The Burmese Pony originated in the Shan state

Shan State

Shan State is a state of Burma . Shan State borders China to the north, Laos to the east, and Thailand to the south, and five administrative divisions of Burma in the west. Largest of the 14 administrative divisions by land area, Shan State covers 155,800 km², almost a quarter of the total...

 of Eastern Myanmar

Myanmar

Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....

 (formerly Burma), where it is bred today by local hill tribes. It shows similarities to the Bhutia

Bhutia Pony

Indian Country Bred is the common name for the inter-bred mixture of Bhutia Ponies, Spiti Ponies and Tibetan Ponies. These animals have been interbred for years so that many of the individual characteristics of the Bhutia and Spiti have been lost, and they now are categorized as "Indian Country Bred"...

, Spiti, and Manipuri

Manipuri Pony

The Manipuri pony is a breed of pony developed in India. It is an old breed and is thought to have developed from crosses between the Mongolian Wild Horse and the Arabian that were subsequently brought to India by invading Tartar tribes...

 ponies of the Himalayan Mountains, suggesting these breeds have a similar origin, most likely deriving from the Mongolian horse

Mongolian horse

The Mongol horse is the native horse breed of Mongolia. The breed is purported to be largely unchanged since the time of Genghis Khan. Nomads living in the traditional Mongol fashion still hold more than 3 million animals, which outnumber the country's human population...

 and other Eastern breeds. They are used as trekking and pack ponies because they are strong and well suited to the mountainous conditions.

Characteristics

Burmese ponies may reach , and are brown

Seal brown

Seal brown is a rich dark brown color, resembling the color of the dyed fur from the fur seal.-Usage:The specifications for the U.S. Army Air Corps Type A-2 jacket , adopted in 1931 and the most familiar among all leather flight jackets, stated that it should be made of horsehide tanned to seal brown...

, bay, chestnut

Chestnut (coat)

Chestnut is a hair coat color of horses consisting of a reddish-to-brown coat with a mane and tail the same or lighter in color than the coat. Genetically and visually, chestnut is characterized by the absolute absence of true black hairs...

, black

Black (horse)

Black is a hair coat color of horses in which the entire hair coat is black. Black is a relatively uncommon coat color, and novices frequently mistake dark chestnuts or bays for black. However, some breeds of horses, such as the Friesian horse, Murgese and Ariegeois are almost exclusively black...

 or gray

Gray (horse)

Gray or grey is a coat color of horses characterized by progressive silvering of the colored hairs of the coat. Most gray horses have black skin and dark eyes; unlike many depigmentation genes, gray does not affect skin or eye color Their adult hair coat is white, dappled, or white intermingled...

 in color. They are not particularly pretty horses, having been bred for function rather than looks. The head usually has a straight profile, the neck is muscular. The back may be long, and the croup is sloping. The ponies do not have very pronounced withers

Withers

The withers is the ridge between the shoulder blades of a four-legged animal. In many species it is the tallest point of the body, and in horses and dogs it is the standard place to measure the animal's height .-Horses:The withers in horses are formed by the dorsal spinal processes of roughly the...

, and a rather upright shoulder, creating a short stride (which is desirable in mountainous terrain, even if considered a fault in a riding

Equestrianism

Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...

 horse). The chest is deep and wide, the hooves small and hard, and the legs are fine, yet strong.

Uses

The Burmese is well-adapted to its mountainous environment, being very sure-footed, tough, with great stamina and resistant to the harsh environment. This trait has made them extremely popular as trekking and pack ponies. They have a very quiet temperament and a willing nature, making them popular mounts for novices and children. At one time the Burmese were used as polo

Polo

Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Sometimes called, "The Sport of Kings", it was highly popularized by the British. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a...

 mounts for British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

colonials. However, they are not incredibly fast or athletic, so this was most likely because they were the only mounts available at that time.