Horse Areas in Idaho? (Lapwai: live, to move, rich)

[banjomike]

Monte Walsh is one of the finest Westerns ever written. Joe was like him a lot.
And I was really happy when Chapo came out! I'm sure once he smelled that peppermint, he was too. He's a great horse. He's a paint, by the way. The only paint on the place.

[LionFamily]

Thanks for the update on Chapo, banjomike, and for sharing more of your life stories. Your family is blessed to have you as an historian. (Seriously, you need to write these things down. If not for publication, then just for your family. Your posts are awesome; I can't imagine how incredible they would be around a campfire at night. )

[mistyriver]

Originally Posted by banjomike

Monte Walsh is one of the finest Westerns ever written. Joe was like him a lot.
And I was really happy when Chapo came out! I'm sure once he smelled that peppermint, he was too. He's a great horse. He's a paint, by the way. The only paint on the place.

Is that the anti-Paint bias at work there? I know so many horsemen who won't have a paint or appy because of the idea that with "color" comes idiocy.

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by mistyriver

Is that the anti-Paint bias at work there? I know so many horsemen who won't have a paint or appy because of the idea that with "color" comes idiocy.

No, except the Appaloosa Club won't register a horse who has any paint in it or vice versa. The National Paint Club won't register a horse with Appaloosa blood. Both are breeds where their color and markings are important, so that's to be expected.

My Dad as a young man first started breeding Paints. Then, in 1952, my folks went to one of the first National Appaloosa Club shows; it was held in Lewiston. He bought a 2 year old stallion who had just won his first national championship, and came back and sold all his band of Paints. As a kid, he had owned an Appy, and always wanted another afterward. Paints were more common around here then, so for a short time, they were an acceptable substitute for him, I guess.

It's amusing to learn some horsemen think color makes for idiots. The Nez Perce were the only natives who selectively bred their horses. The tribe was the only one in the nation that castrated all the stock they thought weren't good enough to be studs.
They bred their horses for 3 genetic traits: Intelligence and gentleness, speed, and hardiness. Why their horses became spotted and colored so distinctively is still a mystery; some archeologists believe the Appaloosa may be a direct evolutionary descendent of the first horse, which originated in the United States.

Those early horses migrated over the land bridge into Mongolia, and then spread out throughout Europe, where they evolved into modern horses largely through human selective breeding. The land bridge iced over, and the original primitive horses were believed to be extinguished along with most of the other early mammals when the Yellowstone caldera blew up.

The Walawa Valley in E. Washington escaped the great ice sheet, and because it's ringed with old mountains and lies east of the caldera, also escaped the enormous ash storms that blanketed the rest of the U.S. The teary is the Nez Perce were first one of the early coastal tribes who crossed over during a warming period of the ice age and moved eastward, off the coast. They are genetically closer to the Eskimo nations than any other, and they came across the naturally evolved early horse remnants who were already in the Walawa country. They could have been the very first horse-based tribe in the nation, because they were so isolated and remote from all the other earliest tribes.

As the Great Plains tribes moved west and became horsed, the Nez Perce became the Swiss of the Native American world; their horses were traded at a 5 to 1 ratio (or higher) because the Appaloosas were such good war horses. A good war horse is one a fighter can catch when knocked off, is smart and tractable and doesn't panic, faster than the opponent's horses, and hardy enough to subsist on short feed while on the war trail.

The Nez Perce never traded a stallion. That was partly due to their stud- they only had about 20 stallions in their huge band. They traded off their geldings, and on rare occasions, some of their mares. The plains tribes never rode stallions into battle unless there was no choice; stallions are too distractible. They, like the Mongolians, chose mares first and would settle for the Nez Perce geldings. The mares traded at a 10-1 ratio, and they were only available when the Nez Perce band grew so large it needed culling.

The tribe always distinguished itself. The early French trappers gave them their name- "Pierced Nose" due to their wearing bones through their noses at the time as a way of being recognized to the other tribes, but the practice was abandoned as the tribe extended it's trading range. Their high pompadour hairdos were more recognizable at long distances, as well as their tallness.

It's also possible that the Nez Perce may have bred specifically for the spotted coats. This too, made the horses easily distinguishable at far distances.

The spots are a recessive genetic trait, and several European breeds produce them as a rarity.
There are some paintings of Kings and Emperors riding both paints and horses with Appaloosa spot patterns into battle. They were never common, but it appears that some German, E. European, and Russian breeds were the ones that produced the most.

There trading very seldom met interference. While all the other tribes conducted frequent horse raids on each other, none messed with the Nez Perce. If some kids snuck in and stole some Appaloosas, the tribe were given a choice; they had to return the horses and punish the kids (or adult warriors) in their presence, or the tribe would be cut off forever. No more trading. Ever. This made a tribe weaker against a neighboring tribe who had Appaloosas.

There were a few tribes who challenged this. If a tribe didn't take the first choice, or refused to give the horses back, the Nez Perce declared war on them, and twice a year, as the Nez Perce passed through, they would slaughter as many members of the tribe as possible. They were renowned for their ferocity as fighters, and, because of their superior horses, could get away so fast they couldn't be caught up with when they broke off a fight. The only way a tribe could get back into their good graces was to surrender their entire horse band.

This reputation and the horses were the reasons the U.S. cavalry feared the Nez Perce so much. At the battle of Whitebird Hill, about 60 Nez Perce warriors assaulted 2 companies of the cavalry that were chasing the tribe, armed with field guns, cannons that could be carried on mules. There were 103 soldiers and about 30 civilians and scouts situated on top of the hill, and they had a commanding range with their artillery. They started bombarding the fleeing tribe down at the bottom as they were crossing the river.
The warriors charged straight up the hill, the horses running so fast that the gunners could not keep them in range, attacked one flank, killed about 40 of the cavalry and scattered the rest of the command in panic, and then roped the guns, drug them back down the hill and dumped them in the river. It all happened so fast the cavalry was terrified. The Nez Perce suffered 3 casualties and no deaths in the fight. The scene can be clearly seen from the top of White Bird today.

That was why the Commanding General of the West ordered all the Nez Perce horses to be killed en masse after the tribe finally surrendered. By the time the cavalry was through, only 30 of the original Appaloosa breed survived, and that tiny remainder were all sold to white men.
The tribe eventually owned none of the horses they created. Beginning in 1990, the tribe received a 100 Appaloosa donation to bring the breed back to the tribe.

There are a lot of modern stories about the breed, but I'll save them for another rant. There are lots of good reasons why the Appaloosa is our State Horse. They didn't become so popular for their spots alone.

[mistyriver]

I think there is a lot of color bias out there. I think most of it comes from the newer types of Paints and Appys who were bred primarily for color rather than conformation and temperament. You know, the "if it has pretty spots and an empty uterus, go ahead and breed" mentality.

I like the old adage, "a good horse is never a bad color" and try to remember it when horse shopping. That said, the two I have now are a pinto warmblood cross and a POA..both with fantastic temperaments and very athletic and they'd be great horses if they were chestnut or bay.

Are they still trying to recreate the old Appaloosa with the Akhal-Teke?

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by mistyriver

I think there is a lot of color bias out there. I think most of it comes from the newer types of Paints and Appys who were bred primarily for color rather than conformation and temperament. You know, the "if it has pretty spots and an empty uterus, go ahead and breed" mentality.

I like the old adage, "a good horse is never a bad color" and try to remember it when horse shopping. That said, the two I have now are a pinto warmblood cross and a POA..both with fantastic temperaments and very athletic and they'd be great horses if they were chestnut or bay.

Are they still trying to recreate the old Appaloosa with the Akhal-Teke?

I can't say much about the Paints, but the Appys had definitely shifted far away from the Indian breed type over the past 30 years or more.

The Nez Perce horse was small, light boned, narrow chested and typically had a thin mane and tail. Their hooves were always laminated with black and white layers, and their eye was always surrounded by a white sclera, like human eyes. The spots came in 3 patterns which are still seen; the leopard, a typically white horse with spots all over it's body, the blanket, which as typically a solid color except for the white hips and butt, and the white area didn't always have spots, but most often did. The roan pattern was a roaned head, neck, and belly & legs with most of the horses' upper side white or light roan with a large white blanket.

A lot were sorrels. The sorrel horses that are born blanketed usually roan out around 3-4 years of age, and the roans all develop 'varish' on their noses, legs and faces. This varnish is actually the horses original blanket color. For some reasons, these areas never fade and remain dark. A colt born with a blaze, snip or other white facial markings still have them inside the varnished areas.
The other colors- black, buckskin, chestnut, and bay, never roan. If they are born with a blanket, it stays for their lifetime.

The spots are different hair than the rest of the coat, and when shaved, the skin is pink, but the spot is a different color, usually red to very dar, brown. The lips and eyelids are most often parti-colored with spots, even though there is almost no hair on them. Their hooves, due to the laminations, are much harder than other breeds', and don't chip. They wear evenly. They all sweat very freely.

This old body conformation makes great sense for a war horse, who must be able to cover long distances at a fast pace, be very coordinated, and capable of more maneuverability than sprint speed. Compare them to human long distance runners and you see the same body type at work. Quarterhorses are muscular like sprinters, and built to run fast for short distances in a straight line.

The Nez Perce used their traded horses- Quarters, Morgans, Walkers, Mustangs and and all the crossbreeds, as white men use mules. The did the carrying and dragging tasks, and moved the women, old folks and kids around. The men used them for herding the bands.

The Appaloosa's thin mane and tail were also a valuable war horse trait. An enemy afoot couldn't grab a good handhold on either and pull the horse or the rider to the ground easily, and the tails didn't get tangled in brush or full of weeds on the trail. Many pictures of Indian horses show their tails and manes tied in knots to keep them out of the way, but never an Appaloosa. The Appaloosa's gentleness allowed the warrior freedom from the horse. Other breeds required a warrior to wear a leash, tied to the leg or around the waist, so the horse could be caught up quickly and remounted in a fight. Because the Appy was small, it was also easier to jump back on or off.

The Mustang, a feral offshoot of the Spanish horses lie in the middle between the two. The Spanish horses are hotblooded Barbs, a larger European version of the Arab. The Quarterhorse and Morgan are American breeds, hotbloods bred for multipurpose use.

Once the white man began breeding them, as white men do, they went for looks more than purpose. Most Appaloosas these days have more Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred in them than Appaloosa, and the show horses no longer have to have a spotted coat to be registered. Earlier, only the Arab was allowed as a cross-breed in the registry, as the Arab has very similar characteristics. It, too, was first bred as a war horse.

Not that these modern horses are bad- they are bred for show and for ranches with corrals, not open range.

My father always liked the Indian horse the best, with some Arab refinements. My grandfather bred Arabs, so my dads' preferences came naturally. If you look at the picture I posted, you can see many of the Indian traits on all 3 horses, but all have some Quarter Horse in them. When I was a kid, all our horses were lighter and less muscular.

[mistyriver]

It's a shame what's happened just with the quarter horse over the past century. What with the big muscles, the little tiny feet with the upright pasterns, not to mention the whole Impressive thing.
I remember a great old book called "The Arabian Cow Horse" about a boy who tries to sway his father's attitude about Arabs on his ranch. Was it unusual in Idaho or anywhere in the west for someone to have bred Arabs for ranch work?

[LionFamily]

Originally Posted by mistyriver

It's a shame what's happened just with the quarter horse over the past century. What with the big muscles, the little tiny feet with the upright pasterns, not to mention the whole Impressive thing.

The QH halter horses are obscene looking, IMO. On the other hand, you do have reined cow horse breeders who are breeding a more classic QH. Honestly, most of them look like short TBs with better bone. My QH mare was bred for reined cow horse and is a cross between a reined cow horse stallion and a halter line mare (I think they were going for more bone.) She a bit more muscle-y than the typical working QH, but oh, what a mover. Unfortunately, she did get the lousy feet, though.

[banjomike]

It's just different times. Folks don't use horses like they used to, but they still love owning them, so lots have become show ponies. Once that happened, the extremes started showing up, just like they do in dog breeds and other show stock.

Idaho is one of the few places where working horses are still pretty commonplace all over the state.

[mistyriver]

I am thankful that although our Oldenburg cross mare is incredibly beautiful and athletic, her breeder is a third generation Montana/Wyoming ranch daughter/granddaughter/wife who bred for soundness and excellent feet. She believes the adage, "no foot, no horse" and Windsong is almost always barefoot even on rocky mountain trails.