Peyton was the weirdest mix you could have possibly thought up. Found toodling around in front of an Amish cart, he was picked up by one of the trainers I worked with in school, and ended up my project in a class called Training I. My partner Lisa and I completely fell in love with our goofy, roan-y thing, especially after we saw him move. He was tiny, barely over 15hh, and was a cross between what we assumed was Dutch Harness Horse, Clydesdale, Morgan, Appaloosa, and maybe something else too. He was a bizarre PINK roan color.... it was a cross between sandy brown and reddish pink. He had the big white face and stockings of a Clyde, but the mottled skin of an App, and the movement of a Dutch horse. He was insanely talented.
Those picturs don't show off his ridiculous movement. If you're friends with me on Facebook, you can see him freejumping.... seriously adorable.
He, of course, was for sale for a fair bit of money, and sold to some nice family somewhere in Ohio. I was a bit heartbroken because I wanted him all for myself, of course. He was hot and sensitive, a bit too much for what I realistically wanted, but I loved him to death, and had so much fun with him I can't even describe it.
And it was all over from there. My love for weird horses was solidified.
I've been poking around online a bit for possible lease/purchase options once I get down to Texas, and haven't found anything SERIOUSLY serious yet - how can I, I'm not even down there yet! - but sometimes I stumble upon something that reads this: "17hh Pintaloosa/Perch/QH cross gelding, field hunting, eventing, dressage!" and can NOT help but look at the ad.
And then this ADORABLE thing pops up:
AHH. I want THAT in my backyard! I would want that thing in my backyard even if he wasn't a totally weird color. He is adorable.
What's your one WEIRD thing that attracts you to a horse? I'm not talking a pretty topline or a textbook shoulder, I'm talking something strange, like a particular set of ears or a behavior. What attracts you even though you can't figure out WHY?
Big ears and jug heads!!
ReplyDeleteA big white nose. Preferably with white nostrils too.
ReplyDeleteI love a big, bald face on a dark dark bay. Especially if it's paired with four tall whites.
ReplyDeleteDon't know why. I've never had a horse with that much white, and I don't particularly care for socks and the like, or even chrome on chestnuts. But man, gimme those socks and a bald face on a dark horse and I am smitten.
Well, McKinna has that much white, you just can't see it because she's grey ;) She does have four tall stockings, though. Wish I could've seen her before she went grey, she must have been a cutie.
ReplyDeleteI'm the same as Alighieri - white noses and white nostrils.
ReplyDeleteAnd this is really just on the ponies, but a big PUFFY afro forelock. There's one of those ponies at my barn.
You must be attracted my horse. ;)
ReplyDeleteDiary of the Overanxious Horse Owner
That horse is adorable. I love ponies, fat hairy thelwellian ponies. I've mostly owned TBs, these are the anti-TB.
ReplyDeletePeyton is adorable!!! O my goodness!!!
ReplyDeleteI love a horse with a crooked blaze. They look like they moved when they were getting painted.
I must have Peyton's long-long first cousin... I got him "free" (as if there are ever any "free" horses) from my coach. Long story, but she thought she was buying a broke pony for her grandson and he wasn't. He's been my project pony (he's just under 14.2) for a couple of years now and TOTALLY talented. He's a rose grey-roan with a hamster colored belly. Until your pix of Peyton, I'd never seen that color. We now nothing of his background prior to my coach getting him other than he didn't get a lot of groceries. But man is he FUN!
ReplyDeleteI too am a lover of colour, my first event pony was a completely molted Appy....she was so ugly she was cute, very noticeable. I love all the rare colours though...make me drool!
ReplyDeleteEars. Cute, fuzzy little ears. What's not to love about those?
ReplyDeleteI love a Roman nose... and really long expressive ears. The Teke gelding I am riding now has an insanely crooked blaze & four white socks on a black body... he also has one eye ringed with white, whereas the other one isn't. He also has a bit of a Roman nose. And being an Akhal-Teke, he definitely does not look like any other kind of horse. It all makes for an intense-looking animal! When I first saw him I thought his looks were distracting... but now I think they only add to his wonderful personality. He is stunning.... inside and out!
ReplyDeleteroman noses!
ReplyDeleteThe eyes attract me -- or at least, the expression and how the horse looks back at me... That's what sold me on Willie!
ReplyDeletePersonality is the biggest thing... I don't care if it can jump the moon, I want a horse I can enjoy seeing everyday.
But I do have a weakeness for roans and think a Roman nose gives a horse character. :) Peyton is adorable, as is the other spotty-roany-draft!
I'm a sucker for weird eyes. Either some kind of colour around them or a wall eye or whatever. One blue and one brown? Sign me up!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Peyton. He's gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteI love blue eyes and bi-colored eyes. The crazy, wierd, wall-eye ones that most people hate. But I just LOVE them. One of my favorite horses that I used to do barrels on had one blue and one brown eye and I thought he was gorgeous. His silly owner hated his looks and just liked him for his talent. But honestly, I've never met an ugly horse, and I don't think I ever will. Oh, and big nostrils, like Arab nostrils. But those are also bio-mechanically helpful, so that's a good thing I suppose.
I like when a horse carries his tail in an interesting way. Either crooked, away from the body, flipped over the back or something.
ReplyDeleteI also like a horse with wild eyes. My new horse opens his eyes really wide and rolls them around more than any horse I've seen. He shows the white in his eyes all the time, but it shows up at the top of his eye, not at the side. I love his crazy googly eyes.
Boy do I know a horse in AZ who would be perfect for you! He's appy/curly cross, though his hair isn't curly. Just started eventing this year, and is a total superstar! Just a great mover, and despite being extremely green is picking up the jumping quite well.
ReplyDeleteWhat attracts me? I haven't figured out yet what about my nearly black 16.3hh bay OTTB makes me constantly think of my 16hh nearly white palomino qh. I think it's eye shape. And the OTTB was love at first site. It also may have been the forward nature that had them dubbed "crazy" by other people, and my amusement with little hops which are supposed to be bucks when they pout at being corrected.
You roman-nose lovers would really like my soon to be new horse. ;) She's got one.
ReplyDeleteThey'd love all my standardbreds too, haha.
ReplyDeleteAnything drafty. So of course, I love Peyton! What a cutie!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI have also always loved leopard aps. Then one day I came across this guy:
http://www.sugarbushdrafthorse.com/harley.jpg
I want him!!!!!!!!!!! I bet you want him too huh?
Curved ears. One of my favourite horses, a Tunisian Barb called Bioscuit, has beautiful curved ears. A lot of Barb horses have similar ears: long and curved. The only exception is a gelding named Swinger, who has small,fluffy ears.
ReplyDeleteInteresting markings are another thing I love. I once met a filly with a blaze shaped like a spanner.
I love long forelocks, so the horse looks at you from between the chunks of hair. And tall, black stockings.
ReplyDeleteHuge and drafty, all the way. Remember Val? Big ol' shirey-looking thing, more heavy on the draft than the cross. Yeah she was, in my little 15 year old brain, my dream horse. I also have a thing for really butch polo pony mares. They'll take you out!
ReplyDeleteRegal looking heads and big ears.
ReplyDeleteOh- and bright, sparkly, inquisitive eyes.
And snips. Who could not love a white snip?
Anything with ears that flop when they move! I love a horse with super relaxed ears like that, so cute! (Although most of my fellow QH people would disagree and say that the horse could never win cuz he's not perfect, lol).
ReplyDeleteEveryone else is talking about physical things, but I have to put out there that I LOVE a horse with anxiety issues. Poor baby, I just want to fix it! Penny and Dancer come to mind.
ReplyDeleteI do have a thing for big ears, though. Big ol' disproportionate Abby/Colin/Sporty/Fatneck ears!
Obviously I must have a thing for gray TBs since I own two. :) I like dark dappled gray with white manes and tails or whiter grays with black manes. I had one of each but Tax keeps getting lighter every year and isn't dappled at all anymore.
ReplyDeleteMy first pony was a roany leopard appy critter and the best pony ever. Ever since I've loved horses with spots. I fully admit I'm an addict. I want a bay appy with a white rump blanket and big well defined spots so bad.
I don't like blue eyes with the pink skin around them at all. Yuck. Since I started with the paints I realized I'm particually attracted to minimal overos especially bays.
Did I mention I don't usually like bays? Weird that if you add a little color in I start drooling.
www.fyyahchild.blogspot.com
Peyton was GORG! I too love horses of color or unique things about them. I love BIG floppy airplane ears and a roman nose. I'm a sucker for any uniqueness. That horse looks like a DREAM!!
ReplyDeleteif it bolts or bucks or is super hot i love it
ReplyDeletei think i might have a death wish, but i love the hot sensitive ones
and if they bolt or buck all the better!!
of coarse then i love to fix them, work through all their issues and then watch them become great horses :)