Restricted Registry Proposal Aims to Promote Inclusivity and Protect Paint Horse Breed
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By Brittany Bevis
Earlier this year, a unique proposal came out of APHA’s Breed Integrity Committee that has since been deemed the “Restricted Registry Proposal.” It has been discussed widely in the industry, presented to the Board of Directors, and is now waiting to be under further exploration by a Presidential Commission.
After a recent meeting in June, it was decided that a Presidential Commission will be composed of rank and file members from various APHA advisory committees and tasked with “determining the impact of the proposal on white pattern markings in the Paint Horse gene pool; if a third breed registry for the Paint Horse is appropriate, needed, and user-friendly; and if APHA has sufficient staffing to execute a new registry,” per an APHA press release.
So what is this new proposal all about? The drafter of the original proposal, Jana Simons, sat down with The Equine Chronicle to explain what she believes the proposal will do to help preserve the Paint Horse breed for generations to come. The original proposal has gone through some changes, and with the help of Breed Integrity Committee Chairman, Kevin Smith, it has been streamlined, is more inclusive, and easier to understand.
The goals of the proposal are to alleviate some of the risk inherent in breeding APHA horses for color; incentivize breeding Paint Horses; monetize underrepresented solid APHA horses, and expand the inventory of APHA horses in the registry.
The problem with breeding horses for color is that even when a breeder painstakingly selects the perfect genetic match, that seems to be a sure bet for quality and color, sometimes nature intervenes and you’re left with a solid-colored foal. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that. It’s likely to be just as athletic and talented as its colored counterpart. In fact, there’s an entire association dedicated to solid-colored animals- AQHA. However, within the world of Paint Horses, color is king and, because of current registry rules, a solid-colored foal will be relegated to the Solid Paint-Bred division, an arena that is plagued by a lack of participation, low numbers, classes that aren’t offered at all horse shows, and, as a result, solid horses with nominal value, Jana explains.
