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Rocky Mountain Horses

The origin of the Rocky Mountain Horse reads like a folk legend.  Around the late 1890s, settlers returning from the west brought back to Virginia, and eventually Eastern Kentucky, a young stallion of distinctly Spanish lineage.  This stallion was crossed with local mares.  One of the offspring was Old Tobe, the remarkable foundation sire of what was later to become known as the Rocky Mountain Horse.

Old Tobe was renowned for his gentleness, versatility, and smooth sure-footed gaits.  Owned by Sam Tuttle, of Sprout Springs, Kentucky, Old Tobe worked as a dude horse carrying sightseers over the scenic and rugged trails of Natural Bridge State Park.  Although a treasured breeding stallion until his death at age 37 in 1964, Old Tobe was a favored mount even by the most inexperienced riders for his easy temperament and smooth single-foot gait.  These qualities were passed down to his offspring and many of the horses registered today as Rocky Mountain Horses bear his unmistakable stamp.

The Rocky Mountain Horse Association (RMHA) was founded in 1986 to oversee the practice of the few remaining horses of the lineage at the time.  From a start of only 36 horses registered that year, there were over 6,000 Rocky Mountain Horses on the books by the end of 2000.  Although that is an astounding jump in numbers, the breed is still considered rare.  Because registering Rocky Mountain Horses is meant to carefully preserve the unique and cherished qualities of the breed, each horse considered for breeding must first pass an inspection.  To qualify, they must be between 14.2 and 16 hands tall, with a wide chest and sloping, 45-degree shoulder.  A natural ambling gait (single-foot or rack) is also mandatory, as is a sweet disposition and ease of handling.  Rocky Mountain Horses must have a solid body color with no white above the knee or hock, or excessive white markings on the face.  Although the silver dapple and chocolate colored horses with the near white main and tail have become almost synonymous with the breed, the Rocky Mountain Horse is not a color breed.  Other common colors are chestnut, bay, and black.

Other attributes of the breed are that they are easy keepers, having honed their survival skills in the early days in the mountains of Kentucky with little or no shelter, and they have an admirable level of endurance.

They are also calm, versatile horses as a rule, but can still "strut their stuff" in the show ring.  These traits are possibly attributed to that remote Spanish ancestor, or perhaps to the demands placed on early horses of the breed to fulfill all of the farm family's needs--from a plow horse to a buggy horse to a fine ride to town on a Saturday night.

And it seems that these wonderful traits are meant to last, since Rocky Mountain Horses can be extremely long-lived as Old Tobe's career attests--another trait he passed on to his offspring.  In fact, as of 2005, there were still several sons of Old Tobe living!