British Spotted Pony
{{Short description|British breed of pony}}
{{Infobox horse breed
| name = British Spotted Pony
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| status = {{ubl|FAO (2007): not listed{{r|barb|p=121}}|DAD-IS (2022): unknown{{r|dad}}|RBST (2022–23): not listed{{r|rbst}}}}
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| country = United Kingdom
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| standard = {{nobreak|[https://web.archive.org/web/20090519062552/http://www.britishspottedponysociety.co.uk/breed-characteristics.htm British Spotted Pony Society]}}
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| height = not over 147 cm{{r|cabi|p=447}}
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The British Spotted Pony is a British breed of pony characterised by a spotted coat.{{r|cabi|p=447|elise|p2=46}} The height at the withers does not exceed {{val|147|u=cm}}.
History
The presence of spotted horses in parts of Europe from Iberia to Turkey is documented in manuscripts and tapestries as far back as the Middle Ages.{{r|edwards|p=57}} Among the many European breeds that can have a spotted coat is a strain of the Welsh Pony.{{r|edwards|p=57}} A document from 1298 mentions that Edward I of England had a spotted Welsh horse;{{r|sino|p=63}} a spotted Welsh Cob stallion was foaled in 1916.{{r|sino|p=149}}
The British Spotted Pony descends from indigenous Celtic ponies, particularly from south-west England and from Wales.{{r|cabi|p=447}} A breed society, the British Spotted Horse and Pony Society, was formed in 1946. In 1976 the British Spotted Horse – though unconnected to the Appaloosa breed of the United States – was renamed to British Appaloosa, and the breed society split. The British Spotted Pony Society was formed in that year.{{r|elise|p=46}}
It may be a rare breed: one source gives a total number of 800 for it.{{r|elise|p=46}} It is reported to DAD-IS, but no population data has ever been entered;{{r|dad}} it is not on the watchlist of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.{{r|rbst}}
Characteristics
The pony carries the genes for the spotted colouring, which may produce coats of varying patterns; other characteristics associated with the pattern, such as mottled pink skin on the muzzle and at the natural openings, white sclera of the eyes, and striped hooves, are also seen.{{r|standard}} Solid-coloured animals with demonstrable Spotted Pony ancestry are registered in a separate section of the stud-book; ponies with piebald or skewbald coat patterns are disqualified from registration.{{r|standard}}
It is robust and hardy, with typical pony conformation. The eyes are large, the ears small, and the mane and tail usually abundant.{{r|elise|p=46}} The height at the withers may not exceed {{cvt|147|cm|hand|abbr=on}}.{{r|cabi|p=447}}
References
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{{British horses}}
Category:Horse breeds originating in the United Kingdom
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