The Appaloosa horse
Appaloosas classically show a mottled (or 'spotty') coat, pale sclera (the bit of the eye next to the cornea) and striped hooves.
The history of this attractive horse is not completely known. There is some evidence that mottled horses were found in very many geographical regions in 'the old world', and we know of cave drawings which have been dated back to 18000BC illustrating spotted horses that may be the origins of the appaloosa we know today. It is quite likely that the mottled coat was by origin a form of camouflage, much as the zebra's stripes.
The modern Appaloosa descends from horses carried to America by spanish conquistadors. These were acquired by the Indigenous people known as the 'nez perce', who skillfully turned them into the first-rate horses that we know and love at the present time.
The horse was originally referred to as the "Palouse horse", even though gradually the name has changed into the present-day interpretation, "Appaloosa".
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