Horses play a large role in human life, performing various functions: from helping in agriculture to participating in sports. They are classified according to their appearance and general constitution of the physique. Depending on the diet and the corresponding loads, several types of horses are distinguished:
- harness, which includes heavy trucks, horses for agriculture, coach (another name - saddlery);
- horse;
- pack;
- racing.
The harness includes the Belgian heavy-haulage (Brabancon), the world-famous English Shire, the Scottish heavy-duty truck (Cleydesdal), Suffolk, Percheron. The most popular Russian breeds are Bityug, Vladimir and Soviet heavy trucks. Animals of this species have a large build, thick neck and muscular legs. They are strong and hardy, designed mainly for transporting goods and in agricultural work.
Horse breeds
The leaders among riding are thoroughbred thoroughbred horses that participate in world competitions. At the same time, other breeds do not participate in the races, since they are deliberately doomed to defeat.
Steed
These include:
- Arab purebred;
- Akhal-Teke;
- Terskaya;
- Trakehner;
- Hanoverian;
- Ukrainian horse;
- Kabardian breed;
- budenovskaya;
- Anglo-Kabardian breed group.
These are noble animals with a graceful exterior. They are slender, hardy and often whimsical in content, hard to adapt to climatic changes. The physique is proportional, slender legs, small head. Riding the animals of these breeds is comfortable as they carry their riders smoothly.
Race horse breeds
Racehorses, like riding horses, are used most often in sports competitions. But unlike riding ones, they are more enduring, so they can be used for long distances in races. The exterior of these breeds is as noble as that of the riding ones, but they are less whimsical in content.
These horses include:
- Dutch warm-blooded;
- Westphalian horse;
- breed of Irish horses;
- Holstein horse;
- Oldenburg;
- French.
Description of sports breeds
Arabian purebred - one of the oldest breeds. It is distinguished by a noble fit of a dry, slightly curved head, a unique smooth step, which is why it is considered one of the most beautiful breeds in the world. The first such horse appeared on the Arabian Peninsula thanks to the Bedouin tribes back in the 6th century. Although these animals are proportionally folded, they are not tall. It was the Arabian horses that had the greatest influence on the development of other breeds for equestrian sports. Stallions of this variety are still used as a basis for selection.
Arabic
The Akhal-Teke breed is very impressive outwardly: horses have a dry lean body, narrow constitution, high withers, expressive eyes. The mane is practically absent, the tail is thin. Often among them there are especially rare suits with a golden tint, which are not found in other breeds. Their homeland is the Akhal-Teke oasis in the southern part of Turkmenistan. They are considered a purebred breed, as they are not mixed with other thoroughbred relatives.
In general, these are frisky, easily adaptable animals that do not need a lot of water. Due to their endurance, they are often used in long distance running and obstacle course competitions.
The Dutch Warmblood (warm-blooded) horse is officially registered with the Koninklijk Warmbloed Paardenstamboek Nederland (Royal Studbook, KWPN). The breed of horses is distinguished by beauty, strength and grace. The animals are fast and hardy. They are leaders among riding sports breeds, they participate in almost all equestrian competitions, including show jumping, driving, dressage and triathlon.
The Belgian warm-blooded breed is considered ideal for equestrian sports, as it is especially good at jumping over obstacles, although it is also used in agriculture due to the extraordinary strength of these animals. They are native to Belgium, but at this time they are also common in the United States and Europe. They come in different colors and color saturations: bay, black, red, gray and dark bay. There are often white spots on the head. They are distinguished by a powerful withers and a strong neck. The animals have a long croup, a straight back, strong legs and a powerful broad chest.
Dutch
The Westphalian horse breed comes from a region of Germany called Westphalia, hence the name. It is distinguished by a strong physique, slender muscular legs and an aristocratic profile. They are larger than riding English. The suits are found mainly red and bay, although there are gray and black.
In Ireland, the horse is an integral part of life, so many breeds have been developed there, which are popular not only in this island state. The most famous of them are the Irish Cob (Tinker), Irish Harness, Irish Hunter. They are hardy and unpretentious in content, which has gained universal popularity.
Holstein horses in Germany are considered the oldest breed, the first mention of them dates back to 1225. These thoroughbred animals have long won the recognition of equestrian sports professionals and simply admirers of purebred stallions not only for their sporting achievements, but also for their complaisant disposition. They have excellent physical characteristics - horses are strong and hardy. The appearance of the horses is especially graceful: they have a beautiful fit with a slightly elongated head, intelligent eyes and a wide neck. But, despite the apparent external fragility, they have a strong muscular body and strong croup. These are real athletes among their relatives. The most common horses are gray, black, chestnut and dark chestnut color. They are used not only in competitions, but also on ceremonial trips, as these horses look very impressive.
The Oldenburg horse has an interesting origin story. Her selection was carried out at the time by Johann the Sixth, Count of Oldenburg in 1500. He crossed Andalusian, Danish and Neapolitan horses. The result met all expectations. Today this breed is an irreplaceable participant in many competitions. Horses practically do not differ from the Holstein and Hanoverian breeds with their exterior - the same graceful. But they also have their own zest - noble posture and endurance. They come in a wide variety of colors. The head is a little large for the body, the back is wide and straight, but in general they have a beautiful appearance with a clear profile.
Ukrainian horse
The Ukrainian horse differs from other horses in its unpretentious maintenance and amazing endurance in comparison with congeners from riding breeds. These horses are flexible, easy to train, have high athletic qualities and a good disposition. They look elegant and noble. The colors are very diverse: bay, red, black, sometimes gray and dun. Their homeland is Ukraine, at this time they are grown at the Alexandria, Yagolnitsky, Lozovsky (Dnepr) and Derkul stud farms. The distribution area is mainly the territories of Ukraine, Belarus and Russia. Horses of this breed have a straight back, proportional head, wide chest, massive strong body and rather long croup.They have the best qualities of professional riders: energetic, hardy, fast.
The French horse, or Sel, comes from Normandy (France). It appeared in the last century as a result of crossing an English thoroughbred and a Norman horse. Has an admixture of Arabian horses, English and French trotters. Outwardly, this racehorse is attractive with well-developed muscles. Animals have long legs, which is why they more show themselves as jumpers in competitions. Their character is calm, flexible, rarely show aggression. Usually they are of a bay color, but there are also red individuals.
Horses are the constant companions of a person, regardless of what function they perform. These intelligent animals are not only suitable for work as heavy draft or equestrian athletes, they are often used for medicinal purposes for the rehabilitation of people with serious illnesses. In this field, they proved to be good therapists.
