Grant started hog hunting with other breeds of horses, but they would become bloodied and sore from South
Carolina’s unofficial state plant, briars, and the demands of the terrain. He got turned on to the Marsh Tacky while
hunting with a group in the lower part of the state.
Small, wiry horses with narrow chests and sloping croups, Marsh Tackies aren’t much to look at, but they have
the stamina to go all day and the courage to go wherever we point them. Often times the only way to get to a
hog is through one long thick bed of briars. Our Tackies will hop like a rabbit on top of the briars or bulldoze
their way through it.
“The tougher the situation, the tougher these Tackies get,” Grant said. “They are bold and gamey. When the
dogs bay, you’d better be hanging on because they will take you at break-neck speed right into the fight. I
mean all four feet standing in the mix of hog and dogs.”
We bring the fight to the hogs in their backyard, which gives the hogs the advantage. However, riders, horses
and dogs execute a well-orchestrated plan of attack, and Team Marsh Tacky gets the job done more often than not.
Saving the Breed
Grant is among the dedicated breeders and owners who have supported initiatives to preserve the dwindling
numbers of Marsh Tackies. Rediscovery and recovery of the breed began in 2005 when the American Livestock
Breeds Conservancy traveled to South Carolina to determine where the breed still existed. A little more than
100 Tackies were found and their heritage confirmed by DNA samples. In 2007, long-time owners who have
had these horses in their families for generation, as well as new fanciers of the breed, came together to create
the Carolina Marsh Tacky Association to support and promote the Marsh Tacky horse. Today, there are about
309 horses listed in the Carolina Marsh Tacky Registry.
A tradition of racing Marsh Tackies on the beaches of the Lowcountry of South Carolina was brought back
several years ago, and most recently the race was held on Daufuskie Island, where Marsh Tackies once populated
the island as wild horses. There is no purse for the winner of the race – just bragging rights and a trophy.
On the Backs of Brave Steeds
We’ve invited many fine horsemen to join us on our hunts who have never ridden a Marsh Tacky, let alone
heard of one, and the comments afterwards are always the same: “That’s an impressive little horse.”
One well known clinician, Joe Most of Perfect Partners Equine, who killed his first hog riding along with Team
Marsh Tacky, described the Tackies as the Army Jeep of horses, designed to go anywhere and everywhere.
As for Grant, he has found a kindred spirit in the Tacky.
“We’re both gritty as hell. When all the chips are down and most would give up, I know I can depend on my horse
to keep going,” he said.
Scottish writer and adventurer R.B. Cunningham Graham penned a book, “Horses of the Conquest,” which was a
study of the steeds ridden by the Spanish conquistadors as they explored the uncharted territory of the New World.
“Sometimes I will turn around in my saddle and look at Team Marsh Tacky mounted up and ready to do battle.
The horses are prancing, the dogs are gamey, and I am transported back to a time when Cortés and his fellow
conquistadors also headed into an unforgiving landscape,” Grant said.
“On the back of a brave stallion he did ride, and so do I.”