The Story of the Nez Perce Horse…

The Spanish introduced horses to Mexico in the 1500s. Horses rapidly spread throughout North America, reaching the Northwest around 1700. The Nez Perce became excellent horsemen and, unlike other tribes, they practiced selective breeding of their horses by gelding the inferior stallions and trading off the poorer stock. As a result, the Nez Perce were able to produce better horses than other tribes.

The Nez Perce created large horse herds renowned for their strength, intelligence and beauty. The Nez Perce horse herds numbered in the thousands and in an economy where horses equaled wealth, the Nez Perce became known as an affluent tribe. It is unknown how many of the Nez Perce’s horses were spotted, but it has been estimated at ten percent.

Settlers coming into the area began to refer to these spotted horses as “A Palouse Horse”, in reference to the Palouse River, which runs through Northern Idaho. Over time, the name evolved into “Palousey,” “Appalousey,” and finally “Appaloosa.”

The journal of Lewis and Clark in February 15, 1806 “Their horses appear to be of an excellent race: they are lofty, elegantly formed, active and durable: in short many of them look like fine English horses and would make a figure in any country". In the mid-1800s, settlers flooded onto the Nez Perce reservation, and conflicts soon ensued. The Nez Perce War of 1877 resulted in their herds being nearly exterminated by the U.S. Calvary.

As a result of the war and subsequent raiding of the ranges, the Appaloosa became a “lost” breed until 1937. The Appaloosa Horse Club was chartered in 1938 with the goal of preserving and improving the Appaloosa breed. The Appaloosa Horse Club has grown into one of the leading equine breed registries in the world and is headquartered in Moscow, Idaho.

On March 25, 1975 Idaho Governor Cecil Andrus signed a bill naming the Appaloosa as the state horse. This was a deserving honor for a horse that has been such an integral part of Idaho history.

Unfortunately, the Nez Perce Tribe was not included in the effort by the Appaloosa Horse Club to revive their famous horse. Therefore, the Nez Perce Tribe has been striving to regain that fine, unique, type of horse through their Appaloosa - Akahl-Teke crossbreds.

In 1995, four Akhal-teke stallions were donated to the tribe by a Minnesota breeder. The idea was to blend the Appaloosa's physical attributes of a well muscled horse as well as the distinctive spotted "blanket" to the lean and elegant Akhal-teke horse of Turkmenistan. The Akhal-Teke is a desert breed from the former Soviet Republic of Turkmenistan. Akhal-Tekes have been revered by horsemen for 3,000 years, for their mobility, strength, beauty, and endurance. The Teke are the majority tribe of Turkmen, who adopted the Akhal-Teke horse as their national symbol when Turkmenistan gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1990.

The crossbred of the Appaloosa and the Akhal-Teke is now called the Nez Perce Horse with a registry all its own, established in 1998.

In order for a horse to qualify as a Nez Perce Horse, it must have no more than 7/8 Akhal-Teke or Appaloosa blood (registered or approved) and must be a descendant of one of the four Akhal-Teke stallions or other Akhal-Teke stallions the Nez Perce Tribe may acquire or approve. However, the rulebook is in the process of being changed to expand eligibility of breeding stock, both stallions and mares.

Photo by Valdasue Steele Nez Perce mares and foals.

The Nez Perce Tribe is managing over 35 horses, most of them are in their breeding program. Currently, the Nez Perce Tribe does not market their horses for sale. However, if there is a horse you are interested in purchasing, contact them directly with your offer. The contact person is Jake Whiteplume, the Horse Program Coordinator. If you are interested in horses bred for endurance and color, the Nez Perce horse may be a horse for you to consider owning.The horse program office is located in Lapwai, in the BIA Agency Bldg, on Agency Rd across from the high school track.

How to contact the Nez Perce Tribe for more information:

The Nez Perce Horse Registry http://www.nezpercehorseregistry.com Elaine Ellenwood 208-621-3716

The Nez Perce Horse Program Jake Whiteplume 208-621-3721 [email protected]

Author, Valdasue Steele, UI Extension Nez Perce Reservation, 2008; rev. June 2010, rev. April 2014.