There's More to a Curly than a Fancy Coat!

Besides the Fact that They're Hypoallergenic

By Mary Ann Wasserman

Photo sidebar: Last Christmas, Babe was perfectly comfortable in her thick coat of curly hair and her Santa Claus hat. For Debra, however, it was a different story.

Red Baron has given a brand new meaning to the word "kinky."

The chestnut Curly stallion is married.

Debra Randolph, owner of Rainbow's Curly Horses near Waterville, explains.

"When my husband Al and I decided to have our mare, Dan's Baby Doll G, bred, I sent along a honeymoon box," she says.

"It contained a champagne glass, a candle to set the mood, a sequined garter, a white satin bow, a cardboard bow-tie for Red Baron, and, of course, a ring.

"My husband felt a little silly offering the dowry to Red Baron's owners.

"But he figured that, since I'd gone to all the trouble, it as the least he could do.

"Actually, his owners were pleased. And for the wedding service, they had their dog serve as ringbearer.

"On the video, there's a sequence that shows a black, shaggy dog loping through the fields of Indiana with a basket of flowers in his mouth.

"The proud owners of the groom even had dubbed in the 1960s ditty, 'Going to the Chapel' by the Dixie Cups.

"We're naming the video, 'As the Foal Turns,' and we want to submit it to America's Funniest Home Videos."

What's the reason for all the celebration?

Dan's Baby Doll Go, known simply as Babe to the Randolphs, is the first Curly horse in northwestern Ohio. And her offspring will be the first Curly ever born in the area.

Red Baron, Babe, and the yet-to-arrive foal are all members of the rare American Bashkir Curly breed.

Real Survivors

Theory has it that Red Baron's forefathers were from the Ural Mountains of Russia and that some of the hardy Bashkiri tribesmen brought some along when they migrated to the plains of the continental United States via the land which once was joined with the Bering Strait.

"In the 1700s, our American Indians, both the Sioux and the Crow, used curly or woolly horses---noting their curls in the winter and their shedding in the spring---to determine 'winter counts' or years.

"Modern history recalls that the members of the Damele family of Nevada were the first to encounter the Curly breed. A father and son were out riding one afternoon and noticed three or four Curlies running with their straight-haired horses. That year, a harsh winter killed many straight-hairs. But the Curlies survived.

"The Damele family began to increase the numbers of the Curlies by breeding them with straight-hairs. At first, they were bred with Arabians. But eventually, they used all lines of straight-hairs.

"And by 1971, there were only 20 known Curlies in the continental United States."

The Curly today, as a breed unto itself, is a versatile, stout line of animal.

Averaging 15 hands but sized from pony to draft horse height, Curlies ride English, Western, and dressage. They can also be driven, they're strong hunters and jumpers, they'll trail ride, and they're very easy to train.

A few years back, the reserve champion in dressage for the state of Indiana was a Curly.

Photo sidebar: Last fall, Babe was showing off her beautiful conformation and her thickening curly coat.

Debra notes, however, that due to their thick frame, Curlies are not contenders for the Kentucky Derby.

"Red Baron stands 16.2 hands and he was for many years the largest Curly in existence," she says. "He was captured during a drive by the Bureau of Land Management in the outback of Wyoming. Due to his history, he's registered three ways: as an American Bashkir Curly, as a Bureau of Land Management horse, and as a Mustang.

"He weighs in at 1,500 to 1,600 pounds, while our Babe, who's five years old, weighs 1,200."

In 1992, the American Bashkir Curly Registry closed its registry to Curly horses that were crossbred with straight-hairs. Rationalizing that the breed had been recovered from the brink of extinction, the association ruled that, from then on, a horse had to have both a full Curly dam and a full Curly sire in order to be registered as a full Curly.

The curly gene is dominant. Babe even has curly eyelashes. Seventy percent of the breed is sorrel, with the remainder coming in a wide variety of hues.

The Randolphs happened upon the Curly breed while they were in a Michigan feed store, when Debra saw a photo of a white horse that resembled a unicorn without horns. She as intrigued by the fact that the animal was advertised as being hypoallergenic.

"My daughter, Erinn Small, liked to ride, but she'd always come home with red eyes and an irritated nose and throat," she says. "We always had a damp cloth handy so she could wipe her face and eyes right away and cut down on the negative reaction. That's why I always figured we'd never be able to own a horse.

"But when I saw the curls being advertised as hypoallergenic, I began to investigate. For our winter vacation, we went to five states looking for Curlies. Straight-haired horses have round hair follicles, which allow for the build-up of scale and dust that causes reactions in people with allergies. But Curlies have oval hair follicles, which causes the hair to be kinky and wavy. And the dust and scale aren't able to collect on them."

The Curlies have a very easy, curious, friendly disposition, and Debra says they're always first to canter to a fence to investigate visitors.

"Babe is very quick to learn," she says. "She'll shake hooves, bow, nod her head yes, and even stand on a pedestal. When children come to visit us, we'll ask Babe if she's bashful. Then she'll tuck her head, hiding her head under our arms."

Summertime Waves

From the fantasy of the colorful rainbow to the picture in the Michigan feed store, Debra and Al derived the name of Rainbow's Curly Horses for their farm. They feed their Curlies a timothy and alfalfa mix, since straight alfalfa is too high in protein for the gentle giants, who are easy keepers. They normally feed a grain ration that contains only ten percent protein, although they're making an exception in Babe's case due to her pregnancy. The animals like being outdoors and prefer winter to summer.

"Our Curlies are very tolerant," Debra says. "Last summer, we put a clown costume on Babe for the fair. She as very easygoing, even with the ruffles on her legs and around her neck."

Photo sidebar: Erinn Small and Babe in prize-winning costumes.

During the summer, a Curly will shed out to a marcel slick of waves. In the winter, Babe's hair is as long, a thick, and as heavy as any shag rug.

"They have curly hair in heir ears, which deters flies," she says. "And they have curly fetlocks, which are part of the regimented look for show.

"Their hooves are black, round, and shiny. Our farrier says that, due to the natural strength of the horn, here's no need for shoeing under normal circumstances.

"They also have an extra layer of fat to protect them. And they have narrow nostrils to prevent their lungs from being overcome by winter's air.

"The Curly's hair can even be woven. As a 4-H project last summer, Erinn displayed a woven vest she'd borrowed from a lady in Nevada. It was also Erinn and Babe's first year in the show ring and they finished among the top three in all the classes they entered."

Babe's foal is due shortly and Debra is looking for a good home for it. "It's due on approximately April first," she says. "And we're planning to adopt the foal out to a qualified applicant.

"We welcome visitors to our farm. And Babe is especially fond of loving and nuzzling people under three feet tall."