Guardians' Hearts Page 2

•   The Rocky Mountain Horse is listed at "Watch" status by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy,  meaning that the estimated global population of the breed is fewer than  15,000, with fewer than 800 registrations annually in the US.

The Rocky Mountain Horse is a horse breed developed in the state of Kentucky in the United States. Despite its name, it originated not in the Rocky Mountains, but instead in the Appalachian Mountains. A foundation stallion,  brought from the western United States to eastern Kentucky around 1890,  began the Rocky Mountain type in the late 19th century. In the mid-20th  century, a stallion named Old Tobe,  owned by a prominent breeder, was used to develop the modern type;  today most Rocky Mountain Horses trace back to this stallion. In 1986,  the Rocky Mountain Horse Association was formed and by 2005 has  registered over 12,000 horses. 

• The breed is known for its preferred  "chocolate" coat color and flaxen mane and tail, the result of the relatively rare silver dapple gene acting on a black coat, seen in much of the population. 
• It also exhibits a four-beat ambling gait known as the "single-foot".
• Originally developed as a multi-purpose riding, driving and light draft horse, today it is used mainly for trail riding and working cattle, as well as endurance riding and pleasure riding.[13] 
• The breed's gait and disposition make it sought out by elderly and disabled riders. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountain_Horse