Are you a Disney fan and a horse lover? Have you ever wondered what Disney’s animated horses would look like in real life?
In this post, you will find a handful of photographs of horses that could be these Disney horses. With each Disney horse I have included YouTube for you to compare the real horse to animated.
Unfortunately I couldn’t use Disney photos side by side to compare because of copyright issues that could arise which is why instead I am embedding shareable YouTube videos.
Some things I find funny with Disney animated horses is that some how they always understands exactly what people are saying to them.
Like if the person tells the horse they need help or to do something, the horse knows just what to do. But whether they listen or not… I guess that depends. And then the person also understands the horse 9 times out of 10 almost telepathically.
Imagine if horses could actually understand what we say to them and we could understand them. I wonder if that would actually be a good thing.
Also another funny thing about Disney horses is that their body proportions and conformation are ridiculous sometimes. When I was looking at Mulan’s horse (which Mulan was my favorite princess Disney movie by the way) her horse’s body is enormous in comparison to the horse’s legs and head.
I never really noticed until I decided to create this post. I literally snorted when I watched the video clip of Mulan’s horse. Okay… now I really want to watch Mulan.
Anyway onward with the photos. Oh and in the comments let me know which 3 real horse photos, looked most like their animated counterparts.
Disney Horse: Achilles
Movie: The Hunchback Of Notre Dame 1 & 2
Where They Are From: France
Achilles is Pheobus’s horse in the movie The Hunchback Of Notre Dame. I like the relationship that Pheobus has with Achilles. He seems to be loyal and willing to please toward Pheobus.
I love the scene when Pheobus commands Achilles to sit on the guard who was after Esmerelda and sarcastically says, “Oh dear I’m sorry, naughty horse naughty. He’s just impossible I can’t take him anywhere…” You can see the scene in the video below.
So I am not sure what breed Achillies is but he looks like he could be an Andalusian. So I found a photo of an Andalusian which a darkish mane similar to Achillies.
Disney Horse: Snowball
Movie: The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
Snowball was also from The Huchback Of Notre Dame. He was Frollo the Minister Of Justice’s horse. Snowball is a black Fresian and a fierce-looking horse in the movie.
You can see in the video moments with Frollo and Snowball.
In real life, most Fresian’s have a great temperament and are really friendly. But maybe having an owner like Frollo turned Snowball sour.
Disney Horse: Angus
Movie: Brave
Where They Are From: Scotland
Angus is Merida’s horse from the movie Brave. He is a big powerful Clydesdale and Merida looks like a peanut on him.
They actually used real Clydesdales to help model and create Angus in the movie.
The video below shows Angus and Merida toward the beginning of the movie where Merida sings “Touch The Sky.” Angus is galloping around the country side and jumps athletically over a fallen tree.
He shows some personality when he jokingly smacks Merida in the face with his tail after she asks if he is hungry.
I think I was pretty spot on with finding a photo of a horse that looks almost identical to Angus.
Also just for fun I added a video of a woman and her horse dressed up to be Merida and Angus for cosplay.
Disney Horse: Buck
Movie: Home On The Range
Buck is the Sheriff Sam Brown’s horse. He wants to be brave and be a hero, but he struggles with his pride, arrogance and fear.
The video clip shows Buck finally becoming the hero he wanted to be.
I believe Buck is a Quarter Horse because of the location and the fact that Quarter horses are very common in that area, as well as being used by cowboys.
I chose the photo above because the color is similar as well as the shape of the blaze. However I did darken the mane on the photo, because the horse had a lighter chestnut colored mane and forelock where Buck has more of a brown mane and tail.
Disney Horse: Bullseye
Movie: Toy Story 2 and 3
Bullseye is a toy horse from the movie Toy Story 2 and 3. He is spunky, playful and a loyal steed and Woody’s horse as a part of the Woody Roundup gang.
Because they are toys based on the Old West I would think Bullseye is meant to be a Quarter Horse toy. Although if Bullseye was not animated and he was an actual horse, not a toy.
Bullseyes color was hard to find. He has a brown mane and a lighter brown body. Also, his muzzle is a peachy color. So this one was a challenge.
I chose a this bay horse. Which is more likely an Arabian than a Quarter horse. At least it looks similar to Bulleye’s aside from the pink muzzle he has, especially when rearing.
Disney Horse: Buttercup
Movie: Toy Story 3 & 4
Buttercup was another Toy from Toy Story 3 & 4. So again if Buttercup was real and an actual horse or should I say unicorn.
I haven’t seen the second and third Toy Story. But I really want to. I really liked the first two movies and these seem just as good. My toddler would probably enjoy it as well.
So unlike Bullseye it seems Buttercup talks and is pretty sarcastic but also a laid back kind of Unicorn.
I didn’t have many choices of Unicorn photos but I thought the one above captured the golden essence a little bit.
Horses Name: Captain
Movie: 101 Dalmations
Captain a now farm horse used to be a warhorse in the army from the movie 101 Dalmations. He is always on alert for activity in the area. Captain plays a role in rescuing the dalmatian puppies from Cruella De Vil.
He is a grey colored horse with a dark grey mane and tail. His forelock covers much of his face and he is a horse who seems to be thick boned.
The Photo seems to fit most of what the Captain looks like although the mane is a little darker.
Disney Horse: Destiny
Movie: Enchanted
Destiny is shown briefly in Enchanted during the animated portions. Destiny is Prince Edwards horse and seems to be a majestic perlino color.
The horse in the picture above captures the color fairly well I think, although the eyes are much lighter, than the animated version. This horse is a Spanish type Andalusian or Lusitano.
Destiny could possibly be an Andalusian seeing as she comes from Andalusia in the movie.
Disney Horse: Frou-Frou
Movie: The Aristocats
Frou- Frou is a sweet palomino mare from the movie The Aristocats, which is based in Paris, France. She is friends with Duchess the mother cat and her kittens. She worries about them after they have gotten kidnapped. At the end of the movie, she helps defeat the kidnapper.
Frou- Frou seems like a dainty mare. She has a golden coat like a gold coin. The photo above shows a horse that looks very similar to her, I think.
Disney Horse: Khan
Movie: Mulan
Kahn is Fa Mulan’s family horse from the movie Mulan. He is loyal to Mulan and goes with her on her journey to join China’s military, in place of her father.
Kahn is a Disney horse with a lot of personality and he is one of my favorites. Although he is the horse I was talking about in the intro of this post when I mentioned body proportions are sometimes very off from the real thing. His body is huge compared to his head and legs.
Also, I found out Kahn’s breed is the Ferghana horse, also known as the “heavenly horse” in China.
Kahn is black with a blaze that is pretty symmetrical and straight. The photo I found is not spot on but it captures the feel of what Kahn may look like in real life.
Disney Horse: Sitron
Movie: Frozen
Sitron is one out of two Norwegian Fjords shown in Frozen. Sitron is Prince Han’s loyal horse. Despite Hans turning out to be a total jerk later in the movie, Sitron seems to be a good-natured horse.
The horse in the photo is a Fjord like Sitron and seems to have a friendly look, reminding me of Sitron’s character.
Disney Horse: Kjekk
Movie: Frozen
Kjekk is the other Fjord in the movie Frozen. Kjekk comes into the movie when Anna calls someone to get her horse. Anna goes and rides out to look for her sister Elsa.
A small avalanche spooks Kjekk and he runs back home to the Castle where Han’s has taken charge till Anna returns or so he says.
So here is another photo of a Fjord. A little bit darker in color than Kjekk in the movie.
Disney Horse: Jaq and Gus
Movie: Cinderella
Jaq and Gus were the main character mice in the movie Cinderella. But on Cinderella’s special night to the ball, the fairy God Mother turns both of them and two other nameless mice into horses to pull the beautiful carriage which was once a pumpkin.
The video below shows the transformation Cinderella and her friends go through by the Fairy God Mother’s magic.
They were turned into white horses techniquely grey and I think the photo does a decent job showing what they may have looked like in real life.
Disney Horse: Major
Movie: Cinderella
Major was also in the movie Cinderella, but he was actually a horse, not transformed into a horse like Jaq and Gus were.
During the transformation, Major was turned into a human in order to be the coach driver for the carriage. Always pulling carriages and working as a horse he got a role reversal for a change, which he seemed to enjoy. You can also see him in the video above under Jaq and Gus’s.
He was a grey horse and his mane was a darker color than his coat.
Disney Horse: Maximus
Movie: Tangled
I believe Maximus is a Lippizan. He is from the movie Tangled and is on the hunt for Flynn Rider. He is another one of my favorite Disney horses because of his personality.
He agrees with Rapunzel to wait on capturing Flynn Rider until after Rapunzel gets to see the lights festival.
I think the photo above looks very similar to how Maximus would look in real life.
Disney Horse: Pegasus
Movie: Hercules
Pegasus is from the movie Hercules and was made out of clouds by Zeus. He is a pegasus like his name and like the unicorn is not real… or are they?
Pegasus has a great sense of humor and has a mixture of bird-like behavior and horse-like behavior.
If Pegasus was real he probably wouldn’t have a blue mane and tail but then again who knows. I haven’t seen a pegasus for real. Have you?
Disney Horse: Phillipe
Movie: Beauty And The Beast
Phillipe is from the movie Beauty And The Beast which is based in France. He is a Belgian horse breed also known as a Brabant.
Phillipe and Belle’s father Maurice end up getting chased by wolves in a forest. Phillipe gets away while Maurice is left behind. Phillipe gallops home to Belle acting frantic trying to get Belle to understand her father is in trouble.
Belle rides Phillipe and goes after her father to save him.
The photo above is of a belgain horse and I think looks just like Phillipe. What do you think?
Disney Horse: Samson
Movie: Sleeping Beauty
Samson is Phillip’s horse in Sleeping Beauty. He has a bit of a stubborn streak in him. Phillip tries bribing Samson with an extra bucket of oats carrots to go check out who is singing. Samson agrees only after the bribe.
This was a difficult horse one for me. Finding a photo for Samson. This is because I have seen Samson in varying colors. I thought he was a blue tint, then grey, then white, then cream color.
I settled on a cream buckskin type color, because horses don’t tend to be white or grey with a totally black mane. But buckskin horses can come in a light color with a black mane and tail.
Disney Horse: The Nokk
Movie: Frozen 2
The Nokk is a horse water spirit in the movie Frozen 2. The Nokk tries to attack Elsa but she fights back and is able to tame the horse.
So obviously this is also not a horse that would be real. I randomly came upon the picture above and had to share it.
The girl looks like she could be dressed up as Elsa and though the horse is not blue, glowing or actually swimming in the water, they are both in the water.
Who knows maybe if the Nokk was real it would be a bay horse with a star. You never know!
Disney Horse FAQ’S
What is the horse in Toy Story called?
Bullseye is in Toy Story 2, 3, and 4, part of Woody’s Round-Up Gang.
Is there Unicorns In Any Disney Movies?
Yes. There are unnamed Unicorns in the Fantasia movies as well as a stuffed animal in Toy Story 3 and 4 named Buttercup.
Which Disney Princess has a horse?
Disney Princesses that had horses include Mulan, Belle, Cinderella, Merida, and Anna. Elsa rode the Nokk but it is not technically hers. Samson is Phillip’s horse, not Aurora’s and Maximus was in Tangled but not Rapunzel’s horse.
What kind of horse is Khan?
Some have said that Khan was a Mongol horse, however, they are pony sized, at 12-14 hands. Khan is bigger and more likely a Ferghana horse breed. This is a chinese horse breed that is similar looking to the Akhal Teke.
Is Maximus the horse in frozen?
No Maximus is from the movie Tangled.
So what do you think? Which were the top 3 closest matching real horses to animated counterparts?
Hope you had some fun!
Cheers! Kacey
