About Palomino Gypsy Vanner Horses

Gypsy Vanner horses get their names from the caravans ("vans") that they pulled. A palomino is a horse with a golden body and a white or cream-colored mane and tail. Although rare, solid palomino Gypsy Vanners do exist, although they often have a wide blaze, four white stockings and some small white spots about the body. Palomino pintos with large splashes of white along the palomino body also rarely occur.

  1. Colors

    • Solid-colored Gypsy Vanners, palomino or otherwise, are known as "odd colored" in the Gypsy Vanner Horse Society. If the odd-colored Gypsy Vanner has some white markings over the knees, on the belly or chest, though, then it is known as a Blagdon. Palomino pintos are known as skewbalds. Palominos come in several shades, ranging from a pale champagne to a dark chocolate gold.

    Size

    • Gypsy Vanners are bred in two sizes, known as "classic" and "cob." Palomino or palomino pinto Gypsy Vanners should ideally be these sizes in order to be registered. The classic size is from 14.3 to 15.2 hands high. (A hand is equal to 4 inches.) The cobs are to be 13.2 to 14.2 hands high. The Gypsy Vanner Horse Society notes that horses smaller or larger than the ideal still can be registered if they fit the breed standards in all other ways.

    History

    • Gypsy Vanners were considered a type rather than a breed in England until an American horse breeder named Dennis Thompson began importing horses to America in 1994. Such enthusiasm existed for the new breed that by 1996 the breed's first registry, the Gypsy Vanner Horse Society, opened and allowed solid palominos and palomino pintos, according to "Storey's Illustrated Guide to 96 Horse Breeds of North America."

    Speculation

    • Gypsies and Irish tinkers of the United Kingdom often preferred splashy pintos to pull their caravans. They had easy access to pinto horses and ponies because the upper classes preferred solid-colored horses. Pintos were seen as mongrels or somehow impure. This is how Gypsies and Irish tinkers were able to breed a strong yet colorful breed such as the Gypsy Vanner, according to "Storey's Illustrated Guide to 96 Horse Breeds of North America."

    Number

    • Gypsy Vanners are a very rare breed, even in the United Kingdom. "Storey's Illustrated Guide to 96 Horse Breeds of North America" estimates about 5,000 are in the world, and 90 percent are cob sized. It is unknown how many are palomino or palomino pinto. The most common colors are piebald (black and white patches), and dark brown and white pinto.