Breeders are not the only ones who have the knowledge of different horse breeds. Many horse lovers do, too. The history of horse breeding as well as the features of different breeds are interesting learning that can give you a better understanding of these magnificent creatures.

History of Horses

Let us first examine how the relationship between men and horses has evolved, as this will help us better understand different horse breeds. Believe it or not, horses first became valuable to humans because they produced milk and could be eaten. Later on, however, humans realised that horses were strong and fast and began to use them to carry or draw loads and as a mode of transportation.

Now, horses are no longer just used to do labors. Rather, they are more often kept for sports or leisure riding. Hence, people are breeding horses to serve the different needs by human beings.

Breeding Horses

What the breeder do is to select specific male and female horses with the desired characteristics to mate, so that the new-born horses will carry the traits desired by us humans. With the success of purposeful breeding, more horses are now bred in planned ways to meet specific needs. A widely known example is the racing horses. In fact, there are different registries around the world that document the various horse breeds.

To know about the different horse breeds is probably a hard mission for an average person, but a true horse-lover can usually tell a lot of the breeds. This is especially true for someone who is fond of horse racing or simply would like to get himself a horse. Often, knowing the breed of your horse would tell you what the horse is capable of doing and whether its price is truly justified.

Horse Species

Despite the vast number of horse breeds, horses are generally placed under three main groups - pony, light, and heavy horses.

The smallest kind of horses are known to us as ponies. As they are so small, some would even not consider them horses at all. Even so, ponies can be as hardy as other horses. Some breeds can carry adult riders and pull heavy loads. Because of their size and mild nature, ponies are often kept as pets by children. Examples of pony breeds are the Shetland and Welsh ponies.

Next to ponies are the light horses. Some of the breeds under this group are the beautiful Arabian and the fast Thoroughbred. Other breeds are the Quarter Horse, Appaloosa and Morgan. These horses are primarily meant to be ridden for fun or for sport. In the past, they were popularly used to pull light wagons, carts, carriages or chaises.

Some horses belong to the heavy group. In the past, these horses were used for war. They were also used for carrying and pulling heavy loads. Heavy horses are therefore ideal for farm work. They are large but have well-formed, powerful muscles, shoulders and legs. Heavy horse breeds include Shire, Clydesdale, Percheron and Lipizzaner.

Keep in mind that even within the same group, different horse breeds can carry very different traits. Hence, it is always important to understand what sets your horse breed apart from the rest.

If horses are your passion, it is relatively easy for you to identify various breeds of horses. What is more, you will not find it hard to train or take care of them. There are more than one hundred varieties of this animal. All of them have different traits which require specific care and attention in order for you to get close to them. If you do not know anything about horses, training or rearing them will be really difficult. This is the reason why you need to study or know more about them before you think of buying one. If ever you decide right away and you are not prepared, you will end up with a hind-leg kick from your horse.

Comprehending horses means that you have to delve into the relationship that you have with your horse. Compared to other farm animals, the former has always been very special to the humans. Even in the past, the horses are relied upon for different things. They are depended upon for transportation, for milk, for entertainment, for companionship, and sadly for some, food. If several years ago horses are used mostly to carry or lug heavy loads, this animal is now kept for leisure purposes or sports. The most common places that you will get to see horses are farms, ranches, and racing stables. When it comes to a specific breed, you have to buy a horse which you know fits your requirements accordingly. If you want to acquire the right variety for your children, you should choose a horse which is gentle and sweet. On the other hand, the best breed for horse racing is one which is fast and swift.

Horses for sale are common nowadays, what with the huge number of individuals wanting to buy their own. While you can look into your options when you visit farms, there is a more convenient way of checking out selections. This is possible when you check out online sites that offer free classified listings. One of these sites is HorseClicks, which provides photo classifieds of various horse breeds. You can take a pick from Arabian horses, Thoroughbred, Appaloosa, Quarter, Buckskin, Paint, and other breeds. The classified listings of Horses Click provide information such as the name of the horse, age, date of birth, gender, breed, color, height, and price. There is also a comment on the traits of the horse and what it has accomplished.

Through the free photo classifieds of HorseClicks, you will be able to find the perfect horse breed. There are three general classifications of horse varieties. These are heavy, light, and pony. Heavy breeds have well-developed muscles, legs, and shoulders. They are suitable for farm chores, especially with the pulling of heavy carts. Examples of this breed are Percheron, Shire, and Clydesdale. On the other hand, light breed horses are useful for racing, riding, carriage-drawing, and rounding up of cattle. These horses are sleek, swift, and tall. Common examples of this breed include the Arabian, Appaloosa, Quarter, and Thoroughbred. The last breed would be ponies, which are suitable as pets or companions for children. Their size is small and their nature gentle. Common examples are Welsh and Shetland.

Thoroughbreds are known as "America's Racing Horse". This breed of horse runs at the race track every single day around the world.

History of the Thoroughbred:
This breed of horse was originally bred in England due to the English horsemen's desire to have a fast race horse. There are three that founded this bloodline which are: Byerley Turk, Darley Arabian and Godolphin Arabian, named after their respective owners, Thomas Darley, Lord Godolphin and Captain Robert Byerley. All of these stallions were imported to England from the Mediterranean Middle East between 1670 and 1710. The result was an animal that could carry weight with sustained speeds over extended distances. Approximately ninety percent of modern thoroughbreds have descended from Eclipse whose grandsire was Darley Arabian, who was never beaten in eighteen races.

This began a very selective breeding process which has been going on for nearly 250 years. Breeding the best stallions to the best mares to produce fast race horses, giving them superiority and excellence being established on the race track.

Around the turn of the 1700's, breeding records for Thoroughbreds were sparse and usually incomplete, and many times, they would not name a horse until the young horse had proven them self worthy. A gentleman named James Weatherby, through his own research and hard work and by the consolidation of his own privately kept pedigree records published the first volume of the General Stud Book. This was done in 1791. The first publication listed 387 mares, each of which could trace back to Eclipse. The General Studbook is still published in England by Weatherby and Sons, Secretaries to The English Jockey Club.

Many years later, as thoroughbred racing proliferated in North America the need for a pedigree registry for American Bred Thoroughbreds, similar to the General Stud Book became apparent. In 1873, the first American Stud Book was published by Colonel Sanders D. Bruce. This man spent almost a lifetime researching the pedigrees of American Thoroughbreds. He followed the pattern of the General Stud Book producing six volumes of the register until 1896 when the project was taken over by The Jockey Club. The integrity of the American Stud Book is the foundation on which all Thoroughbred racing in North America Depends.

The first publication of the American Stud Book by The Jockey Club had a foal crop of around 3,000. In 1986 in had grown to an astonish 51,000. Today The Jockey Club runs an elaborate new computer technology to meet the registration challenges posed by the gigantic number of annual registrations. The Jockey Club owns and operates one of the most sophisticated computer operations in the world today, with its database holding more than 1.8 million horses on a master pedigree file, with names that trace back to the 1800's. This is quite impressive genealogy. As well as bloodlines, this computer system also handles daily racing results of every Thoroughbred race in North America, as well as the ability to process electronically submitted pedigree and racing data from England, Ireland, France and other leading Thoroughbred countries.
Another descendant of Darley Arabian is Diomed; he won the first running of the Kentucky Derby in 1780. When he was twenty one years old he was brought to the United States where he produced the male line through his son, Sir Archie.

The most world renowned horse race is the Kentucky Derby, being the first race of the Triple Crown. The Preakness and The Belmont follow this historical racing event. Thoroughbreds are the horse of choice for track racing. Most thoroughbreds are born between January and April, but their official date of birth is January 1 of the current year. During their first year of growth, they are developing size and power with the youngster beginning his training as a yearling. The horse learns to accept a bridle and a saddle and soon after a rider on his back to break the horse and prepare him for the starting gate and the run around the track.

While most people are familiar with many of the pure breeds of horses, there are many interesting crossbreds. Each breed has its own benefits, and it is not unusual for people to try to get the best of both breeds by crossing them. The following are some common crossbreds and their usual characteristics.

Arabian Crosses

Most Arabian crosses are designed to refine the horse, without adding much height. Arabians are known for being highly sensitive and intelligent horses, who can be a bit flighty or silly at times. Most of the breeds they are crossed to tend to be solid citizens who could use a bit more pep. Many Arab crosses make excellent all-round horses who do well for children and for pleasure. Some make excellent dressage horses or hunters, combining the beautiful Arab movement with the solid personality of their crosses.

Some of the most common Arabian crosses include the Morab (Morgan x Arabian), the Quarab (Quarter Horse x Arabian) and the Arapaloosa (Appaloosa x Arabian). Another common Arabian cross is the Anglo Arabian (Thoroughbred x Arabian). Anglo Arabians are unlike the other crosses in that they are highly sensitive, have good height, and are excellent athletes. The cross has been so well established in France, that it became the foundation of their Selle Francais breed. Arabians also cross very well with some pony breeds such as Welsh Ponies.

Thoroughbred Crosses

Thoroughbreds are the most common horses to see crossbred into other breeds. Adding size and refinement, the Thoroughbred is an amazing athlete who generally produces crossbreds with excellent performance potential.

One of the most popular Thoroughbred crosses is the Appendix Quarter horse. Not only are half-breds accepted as Appendix Quarter Horses, a high percentages of Thoroughbred blood is permitted in the registry.

Smaller thoroughbreds are also crossed onto many pony breeds to produce pony-sized offspring with horse-type bodies. This type is highly popular in the hunter ring. Many successful ponies that near the highly desirable 14.2hh size are in fact part Thoroughbred.

Many breeders like to cross Thoroughbreds to draft horses. These crosses are lighter weight than drafts, and are well suited to riding. Many draft crosses become field hunters, but some of the more refined crosses become good performance horses.

Appaloosa Crosses

Appaloosas are hardy horses who are renowned for their unusual coloring. Some breeders like to cross other types of horses to Appaloosas to attempt to get the Appaloosa coloring on a horse while retaining the type of the breed they are crossing to. Arapaloosas are the Arabian x Appaloosa cross mentioned earlier, but other popular crosses include Pintos (Pintaloosa) and Tennessee Walkers (Walkaloosa).
A cross between a Shetland pony and an Appaloosa mare produced the colourful Pony of the Americas, now an established breed.

Gaited Horses

Some people enjoy crossing the highly popular gaited breeds, such as Tennessee Walkers, to other breeds. They try to retain the gait, but gain the size, substance or coloring of the other breed. Some gaited crosses include the National Show Horse (Arabian x Saddlebred) and the Tennuvian (Tennessee Walker x Peruvian Paso).

Other Crossbreds

No matter where you look, you will see other types of crossbred horses. Some are popular enough that breed registries have been formed for them. Others are still rare. While many breeders consider crossbreds to be no different than grade horses, others will defend their crossbred "breed", claiming that it has as much validity as other breeds. Either way, you can find a cross of almost anything if you look hard enough.

The American Quarter Horse is the first breed of horse native to the United States. The breed evolved when the bloodlines of horses brought to the New World were mixed. Foundation American Quarter Horse stock originated from Arab, Turk and Barb breeds. Selected Stallions and Mares were crossed with horses brought to Colonial America from England and Ireland in the 1600's. This combination resulted in a compact, heavily muscled horse that evolved to fill the colonists passion for short distance racing.

The amazing power behind a quarter horse enabled this great animal to run short distances over a straightaway faster than any other horse with the fastest being named Celebrated American Running Horse. The names for this breed has changed many times over the years until 1940 when a registry was formed to preserve the breed which officially became the American Quarter Horse Association.

In the year 1674 in Enrico County, Virginia the first American Quarter Horse Race was held. They were one-on-one match races down village streets, county lanes and level pastures. Many disagreements and fights were generated from heavy betting of large purse races by 1690.

The American Quarter Horse, due to their calm disposition and quick response time, the horse became known for its "cow sense", being able to outmaneuver cattle. During the 1800's as many pioneer folk moved westward, so did the American Quarter Horse. An abundant amount of cattle ranches stretched across the plains. Making this breed well suited for the cattle ranchers.

In today's world, the American Quarter Horse still remains a great sprinter known for their heavy muscling, but they have exceeded way past the cattle horse. These amazing horses compete in almost every discipline available, from rodeo events, such as barrel racing and calf roping to English disciplines such as dressage and show jumping. The make a nice little children's hunter as well, with the ability to jump a wide range of heights. They are one of the most versatile breeds in the world.

Many pleasure riders still look to the American Quarter horse for recreational riding, as they make a nice pleasure horse as well.

Breeders, since the creation of the breed over fifty years ago, have diligently been trying to perfect the bloodlines to produce a high quality versatile animal.. Strict guidelines have been set by the American Quarter Horse Association regarding registration of the American Quarter Horses. Some of these guidelines include:

1. Limited white markings on the face and below the knee

2. Only thirteen accepted colors recognized by the AQHA. These are sorrel (reddish brown), bay, black, brown, buckskin, chestnut, dun, red dun, gray, grullo, palomino, red roan and blue roan. The official gray color is what most people call white, but there are no "white" American Quarter Horses.

3. A quarter horse foal must be the product of a numbered American Quarter Horse dam and a numbered American Quarter Horse sire. There is an appendiz registry for foals with one numbered American Quarter Horse parent and one Throughbred parent registered with The Jockey Club.

Some other notable characteristics of the American Quarter Horse is their speed, versatility, gentle nature, heavy muscling and keen cow sense.

If you own an American Quarter Horse, no matter what discipline you choose to ride, your horse will excel. This breed is one of the most enjoyable horse breeds around today and one of the most popular.

Nature itself has always had an impact and influence on breeding over the years. In the wild only the strong survived, horses roamed free and were unprotected by man. The stallion (male leader) fought other stallions to protect and maintain his herd. Any weakness threatened his entire lifestyle.

Today man has a major role in breeding, no longer is the need for strength and survival so important. Rather we are able to do selective breeding for traits such as color, breed, conformation and athletic ability.

When horses were first domesticated we either needed them for transportation or as work animals to help on farms. All work was demanding of the horse and man saw what he needed from horses.

Certainly no thoroughbred should endure pulling a tank in the snow for weeks on end.

A heavy set horse is far better suited for that job. And so began the mixing and mingling of bloodlines and breeds.

As we have progressed in life with conquering new lands so we have taken our trusted steed along for the ride. Horses that travelled to distant lands were bred with the native horse of that land. A new breed evolved and man bred to refine the qualities and characteristics.

Horse breeding is natural, but not all horses are meant to be bred. In order for two to make three we need a stallion (male) and a mare (female) which mate. A mare can only be bred with when she is in season. If the covering (mating) is successful she will give birth to a foal (baby) ten months later.

If you are interested in breeding for what ever personal reason, the best place to begin is with a sound, healthy horse. Generally the stallion owner offers his horses services during the breeding season for a fee. If you want to make money breeding then you certainly need to own a stallion that has good bloodlines, good conformation and temperament.

Those three aspects are essential ingredients for breeding. A mare has a little more elbow room in her requirements. This is only because she is going to produce a single foal per year, whereas a stallion is bred to around 40 mares per season with live cover and a lot more when using artificial insemination.

The resulting foal is definitely a combination of mare and stallion qualities, the stallion does not have more influence in the gene pool. You do not need a top competing mare in order for you to breed for a foal. Any horse owner with a mare can choose to breed.

With that said I do not mean that any horse owner should choose to breed. If you are interested in breeding become educated in horse breeding first. Talk to people who have bred, visit stud farms and learn about the industry.

Horse breeding is a fascinating and wonderful career. If you cannot afford the stud fee for the top horses you could investigate working on the stud farm. There are a number of studs that offer benefits and incentives to staff which can include a free service to a mare.

When deciding to breed your horse, know what kind of horse you would like from the match. Know the rules of the horse breed, some horses will not be accepted into the breed registry without specific traits like color. Always look for a stallion that compliments or improves on the qualities of your mare.