The wild ponies of Chincoteague - they stand at between 12 and 13 hands tall, are stocky with short legs and big round bellies. Their manes are thick (and full of briars). They graze all day on the salt marsh grasses of Assateague Island and, therefore, must drink twice as much water as a normal horse - hence the fat, bloated bellies. The Chincoteague Pony became an official registered breed in 1994. These guys were very allusive on Sat. when the weather was nice. These pictures were captured in the pouring rain, early in the day. The ponies sheltered in a wooded area that had a nature trail for people to walk in hopes of seeing the ponies on the marsh. They fooled us. I guess they just thought it would be easier to stand on the trail saying, "here we are, come view us".