Name of breed: Mustang Origin: United States of America Breed origin: America’s wild horse, the mustang, is not in fact native to America. When Spanish explorers brought the breed’s ancestors to the New World in the 16th century, horses had been extinct in North America for almost 10,000 years. These Spanish or Iberian horses that […]

Name of breed: Barb. Also called the Berber or Barbary horse. Country of origin: North Africa Breed origin: The Barb is a northern African horse known for its great hardiness and stamina. The exact origins of this breed are unknown, although it was written of in the second century BC and was certainly well-developed by […]

Name of breed: New Forest Pony Country of origin: England Breed origin: The ancestors of the New Forest pony roamed the woods and heath of the New Forest before the last Ice Age! The forest itself has been protected since William the Conqueror reserved it as his ‘new hunting forest’ in 1079, and the development […]

Name of breed: Icelandic horse Country of origin: Iceland Breed origin: The ancestors of the Icelandic horse were probably brought to Iceland by Norse settlers between 860 and 935 AD. Only the best horses were chosen to undertake the voyage and those that survived became indispensable to the settlers as they eked out a living […]

Name of breed: Mongol, or Mongolian horse Country of origin: Mongolia Breed origin: The origins of the Mongol horse are hard to determine. Of all horse breeds, Mongol horses have the largest genetic variety, indicating that the breed is very archaic with little human-induced selection. Some believe that Mongol horses were the first true breed […]

Name of breed: Kladruber, or Oldkladruby Country of origin: Czech Republic Breed origin: The Kladruber is not only the oldest Czech horse breed, but also considered one of the oldest breeds in the world. The Kladruber’s history dates back to 1579, when the Habsburg emperor Rudolf II founded the Narodni hrebcin, or national stud, in […]

Breed name: Yili Country of origin: China Breed origin: The Yili breed was developed in the 1900s with the aim of improving local Kazakh stock in the Xinjiang Uygur region of China. Russians settling in the region brought stallions to crossbreed with the Kazakh horses, which were largely Mongolian. When the local government got involved […]

Breed name: Suffolk Punch, also known as the Suffolk Horse or the Suffolk Sorrel. Country of origin: England. Breed origin: The Suffolk Punch is England’s oldest breed of heavy horse, dating back to the early 16th century. Developed in Suffolk and the surrounding counties in East Anglia, the breed’s most distinguishing feature is its colouring. […]

Megan Jones is a champion event rider who has represented Australia in the Olympics and achieved great success on her home-bred horses. From her equestrian centre in the beautiful Adelaide Hills, South Australia, Megan and her team run a plethora of programmes and events for everyone from professional riders to horse-loving kids. Megan very kindly […]

Breed name: Australian Draught Horse Country of Origin: Australia Breed origin: The Australian Draught Horse was developed in the 1800s from the four main draught breeds brought to Australia with the early settlers: Clydesdale, Shire, Percheron and Suffolk Punch. With the boom of agriculture after the gold rush period, heavy horses were in high demand […]

Breed name: Dartmoor Country of origin: England Breed origin: Named after its ancient habitat, the moors of Dartmoor in southwest England, the Dartmoor pony pre-dates modern Britain by a long shot. The bones of their prehistoric ancestors have been discovered in tombs in southern Britain dating back to around 3500 BC. At that point in […]

Name of breed: Freiberger, or Franches-Montagnes Country of origin: Switzerland Breed origin: The Freiberger breed originates from the hilly Jura region of northwestern Switzerland. Depending on who you ask, it is either a heavy warmblood or a light coldblood, but its origins are decidedly heavy. In the 19th century, the native Jura horse was crossed […]

Name of breed: Kerry Bog Pony Country of origin: Ireland Breed origin: As its name suggests, the Kerry Bog Pony originated in Kerry, a county in the southwest of Ireland. DNA testing has revealed that it shares ancient roots with breeds from northern Europe such as the Icelandic horse and Shetland pony. This is hardly […]

The FEI World Equestrian Games are held every four years, in the middle of the Olympic cycle. It is one of the biggest events on the global equestrian calendar, with eight disciplines included in the programme and over 700 riders set to compete this year. The 2018 Games will be held from the 11th to […]

Name of breed: Campeiro, or Marchador das Araucárias. Country of Origin: Brazil. Breed origin: The Campeiro horse originated from Spanish and Portuguese stock that was brought to Brazil by Captain Alveres Nunes in the 1540s. Some of these horses were lost during the expedition and formed a feral population in the area encompassing Rio Grande, the Paraná plains and […]

Breed name: Kinsky. Also known as Equus Kinsky, or the Golden Horse of Bohemia. Country of origin: Czech Republic. Breed origin: The origin of the Kinsky horse is a legend in itself. The story goes that over a thousand years ago, a Bohemian princess was travelling through the country when she and her entourage were […]

Breed name: Waler Country of origin: Australia Breed origin: The Waler was developed in colonial Australia by crossing a huge number of breeds including heavy draught types, strong coach horses, Timor Ponies and native British ponies, Thoroughbreds, Arabians and the African Cape Horse. To handle the harsh Australian conditions and the tough work required of […]

Fiona Hughes has been riding horses her whole life, and enriching the Aussie eventing scene for much of that time. Her latest project, Sit Tight Radio, brings listeners top quality equestrian info-tainment in the form of commentaries from Australia’s major 3 day events. We caught up with Fi to learn more about Sit Tight Radio […]

Name of breed: Tarpan Country of origin: Russia, although Tarpans once roamed over most of Europe. Breed origin: The original Tarpan is an extinct subspecies of horse whose scientific name is Equus ferus ferus. The Tarpan developed during the ice age as a subspecies of Equus ferus, which lived all over the land from western […]

I was recently fortunate enough to attend an incredible festival in the French city of Tarbes, which is nestled into the foothills of the stunning Pyrenees mountains. Equestria Festival is a celebration of all things equus. It’s like a breed show, but with added llamas. It’s like a gymkhama, but with world class performances every […]

Name of breed: Brumby Country of origin: Australia Breed origin: ‘Brumby’ is the name given to Australia’s wild horses. Populations exist in every state and territory except Tasmania thanks to a huge variety of reasons and events. The first horses came to Australia with the First Fleet in 1788. Only seven survived this initial voyage, […]