The Dartmoor Pony

The Breed Standard of the Dartmoor Pony

Height:                                   Not Exceeding 127 cm. (12.2hh.)

Colour:                                    Bay, brown, black, grey, chestnut, roan. Piebalds and Skewbalds are not allowed. 

                                                Excessive white markings should be discouraged*.

Neck & Head:                        The head should be small with large kindly eyes and small alert ears. It  should be

                                               on a good neck of medium length. The throat and jaws should be fine and showing

                                               no signs of coarseness or throatiness.  Stallions to have a moderate crest.

Shoulders:                               Good shoulders are most important. They should be well laid back and sloping,

                                                but not too fine at the withers.

Body:                                       Of medium length and strong, well ribbed up with a good depth of girth giving plenty

                                                of heart room.

Loin & Hindquarters:             Strong and well covered with muscle. The hind quarters should be of medium length

                                                and neither level nor steeply sloping. The tail is well set up.

Limbs:                                     The hocks should be well let down with plenty of length from hip to hock, clean cut and

                                                with plenty of bone below the hock. They should  have a strong second thigh.

                                             The forelegs should not be tied at the knee. The fore-arm  should be  muscular and

                                                relatively long and the knee fairly large and flat at the  front.

                                           The cannons should be short with ample good, flat, flinty bone. The pasterns should be

                                                 sloping but not too long. The feet should be hard and well shaped.

Movement:                             Low and straight coming from the shoulder with good hock action

                                                but without exaggeration

General:                                  The mane and tail should be full and flowing. The Dartmoor is a very good looking riding

                                                pony, sturdily built yet with quality.

* Italics show amendment

Updated  06.04.2008.