouldn't spook at every shadow, but didn't lose all it's initiative. They needed a horse that liked people. If a cowboy had to get off his horse to do something, he wanted to know that his horse wouldn't take the opportunity to high-tail it back to the barn as soon as his back was turned. This created a breed well known for its good nature.
There are two kinds of American Quarter Horses, Foundation, and Appendix.
Foundation Quarter Horses hearken back to the breed's origins. They're stocky, with thick muscling. The heads are more blocky, less "pretty." I like to think of a Foundation Quarter Horse as "built like a tank."
The American Quarter Horse Association requires that the offspring of a registered Quarter horse and a Thoroughbred (with the Thoroughbred being required to meet a certain performance standard) be registered as an Appendix Quarter Horse.
The offspring of a registered Quarter Horse and an Appendix may be registered normally, thus changing the look of many bloodlines into something more delicate and refined. Thoroughbred blood introduces longer legs, less bulk, and a more delicate head.
Personally, I see the appeal of both the Foundation and the more refined looks, but my focus is more on the horse's personality and abilities.
Some of the downsides of the American Quarter Horse include genetic diseases. With today's technology, they can identify the diseases, and trace them back through bloodlines.
HYPP (Hyperkalemic periodic paralysis) is a disease that causes severe muscle twitching, and paralysis, for short or extended periods of time. This disease has been traced back to the stallion Impressive, and is believed to be the result of a natural mutation. The gene is dominant, so only one parent has to have the gene for the disease to manifest. Currently, horses that are homozygous for the gene are barred from registry in the AQHA, but horses that are heterozygous are allowed. There is discussion on whether to bar horses that have the gene at all from the registry, thus cutting the disease off from future generations of registered Quarter Horses.
HERDA (Hereditary Equine Regional Dermal Asthenia) is the result of a recessive gene, and causes a defect in the collagen that results in the layers of skin being only loosely bonded together. So loosely that, in severe cases, a simple pat can peel the layers of hide down to muscle, leaving an open wound. Horses with this disease cannot be ridden, because the weight and friction of the saddle causes tears in the skin, as will bumps and bruises. This disease is commonly believed to have originated with the Poco Bueno bloodline, perhaps before that famous stallion himself. Most horses with this disease are euthanized, both due to the fact that they're not suitable for riding and that they are care intensive, since the slightest bump can result in a painful and difficult to care for open wound, or a situation in which the skin doesn't tear but does come loose from the muscle, creating the possibility for abscesses.
Other genetic diseases present in Quarter Horses include GBED and EPSM, both diseases that effect the muscles. GBED is universally fatal in short order, the foal being unable to process glycogen and the muscles, including the heart and lungs, seizing up and failing to function. EPSM, while similar to GBED and HYPP in that the muscles seize up and fail to function, is not usually fatal, more commonly effecting the muscles of the legs and neck, preventing the horse from being able to move. EPSM attacks (commonly called "tying up") are caused by the body being unable to process and store polysaccharides, rather than glycogen. Tying up is also known in draft horses, and in the days of the true working horse was known as "Monday Morning Disease".. The horses would do heavy work all week, with a grain ration to match, and then would get a rest over the weekend. The grain ration wasn't always cut to match the lower exertion, though, and the excess of polysaccharides would cause the horse's muscles to lock up once they were asked to work. Instances of tying up are still linked to exercise and diet today.
Along with these there is some evidence that the Lethal White gene is present in Quarter Horses. This gene is related to the gene causing white coat, and is, as the name suggests, universally lethal. Lethal White foals are stillborn or die in utero to be re-absorbed.
The American Quarter Horse started out as a dual purpose breed and developed into the definition of the American West.
Not bad for what proper Englishmen considered a muttley breed, huh?
It won't be daily, and it might not even be weekly, but it'll give me a stand by filler so ya'll won't have to wait too long for something to read.
Today, we're starting with my personal all around favorite: the American Quarter Horse.
Today's Quarter Horse is a long trot from it's origins, starting in the days when the US was still a loose collection of colonies. The colonists, after painstakingly shipping Thoroughbreds across the ocean (crossing oceans with horses is an expensive and specialized process today, much less in the days of sailing vessels) bred their steeds to the Native Americans', which were descended from mounts traded for, stolen from, or escaped from Conquistadors. Those Spanish horses had, in turn, bloodlines of Barb, Arabian, and Iberian lines.
Convoluted, no? But much like your average mutt, the wide mix of genes that went into the creation of the Quarter Horse often created an animal superior in health and intelligence to its purebred counterparts. After many, many generations and breeding experiments, today's Quarter Horse has developed some genetic problems of its own, but we'll get to those later.
Originally, the cross was experimental, and practical. Those colonists who were knowledgeable about animal breeding knew that they had to introduce new genes, and they used what they had. They hoped to get a working horse (stout, well muscled Indian Ponies) that could still compete in a race (Thoroughbred.) Racing your horse, or betting on the race, was one of the most common entertainments. The course of the race might be a stretch of the road leading to town, out and back (or perhaps out, around the edge of town, and back into the other side of town,) or if it was a big deal, between two nearby towns. The most common distance was a quarter or half mile, that being a distance that would allow the horses to show their stuff, while still allowing several races to be run in the course of an afternoon.
In those days, the breed was called "The Famous American Quarter Running Horse"- famous for it's speed over the quarter mile, and the almost universal lack of the stamina to maintain that speed over the longer distances.
In the 1800's, as Manifest Destiny swept across the land, so too did the Quarter Horse. Pioneers needed a versatile, hardy horse that was willing to work, and they found it in the unique Quarter Horse breed. As people settled and began raising families, and cattle, the cowboys tending to and moving the herds found another serendipitous trait of the breed- cow sense.
In the wide open spaces of the frontier, new challenges were found in dealing with cattle. The amount of room, lack of fencing, and general differences between tending animals in well-established areas in Europe and working with what you had in the Wild West required new techniques, new abilities, new horses.
As these things were worked out, partially through trial and error, and partially through skills used for generations by Spanish herdsmen it became apparent that the Quarter Horse was uniquely suited to the work. The compact, build allowed for quick movement, the thick muscling allowed the horse to hold their ground when attached to the opposite end of a rope from a large steer or cow.
Their intelligence allowed them to learn the behavior of the cattle, how to handle them. Those who picked this up quickly were bred to others with the same trait, until the behaviors that make for a good cow pony today can be observed in foals, as they begin to stray from their dam's side and play.
Another important point in the development of the American Quarter Horse is the breeding for personality- the cowboys needed a very specific kind of horse out there on the open range. They needed a steady horse that wouldn't spook at every shadow, but didn't lose all it's initiative. They needed a horse that liked people. If a cowboy had to get off his horse to do something, he wanted to know that his horse wouldn't take the opportunity to high-tail it back to the barn as soon as his back was turned. This created a breed well known for its good nature.
There are two kinds of American Quarter Horses, Foundation, and Appendix.
Foundation Quarter Horses hearken back to the breed's origins. They're stocky, with thick muscling. The heads are more blocky, less "pretty." I like to think of a Foundation Quarter Horse as "built like a tank."
The American Quarter Horse Association requires that the offspring of a registered Quarter horse and a Thoroughbred (with the Thoroughbred being required to meet a certain performance standard) be registered as an Appendix Quarter Horse.
The offspring of a registered Quarter Horse and an Appendix may be registered normally, thus changing the look of many bloodlines into something more delicate and refined. Thoroughbred blood introduces longer legs, less bulk, and a more delicate head.
Personally, I see the appeal of both the Foundation and the more refined looks, but my focus is more on the horse's personality and abilities.
Some of the downsides of the American Quarter Horse include genetic diseases. With today's technology, they can identify the diseases, and trace them back through bloodlines.
HYPP (Hyperkalemic periodic paralysis) is a disease that causes severe muscle twitching, and paralysis, for short or extended periods of time. This disease has been traced back to the stallion Impressive, and is believed to be the result of a natural mutation. The gene is dominant, so only one parent has to have the gene for the disease to manifest. Currently, horses that are homozygous for the gene are barred from registry in the AQHA, but horses that are heterozygous are allowed. There is discussion on whether to bar horses that have the gene at all from the registry, thus cutting the disease off from future generations of registered Quarter Horses.
HERDA (Hereditary Equine Regional Dermal Asthenia) is the result of a recessive gene, and causes a defect in the collagen that results in the layers of skin being only loosely bonded together. So loosely that, in severe cases, a simple pat can peel the layers of hide down to muscle, leaving an open wound. Horses with this disease cannot be ridden, because the weight and friction of the saddle causes tears in the skin, as will bumps and bruises. This disease is commonly believed to have originated with the Poco Bueno bloodline, perhaps before that famous stallion himself. Most horses with this disease are euthanized, both due to the fact that they're not suitable for riding and that they are care intensive, since the slightest bump can result in a painful and difficult to care for open wound, or a situation in which the skin doesn't tear but does come loose from the muscle, creating the possibility for abscesses.
Other genetic diseases present in Quarter Horses include GBED and EPSM, both diseases that effect the muscles. GBED is universally fatal in short order, the foal being unable to process glycogen and the muscles, including the heart and lungs, seizing up and failing to function. EPSM, while similar to GBED and HYPP in that the muscles seize up and fail to function, is not usually fatal, more commonly effecting the muscles of the legs and neck, preventing the horse from being able to move. EPSM attacks (commonly called "tying up") are caused by the body being unable to process and store polysaccharides, rather than glycogen. Tying up is also known in draft horses, and in the days of the true working horse was known as "Monday Morning Disease".. The horses would do heavy work all week, with a grain ration to match, and then would get a rest over the weekend. The grain ration wasn't always cut to match the lower exertion, though, and the excess of polysaccharides would cause the horse's muscles to lock up once they were asked to work. Instances of tying up are still linked to exercise and diet today.
Along with these there is some evidence that the Lethal White gene is present in Quarter Horses. This gene is related to the gene causing white coat, and is, as the name suggests, universally lethal. Lethal White foals are stillborn or die in utero to be re-absorbed.
The American Quarter Horse started out as a dual purpose breed and developed into the definition of the American West.
Not bad for what proper Englishmen considered a muttley breed, huh?
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