>>>> So most of the difference is in temperament? How about comparing Icelandics with Pasos and other gaited breeds? Is it all only temperament?
Well, gaits are gaits, whatever the gaited breed, so I'd take that off the table right off the bat. Mainly decide what gaits are important to you and find a horse that meets your criteria. Icelandic's are definitely shorter on average than any other gaited breed. I think that's a plus, but not everyone does of course. MY major "wants" when looking for an Icelandic at first were 1) temperament/non-spookiness 2) intelligence/trainability/partnering potential 3) short height, although initially "under 14.2" was short. Gaits were somewhere in the next 3-4 items on my wish list. I DID want a horse that could trot, but beyond that I wasn't too picky. (Ironically, trot isn't Sina's strongest gait, but she does have a nice foxtrot.) That's just what I wanted though. I certainly found plenty of Icelandic's to meet my first three criteria right off the bat....although I had to travel pretty far to find ANY Icelandics. Note though, that I didn't do my initial Icelandic shopping with anyone who has serious interest in "show horses". I don't know too much about any of the Paso horses. I've seen one Paso Fino gelding locally that I sure would have looked at when I was first looking but I didn't see him them. He really seems great - nice gaits, sweet nature and good looking too. Some seem pretty hot, but not him. I've seen some very nice SSH and RMH, but I've also seen some so intermixed with some of the hotter TWH lines that they don't appeal to me at all. I also adore Janice's Traveller but there aren't many McCurdy's outside the Deep South. In other words, I think there is a wide range of gaits and temperaments in any of these breeds. Karen Thomas [EMAIL PROTECTED] No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.485 / Virus Database: 269.13.8/993 - Release Date: 9/6/2007 3:18 PM
