Breeds
Describing horse breeds, their characteristics, their history.
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A special warrior: The Marwari horse
Our latest post was about “Under the Spell of Horses”, a documentary on one of India’s indigenous equine breeds, the Marwari. So, it’s time for a close look into this special species. Origins – Background The Marwari is the indigenous breed of the Indian region of Marwar, or Jodhpur, as most people know it. It comes from the crossbreeding of native Indian ponies with Arabian horses. According to the Indian tradition, an Arabian ship carrying seven Arabian horses sank off the west coast of India and the horses were led to Marwar to be used as a bloodstock foundation for the Marwari horses. The systematic breeding of the Marwari began…
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Under the Spell of Horses – Documentary
I love documentaries! All sorts of them! The documentaries that I find particularly charming, though, are those which show the cultural heritage of a nation. And if the theme is horses, then things get more exciting! I watched “Under the Spell of Horses: India” on YouTube last night. The film was about the native Indian equine breed Marwari. This breed has been used in wars and traditional events; it is decorated and made to dance to ethnic music. Horses are worshiped like gods in the multitheistic Indian society and people look for specific characteristics on the horse they are about to buy, because they believe that such characteristics bring luck to the…
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The Aravani
The Aravani is a Greek native horse, which has been used for centuries by the Greek people all over the Greek space. Origin In 2000 B.C., the Dorians migrated to Greece with their own equines from the steppes. Upon their passing through the area of Thessalia, they bred those equines with the local horses, which they took with them. This is how the ancestors of the Aravani species were born. Later in time, the Aravani horses were mixed with Persian, Arabian, Turkish and Roman breeds. Especially the Arabic characteristics are dominant in the genetic material of this breed. Uses Before the 1960, when the mechanization of agriculture began in…
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Video of Andalusian horses
I have spoiled my readers a bit; after a breed post, soon another will follow with videos of that breed. So, today I would like to show you an absolutely beautiful video of Andalusian horses being trained for dressage. OMG, OMG, I just loved it! So, here we go:
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Finesse and power: The Andalusian horse
The Andalusian horse, being also known as the Pure Spanish Horse or PRE, is a species that originates from the Iberian peninsula, where it has lived for thousands of years. The species is considered to remain unchanged since the 15th century AD. Appearance The Andalusian is an impressive, elegant animal. The mane and tail are thick and rich, while its body is strongly built but compact. The head is medium-lengthed, while their profile is straight or moderately rounded. The neck is tall and wide and the chest is quite big and solid. Andalusian horses also have broad backs and strong hindquarters. Most Andalusian horses are of grey color, but a…
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What is a draft horse?
The draft horse (or drought horse, or dray horse, or working horse, or heavy horse) is bred for hard farm labor, used since the pre-industrial era. Today it’s used for a wide variety of purposes, including crossbreeding for the production of sport horses, farming, logging and recreation. Although they are mainly carriage horses, they are ofted ridden. The physiology of this equine species is quite special; heavy, strong, patient, obedient, tall and also extraordinarily muscular. The shoulder is upright, the lower leg is heavily feathered, the back is short and broad and the bones are heavy. These are the characteristics making it an impressive and hard-working carriage animal. The metabolism…
