KCMO

Inside this thread we will be listing off breeds of horses that begin with "A". Everyone is welcome to participate. If you decide to help out please post a short description and/or history on the breed and upload a photo of the horse into the breeds catagory in the gallery, then link the picture to your post.

KCMO

This is the Abtenauer is a German horse that is an endangered draft breed. It is thought to be related to the Noriker horse, or a smaller type of the Noriker. It is very strong despite its small height. Abtenauers usually come in black, chestnut, or blue roan; black is the most common color but all colors are accepted except leapord spotting. Since they are a coldblooded breed, they are used for draft work.

KCMO

The Abyssinian horse (or Gala) is small and round, about 13.3 hands tall. The breed is well adjusted to the life and work in the mountains. The Abyssinian originates from Ethiopia and is a light pony breed. Today they are found all around the area of the Red Sea.

KCMO

The Aegidienberger is a small gaited riding horse of Germany. Like the Icelandic horse, it can naturally perform a gait known as the tölt

The Aegidienberger is a cross between the Peruvian Paso and the Icelandic horse, created to produce a more elegant horse that is suited for the climate of central Europe. It was first officially recognized as a breed in 1994. They have full manes, a proud and noble appearance , and good presentation. They generally mature at a height above 13 hands. They have a willing temperament and good endurance. All colors are permitted.

Description courtesy of Wiki

KCMO

The Akhal-Teke, 'Ahalteke' in the Turkmen language, (pronounced /a.hal'tеk.je/) is a breed of horse from Turkmenistan, where they are a national emblem.[1] They are noted for their speed and for endurance on long marches. These "golden-horses" are adapted to severe climatic conditions and are thought to be one of the oldest surviving horse breeds. There are currently about 3,500 Akhal-Tekes in the world, mostly in Turkmenistan and Russia, although they are also found in Germany and the United States. Many Akhal-Tekes are bred at the Tersk stud in the northern Caucasus Mountains.

Description borrowed from: Wiki

cherokeemyluv

The Andalusian horse or Spanish horse is one of the oldest breeds of horses in the world today. It is also known as the PRE (Pura Raza Española; in English, Pure Spanish-bred) in most countries because of the work done by the Spanish studbook in promoting the pure bred horses around the world. It is one of the two sub-breeds of the Iberian horses, and extremely similar to the closely related Lusitano breed.

description from: wiki

Rider

The American Quarter Horse is an American breed of horses that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name came from its ability to outdistance other breeds of horse in races of a quarter mile or less, where some individuals have been clocked at speeds up to 55 mph. The American Quarter Horse is the most popular breed in the United States today, and the American Quarter Horse Association is the largest breed registry in the world, with nearly 5 million American Quarter Horses registered worldwide.

The American Quarter Horse is well known both as a race horse and for its performance in rodeos, horse shows and as a working ranch horse. The compact body of the American Quarter Horse is well-suited to the intricate and speedy maneuvers required in reining, cutting, working cow horse, barrel racing, calf roping, and other western riding events, especially those involving live cattle. The American Quarter Horse is also shown in English disciplines, driving, and many other equestrian activities.

Thanks to wiki

KCMO

Rider, thanks for adding the American Quarter Horse, just an FYI...we have an image gallery you can drop the pictures into and then add them to your post here.

stuffabunny

The American Cream Draft is a rare draft horse of consistently cream color and medium to heavy build, the only draft horse breed developed in the USA.
It is a unique draft breed because of its cream coloring, which is not seen in most other draft horse breeds. Due to its small number of registered animals, the breed has been listed at a "critical" status by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy.

Genetic research, conducted by E. Gus Cothran of the University of Kentucky, has established that the American Cream Draft is not merely a color variant of the Belgian breed, but unique in type as well as color. The color is caused by a dominant gene known as the champagne gene, and it is neither a cremello nor a palomino.

description from:wiki

KCMO

Altai Breed

In the typical Altai the head is average in length, large and somewhat coarse; the neck is fleshy; the back is long and slightly dipped; the croup is well developed, the legs are short and properly set. Occasional defects in conformation include sloping pasterns and bowed hocks. The average measurements (in cm) are: stallions - height at withers 140, chest girth 170, cannon bone girth 19; mares: 137, 170 and 18 respectively. The colors are chestnut, bay, black and gray, sometimes spotted.

The Altai is highly adapted to year-round pasture grazing. Altai crosses with pure breeds have a good performance. They are larger, more massive and stronger than the Altai while retaining their sound health and are undemanding as regards their management. Activities are underway to develop a new meat producing breed by crossing the Altai with the Lithuanian, Russian and Soviet Heavy Draught. These crossings were made after the revolution as well as under the Soviet government, and then the crossbred horses were bred "in purity."

This breed were reared in the Altai Mountains for many centuries and are well adapted to its harsh environment. Horses have always been important to the tribesmen and nomads in this mountainous region, requiring horses with a strong heart, lungs, muscles, and tendons along with very hard feet. A sure-footed horse is important, as they must travel over steep mountain trails cut from the rock and cross fast-moving streams and rivers. The development of the Altai has resulted in the creation of a hardy animal which is indispensable to the people who depend on it.
Description courtesy of: okstate

KCMO

Alter Real
The Alter Real was established in 1748 by the House of Braganza in Villa do Portel. The purpose was to provide horses for the Royal Stables at Lisbon that were suitable for classical equitation, and also, good carriage horses. After 8 years the stud was moved to Alter, a town known for mineral rich soil and a high nutrient content in grazing. That explains the first part of the name, as for real, that is Portuguese for royal. The breed was started with 300 Andalusian mares, imported from Spain, and Arabian stallions. In the Peninsular War (1804-14), much of the stock was spread by the French troops; Napoleon's forces took all the best horses. In 1834, when King Dom Miguel I de Bragança abdicated the throne, a lot of the stud's land was taken, and the stud was ordered to close. Attempts were made to revitalize the stock, with Hanoverian, Norman, English and Arabian stock, but none were very successful, and the Arab blood had a particularly bad influence. In the late 1800s Andalusian blood was added, and this is what finally improved the stock.

When the monarchy in Portugal ended, the stud, and consequently the breed, would have disappeared. Ruy d'Andrade, Portugal's greatest equestrian authority, prevented this. He was able to save a small amount of Alter Real breeding stock, and he line bred successfully to 2 stallions. In 1932 the stud was given over to the Portuguese Ministry of Agriculture. Since then the breed has been improved by culling out unsuitable mares and using only the finest stallions. There are still not a great deal of Alter Reals, but they're not in danger, and they are a part of Portugal's cultural heritage.

It has been said that the modern day Alter Reals look like the original breed from the 1700s. The breed has extravagant action and great knee flexion. Standing between 15 and 16 hh, the primary colors are bay, brown, grey, and occasionally chestnut. The neck is arched, muscular, short and naturally carried high. A powerful, well placed hock contributes to action. The body is short and croup slopes to a low-set tail. The head resembles that of the Andalusian or Lusitano in profile. They are intelligent and high-strung, and overall suited for a horse used for baroque classicism.

Description courstey of Wiki

Rider

The French hippologist Gayot (1888) recommended to crossbreed the English thoroughbred with the Arabian, the fullblooded offspring breed again to the Anglican and then the 3/4blooded progeny crossbreed again with the Arabian that was born in Europe. The breeding of the Anglo-Arabs received a great attention in Pompadour. With careful selections, inbreeding, nutritional adjustments and training, a particular type of the Anglo-Arabs was to a certain point stabilized/established, which is actually a difficult task, hence there were experiments done with various percentages of the English blood. Similar experiments were practiced in the entire French state-breeding program and were greatly supported by the government, because the Anglo-Arab was considered to be the best military riding horse. According to the percentage of the admixed English blood there were recognized Anglo-Arabs 75%, 50% and 25%; for example, if the 50% Angloarabian mare is covered by the Anglican, the progeny of this pairing has 75% of the English blood and 25% of the Arabian. Only the portion of the English blood is counted.

The progeny of a paring of an Arabian pureblooded mare with the English thoroughbred or vice versa, was by the Frenchmen called/named the Anglo-Arabian fullblood/pureblood. The products of other pairing of the Anglican and the Arabian were/are called Anglo-Arabian halfbloods; hence only one parent was a fullblood/purebred.

The biggest impediment/difficulty in the breeding of the Anglo-Arabs was in reaching certain uniformity among the fullblooded Anglo-Arabians, even when using inbreeding. It would be false to presume, that the latter mentioned progeny of the given percentage of the Arabian blood would show in exterior and naturally in the physiological characteristics of these horses; every horse has it’s own individuality and greater or smaller grace/appeal, but every horse is different. The most unbalanced, un-uniformed individuals are the products of two fullblooded Anglo-Arabians.

More information about Anglo-Arabian Horse here.

Rider

The Arabian horse is a breed of horse with a reputation for intelligence, high spirit, and outstanding stamina. With a distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, the Arabian is one of the most easily recognizable horse breeds in the world.

Arabians are one of the oldest horse breeds. There is archaeological evidence of horses that resemble modern Arabians dating back 4,500 years. Throughout history, Arabian horses from the Middle East spread around the world by both war and trade, used to improve other breeds by adding speed, refinement, endurance, and good bone. Today, Arabian bloodlines are found in almost every modern breed of riding horse.

The Arabian developed in a desert climate and was prized by the nomadic Bedouin people, often being brought inside the family tent for shelter and protection. This close relationship with humans has created a horse breed that is good-natured, quick to learn, and willing to please. But the Arabian also developed the high spirit and alertness needed in a horse used for raiding and war. This combination of willingness and sensitivity requires modern Arabian horse owners to handle their horses with competence and respect.

"The Versatile Arabian" is a slogan of the breed. Arabians compete today in many fields of equestrian activity, making the breed one of the top ten most popular in the world. Arabian horses are now found worldwide, including the United States and Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, continental Europe, South America (especially Brazil), and its land of origin, the Middle East.

Credits to Wikipedia.

Rider

HISTORY: The Ardennes type draught horse is the basic root of all the Heavy Draught breeds that exist today. As the Arab is to the light horse, the Ardennes is to the heavy. As a direct descendent of the Solutrian horse (50,000 BC) that roamed the basins of the Rhone, Saone and Meuse in great numbers during the Palaeolithic period and soon spread to cover the whole geographical Ardennes region, it is true cold-blooded horse. There is evidence to show that the horse stood no more than 15hh at this time. They have been around relatively unchanged since the last ice-age 15,000 years ago.

The needs of successive wars oscillating across Europe have, as much as the land and the climate, conditioned the evolution of this horse. There is much documented evidence to illustrate this.

Julius Caesar (100 - 44 BC) declares in his commentaries that "the horses of the second Belgium" are "rustic, hard and tireless" and he recommended their use "in heavy cavalry work". All the Roman emperors after him used the breed to good effect.Geoffrey of Boullion a nobleman from a town of that name in southern modern day Belgium, in the heart of the Ardennes, rode off to the Levant on crusade in 1096 on his Ardennes stallion. The return of men to Europe on Arab horses marked the introduction of Arabian blood to European horses. The knights of the Middle Ages found the sturdy, compact good tempered horses of the Ardennes, strong and tireless chargers, easily carry the weight of men in full armour into battle.

GENERAL: The Ardennes is essentially a compact heavy draught breed, possessing a great muscular development combined with style and activity. Good posture and conformation with plenty of quality bone, should give an impression of balance strength and power.

HEIGHT: Height must not be at the expense of bone and/or fine quality musculature.
Stallions:- 15hh [1m53cm] to 16.3hh [1m64cm]
Mares:- 14.2hh [1m48cm] to 16.2hh [1m62cm]

COLOUR: All colours permitted, except part-coloured (piebald/skewbald). No white markings permitted on head in stallions. In mares a little white below fetlock is allowed (but not encouraged), nowhere else except on head.

HEAD: Intelligent expression, flat (snub) nose or rectilinear profile. Pronounced eye sockets, eyes large and docile. Ears pointing forwards. Forehead flat or concave. Large well-opened nostrils. Must avoid long heavy heads, drooping lips, misshapen ears, domed foreheads.

NECK: Medium length, well set on, with full arched crest in stallions.

BODY: Stocky, expressing mass, density and power. Chest ample and deep, close to ground. Back and loins, powerful and well supported. Haunches large and wide, hindquarters long and well muscled, low set tails are common but not to be encouraged.

Rider

Originally from the Cote d'Or and Yonne region ofFrance, the Auxois breed is a descendant of the old Burgundian horse, dating back to the Middle Ages. There are very few left, although efforts are being made to maintain the breed, particularly around the Cluny Stud and the ferile areas of Yonne and Saone-et-Loire.

HISTORY:
In the 19th Century there was an infusion of Boulonnais and Percheron blood, as well as the Ardennais and Trait du Nord, which increased the overall size of the Auxois. They are closely related to the Ardennes, and since the beginning of the 20th century, only Ardennais blood has been used to improve the Auxois. They are now somewhat larger in height then the Ardennes and both breeds are selectively bred for the horsemeat market due to their mass. The Auxois were widely used in the transport industry and, with the advent of mechanisation, suffered dramatically in numbers, like many of the draft breeds. Today they are strictly protected and monitored by the Syndicat du Cheval de Trait Ardennais de L'Ausoix which is based in Dijon, and has kept the breed's studbook since 1913.

CHARACTERISTICS:
The Auxois have a kind, quiet and biddable temperament which, combined with endurance, makes them highly suitable for heavy draft and farm work. In appearance, they are typically either bay or roan in colour, although can sometimes be chestnut. They stand between 15 and 16.2 hands high. They usually have a smallish head in comparison to body size, which is broad across the forehead and they have small alert ears. They are very stoutly built, having a short, thickset neck, flattish withers, and a wide and deep chest, characteristics also associated with the Ardennes horses. Generally they are broad through the back, and have a long, sloping, muscular croup with a low-set tail. The shoulders are also reasonably sloping which allows for good freedom of movement in all gaits. The horses have particularly powerful legs which are slender in proportion to their body size, with a very muscular forearm and short, dense cannon bones.

Compared to the Ardennais, the Auxois is finer in the legs and have smaller hindquarters. They are not heavily feathered and can move surprisingly freely and fast for their bulk. They are well built and, like the Ardennes, have an enormous pulling capacity.

Thanks a lot to Wikipedia.