The Peruvian Paso in New Zealand

Former Canadian Sharon du Nasement has always called a Peruvian Paso her own. When she migrated to New Zealand in 1989 she realised that not many people were aware of the breed, let alone ever seen one. Australia was home to around 200 of these special gaited horses however Sharon wasn't contented with importing one of Australia's Pasos and instead imported one from North America where the breed is more widely recognised. Her stallion Tesaro came to New Zealand from Canada 13 years ago as a yearling. He was shipped from Alberta to Chicago for Quarantine and was traumatised because his handlers left him basically unattended in the truck for 2 ½ days! Still suffering from that, Sharon only floats him a couple of times a year as she says it causes him a great deal of stress. She would like to make New Zealand more aware of this special breed, which she describes as one of the most intelligent, loyal and calm horses she has ever come across. Her main man, Tesaro, can be ridden and handled by children and many experienced riders don't realise he's  a stallion because he is so quiet and good natured.

The Peruvian Paso's originate from horses brought to South America by Spanish Invaders and were used for transport thereafter. Smooth-gaited, durable and uncomplicated horses were required. The Peruvian Paso should stand between 14 and 15.2 hands with a deep chest, heavy neck and body with substance. Coat colour varies widely, markings on the face and legs are accepted and the long hair should be fine yet abundant.

Peruvian Paso's have their own two variations of a special four beat gait. The paso llano features four equal beats in a 1-2-3-4 rhythm and is performed laterally. The second gait is the sobreandando which is faster and instead of four equal beats, the lateral beats form a 1-2, 3-4 rhythm. Both gaits were purposely enhanced during breeding for travellers to cover long distances as comfortable as possible without tiring the horse or the rider and is therefore considered a natural gait. Unique to the Peruvian Paso is also the termino, which describes an outward swinging leg action. A lesser form of this can sometimes be seen in the Spanish P.R.E., Lusitanos or Andalusians.

These horses are selected for their brio, referring to the willingness of the horse to place his remarkable qualities (vigour, courage and liveliness) in the service of the rider or handler. This allows them to tirelessly travel for many hours.

Tesaro, who exhibits exactly these qualities, always passes his temperament onto his foals. Sharon said that people tend to come back for a service as they are so pleased with the result. She recommends using ambling Standardbred mares if you would want to keep the special gait as 80% of those combinations will have the ability to perform those gaits. The chances are only 50/50 when crossed with other breeds.

Sharon struggles to get Tesaro recognised in New Zealand, with someone even asking her if her horse "was deformed". The man soon changed his mind when he got the chance to ride Tesaro, he now owns 3 Peruvian Paso mares. She also says that Paso's make lovely endurance horses,  they have an outstanding recovery rate and will always perform to the best of their abilities. Sharon will never want to own any other breed and would recommend Paso's to people returning to riding and especially families as they're extremely people orientated.

If you want to contact Sharon about Tesaro or Peruvian Paso's, check out her website at www.padlrz.com.

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