Florida Cracker Horse
An 1895 drawing by Frederick Remington of a Florida Cracker
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| Other names | Chickasaw Pony, Seminole Pony, Prairie Pony, Florida Horse, Florida Cow Pony, Grass Gut |
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| Country of origin | Florida, United States |
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| Distinguishing features | Spanish-style gaited horse found in many colors |
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The Florida Cracker Horse is a breed of horse from Florida in the United States. It is genetically and physically similar to many other Spanish-style horses, especially those from the Spanish Colonial Horse group. The Florida Cracker is a gaited breed known for its agility and speed. The Spanish first brought horses to Florida with their expeditions in the early 16th century; as colonial settlement progressed, they used the horses for herding cattle. These horses developed into the Florida Cracker type seen today, and continued to be used by Florida cowboys (known as "crackers") until the 1930s.
At this point they were superseded by American Quarter Horses needed to work larger cattle brought to Florida during the Dust Bowl, and population numbers declined precipitously. Through the efforts of several private families and the Florida government, the breed was saved from extinction, but there is still concern about its low numbers. Both and the Equus Survival Trust consider breed numbers to be at a critical point.
The Florida Cracker Horse is also known as the Chickasaw Pony, Seminole Pony, Prairie Pony, Florida Horse, Florida Cow Pony and Grass Gut. The modern breed retains the size of its Spanish ancestors, standing 13.2 to 15 hands (54 to 60 inches, 137 to 152 cm) high and weighing 750 to 1,000 pounds (340 to 450 kg). They are found mainly in bay, black and gray, although grullo, dun and chestnut are also seen.Roan and pinto colors are occasionally found. They have straight or slightly concave profiles, strong backs and sloping croups. They are known for their speed and agility and excel at trail and endurance riding, and are also used extensively as stock horses. They are sometimes seen in Western riding sports such as working cow horse, team roping and team penning. The Florida Cracker is a gaited horse, with the breed association recognizing two gaits, the running walk and amble, in addition to the regular walk, trot, canter and gallop. The single-footed ambling gait is known as the "coon rack" by some breed enthusiasts. The foundation genetics of the breed are the same as many others developed from Spanish stock in North and South America, including the Paso Fino, Peruvian Paso and Criollo. The Cracker horse is very similar in type and genetics to the Carolina Marsh Tacky and the Banker horse, both Spanish-style breeds from the eastern United States, but DNA testing has proven that these are separate breeds.
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