There are several characteristics that define the Paint horse. First, each Paint horse has a stock horse type body frame similar to that of the Quarter horse or Thoroughbred. Second, they all have a coat color of white spots or splotches mixed with spots or splotches of some other color. The most frequent colors include bay, brown or black. Less often these color combinations include buckskin, gray or palomino. Other color combinations may also be seen but are much less frequent. The Paint horse should not be confused with the Appaloosa, which also has spots. Paint horses differ from Appaloosas in that the Appaloosa has spots only on its hind quarters where the Paint horse is spotted or splotched all over. Since its introduction to the United States, the Paint horse has been an important part of American history. In the 1800’s when free roaming herds of horses still had free reign in the largely unpopulated West, many of these horses bore the color scheme of the Paint horse. The Indians took a fancy to these boldly colored horses and included many in their own stock. In fact, the Comanche Indians, considered by some to be the finest horsemen of all Indian tribes, had many of these horses in their herds. Their favoritism for this breed is shown by their drawings of the spotted horses included on buffalo robes used for record keeping, according to information posted on the American Paint Horse AssociationEUR^(TM)s website.

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