It’s often been said that the Chincoteague breed’s beloved pinto coloring originated when Shetland was introduced to the wild herd, but mentions of Shetland outcrossing have been vague. I’ve found confirmation that at least one Shetland pony was released into the wild: in the early 20th century, Edward P. Timmons introduced Shetland to his wild Chincoteague ponies. Background: Early 20th century pony management Let’s back up and talk about herd management at the time–in the early 1900s, wild Chincoteague ponies were managed much differently than they are today. Nowadays, the wild herd lives on Assateague island and are owned and managed by the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department, but back then, the wild ponies lived on Assateague, Chincoteague, and Wallops Islands and were owned by individuals on Chincoteague. During the annual Pony Penning event, the Chincoteaguers came together to round up everyone’s ponies and sell the offspring for a profit. To keep track of whose ponies be...
The stories behind the beloved breed