The Spanish Jennet Horse is a modern American

horse breed A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...

. It is

gaited An ambling gait or amble is any of several four-beat intermediate horse gaits, all of which are faster than a walk but usually slower than a canter and always slower than a gallop. Horses that amble are sometimes referred to as " gaited", parti ...

, with either

pinto Pinto is a Portuguese language, Portuguese, Spanish language, Spanish, Sephardi Jews, Jewish (Sephardic), and Italian language, Italian surname. It is a high-frequency surname in all List of countries and territories where Portuguese is an officia ...

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...

spotting; its conformation supposedly resembles that of the historical Spanish Jennet, a

riding horse A riding horse or a saddle horse is a horse used by mounted horse riders for recreation or transportation. It is unclear exactly when horses were first ridden because early domestication did not create noticeable physical changes in the hors ...

Renaissance Europe The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

, now absorbed into the

Pura Raza Española The Andalusian, also known as the Pure Spanish Horse or PRE (Spanish language literally translates to “Spanish pure breed”. This name is sometimes capitalized when used in English-language publications, but is all lower-case in Spanish, wh ...

History

The

Jennet A jennet or Spanish jennet was a small Spanish horse. It was noted for a smooth naturally ambling gait, compact and well-muscled build, and a good disposition. The jennet was an ideal light riding horse, and as such spread across Europe and pro ...

of Renaissance Spain was a type of

characterised by an

ambling gait An ambling gait or amble is any of several four-beat intermediate horse gaits, all of which are faster than a walk but usually slower than a canter and always slower than a gallop. Horses that amble are sometimes referred to as "gaited", particu ...

. It is

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

,Phillip Sponenberg
Spanish Jennet: Living in the Past
''The Gaited Horse'', Breed Profiles. Archived December 18, 2007. and was, at least in part, absorbed into what is now the

. The Spanish Jennet Horse is a new breed of Jennet type is being created through the efforts of the Spanish Jennet Horse Society. The

Registry Registry may refer to: Computing * Container registry, an operating-system-level virtualization registry * Domain name registry, a database of top-level internet domain names * Local Internet registry * Metadata registry, information system for re ...

requires that horse for the Pintado division be of full

Paso Fino The Paso Fino is a naturally gaited light horse breed dating back to horses imported to the Caribbean from Spain. Pasos are prized for their smooth, natural, four-beat, lateral ambling gait; they are used in many disciplines, but are especially ...

heritage and the Atigrado division must be at least of 50% Paso blood.

Outcross Out-crossing or out-breeding is the technique of crossing between different breeds. This is the practice of introducing distantly related genetic material into a breeding line, thereby increasing genetic diversity. Outcrossing can be a usefu ...

es are allowed in the first generation to obtain the LP for the Registered Atigrado Spanish Jennet and must result in a minimum of 50% purebred

Peruvian Paso The Peruvian Horse is a breed of light saddle horse known for its smooth ride. It is distinguished by a natural, four-beat, lateral gait called the ''paso llano.'' This breed is protected by the Peruvian government through Decree number 25919 o ...

horse. Only one

outcross Out-crossing or out-breeding is the technique of crossing between different breeds. This is the practice of introducing distantly related genetic material into a breeding line, thereby increasing genetic diversity. Outcrossing can be a usefu ...

is allowed (to obtain Lp or Appaloosa pattern). All 50% crosses will provide video proof of gait before registration of their offspring.

Characteristics

The Spanish Jennet Horse is a well-proportioned animal of moderate height and build. Extremes in muscling or bone are considered faults. The optimum appearance is that of refinement with a deep chest, well sprung ribs and a strong, medium length back with broad, well muscled loins.

References

Spanish Jennet Horse Society
{{Horse breeds of Canada and the United States Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in the United States