On his second voyage from Spain in the 1500's, Columbus brought a select group of mares and stallions from the provinces of Andalusia and Cordela, and settled them at Santa Domingo. These horses were a mixture of Barb, Andalusian and Spanish Jennet. The Spanish Jennet not only possessed an extremely comfortable saddle gait, but also was able to pass the gait on to its offspring. As Spanish settlers came to the New World, they brought more Spanish horses. The result of the blending of these horses was to become known as the Paso Fino breed - the horse with the incredibly smooth gait. They became the foundation stock for remount stations of the Conquistadors. During the nearly 500 years that Paso horses have been selectively bred and perfected in the Western Hemisphere, they have been called upon to perform a diverse role, first in the conquest of and then in the exploration and development of the Americas. Their lateral four-beat gait distinguishes the Paso Fino in the equestrian world. As it moves, the horse's feet fall in a natural lateral pattern instead of the more common diagonal pattern. The basic gaits of the Paso Fino in order of speed are the paso fino, paso corto, and paso largo. They also walk and canter. These are not trained movements, but are natural to the horse from the moment of its birth. The Paso Fino is a horse for all seasons, a horse for all climates, and a horse for diverse purposes.
from the Paso Fino Breed Association - History of the Paso Fino - wp 9/2000