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[RC] Trespass Horses - Faustina Duffy

>>What type of horses are the Trespass Horses, by the way?
 
They are a bit of a mutt, though they can trace back through some early Spanish stock and then up to when Ft Polk (then Camp Polk) was a Cavalry remount station-the usual TBs/Arabs and yes, saddle horses (gaited stock) were turned out.  From there they have had infusions from QH that were allowed to run free range back when the inactive post was used as "Free  Range" for local folks...and new additions when they tempt "pet" horses to jump the fence or they come charging through the pasture fences of those who live close to their range (yep, it does OCCAISIONALLY happen!) and turn out "domestic" horses.  The majority of them are in the 13.2-14.2hh range, VERY hardy, with a larger, rounder foot than most "wild" horses (just a guess, but it's probably from dealing with the soggy grounds...)  Their legal status became a problem when Louisiana passed a law requiring ALL equines in the state to be MICROCHIPPED, tattooed or branded, and have a yearly Coggins test....the post CAN'T do that (it is NOT easy to catch horses in these lands...ask anyone who has done a training rotation here at JRTC), they don't want the liability from the animals falling to them...so they proposed to round them up and adopt them out...Humane Society of New Orleans Threw a HISSY...it's STILL being legally contested...
 
...In the meantime, you may find this part interesting (I did, at least...):  They rounded up a "sampling" of these animals and tested for disease...and found NO EIA (Swamp Fever-what a Coggins test checks for) or other forms of Encephalitis-they are remarkably healthy...Oh yes, and the folks who used to catch a few  (before the legal issues and the new fines for disturbing these horses) found that many of them would gait!  They seem to be pretty much of the same stock as what has been called the Creole Pony...