all write-ups by Christine Othitis

AMERICAN SADDLEBRED

The American Saddlebred has often been called the peacock of the show ring with its high set tail, expressive eyes and a well-defined head.

Developed solely in the US, a magical blend of TB, Morgan and pacer blood produced the high stepping horse which was used as a comfortable ride for plantation owners. ASBs look extremely proud when being driven.

ASBs come in almost every solid colour plus mostly tobiano pinto patterns.

ARABIAN

Even people not familiar with horses will recognize the noble and graceful Arabian. probaby one of the most pure breeds in the world, the Arab has a distinct set to its tail and a dished face. Careful breeding over hundreds of years has preserved the best qualities of the breed, including a fiery but tractable spirit and affection for people.

Arab blood has been used to improve and influence other breeds such as the tb, welsh pony, percheron and trakehner.

All solid colours except for palomino is acceptable in an Arabian. roan, appaloosa and pinto are signs of a part-arab. This is why so many people show their palomino fa as part qh :-)

MORGANS

Often, an entire breed springs from just one horse. In the case of the morgan, that horse was a little stallion owned by justin morgan named figure. his breeding is the stuff of myth, and some people believe he may have had arab or barb or even welsh cob in him. he was known for his speed and strength. happily for the horse world, justin morgan decided to try his horse out as a stud before gelding him. figure's foals were remarkably similar to their daddy and demand for him grew. eventually the us army bought figure and a stud farm was established in woodstock, vermont. three of his sons - sherman morgan, woodbury morgan and bulrush morgan had an incredible influence on the types of morgans produced. figure lived into his twenties and was immortalized in a disney movie and justin morgan had a horse by marguerite henry. the morgan horse club was founded in 1909 to preserve the breed.

Morgans make excellent riding and even sporting horses. Horses from the sherman Morgan line are said to excel in harness. They are most often seen in brown, bay and chestnut. some morgan purists feel that some of the colours allowed were infusions from horses that should not have been registered. grey is one such colour. the morgan is of medium height and ideal for children or adults.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN HORSE

STANDARDBRED

While not as handsome as some breeds, the Standardbred has a personable and hardworking attitude. Powerful hindquarters and a deep gith made the stb ideal for colonial harness racing, which evolved into the sport we know today. only horses who could trot or pace a mile in a "standard" time were allowed to be registered. The breed can be traced back to an imported tb called "Messenger".

STBs tend to also have long ears. Among the solid colours that they come in, bay and dark brown seem the most common.

All solid colours except for palomino is acceptable in an arabian. roan, appaloosa and pinto are signs of a part-arab. This is why so many people show their palomino fa as part qh :-)

TENNESSEE WALKING HORSE

Like the ASB, the TWH was developed as a comfortable riding horse. The breed was originally known as the Southern Plantation Walking Horse and Tennessee Pacer. Descended from the narragansett pacer, the foundation stallion was Black Allan. He was actually half standardbred and half morgan. He arrived in tennessee in 1903 and was bred to tennessee pacer mares. Saddlebred blood refined the breed, which was formally recognized in 1947. TWHs come in most solid and tobiano pinto colours. Besides three distinctive gaits, it also sports a large head and longer hooves than most horses.

THOROUGHBRED