Have you ever asked this question – are there any Equine types that are not considered as breeds of horses?
If so, this article is for you. The article will discuss all of these horse types in depth.
The 7 Equine Types that are actually NOT Considered to be Horse Breeds (but are still Horses) are:
- Cob Horse Equine Type
- Hack Horse Type
- Show Pony Equine Type of Equine
- Show Jumper Horse Type
- Hunter Horse Equine Type
- Racehorse Equine Type
- Polo Pony Horse Type of the Equine
Let’s have a look at each of them, like how they differ from other horse types, their specifics, etc.
Table of Contents (Horspedia)
Cob Horse Type | not really a Horse Breed – but still an Equine Type
It is a sturdy, placid animal of the type known in Medieval times as a rouncy or roncey.
Not really a Horse Breed – but still an Equine Type.
Its breeding is largely a matter of chance-often it is the by-product of an attempt to produce a heavyweight hunter from a part-bred cart mare crossed with a quality stallion, sometimes resulting even when the stallion is a Thoroughbred and the mare herself no more than a heavyweight hunter.
The character of a Cob Horse | What are they like?
It has a calm, intelligent expression and may be any color. Its action should be long-striding and smooth, and very comfortable.
The cob is generally thought of as a perfect ride for the elderly and the obese. As such, its manners must be perfect – safe, calm, obedient, and comfortable.
It is extremely strong, ideal for a heavy rider who wants a hard day’s hunting on the sticky ground, but its lack of speed prevents it from rivalling the heavy hunter on fast grassland countries.
Its unruffled temperament creates a demand for it in many situations where a high-strung horse would be worse than useless-for example, that of a racehorse trainer who has to supervise a string of nervous young Thoroughbreds.
It is a sort of horse that has been and will be, appreciated for a very long time.
Physique of Cob Horse | What does it Look like?
The ideal cob horse stands from 14.2 to 15.2hh, has a quality head on a thick crested neck, strong, sloping shoulders, a short back with a deep girth.
Generously rounded hindquarters with second thighs, short legs with abundant bone and very short cannon bones, and hard, round feet.
Hack Horse Type | Medieval Horse Origin
The name of this horse stems from the once-despised hackney or haquenai.
It is, as it has always been, a riding horse; but it has risen in caste from the humble hireling of Medieval times, through a period when it was the mount of a gentleman galloping to a meet of foxhounds (the groom going slowly on ahead on the gentleman’s hunter), to a meaning which is generally associated with any high-class small Thoroughbred or quality riding horse.
It should not be overlooked that “going for a hack” means going out riding purely for pleasure, as opposed to going hunting or to some other sporting event, and that any horse which provides an enjoyable ride may justifiably be described as a hack.
The character of Hack Horse Type
It is required to have good manners, pleasant gaits, and an ability to negotiate small fences.
In the show rings of the world, the hack is also required to have great personal beauty.
Because of this, European prizes usually fall to the small Thoroughbred and in America preponderantly to the Saddlebred.
Specifics of Hack Horse Type
Show standards require the hack to be not more than 15.3hh, to be of perfect conformation, elegant carriage, and appearance, to have a smooth, true. Action, and to be possessed of perfect manners.
Hack Horses are lightweight build-in show ring terms it is always lightweight – especially fits it as a woman’s mount.
Hack Horse type may be of any color, as befits a type rather than a breed, but because of its “breedy” appearance is usually to be found in the conventional solid colors of bay, brown, black, grey, or chestnut.
Show Pony Horse Type | Different than usual Pony
Literally, an animal standing not more than 14.2hh and having conformation good enough to win in the show ring.
Show ponies come in three sizes – up to 12.2hh, up to 13.2hh, and up to 14.2hh.
They are judged on conformation, manners, action at the walk, trot, and canter (they are not usually required to jump), and some consideration is also given to the way in which they are turned out, presented, and ridden.
In what ways does Show Pony Horse type differ from regular pony breeds?
In a big horse show, there will always be several ponies who will be faultless or near-faultless.
The emphasis, therefore, shifts to their performance. The usual selection method is for all ponies to parade around the show ring at a walk, trot, and canter.
The primary task of a show pony is to perform well in front of judges in horse shows. Unlike other ponies, show ponies are not used for riding, farm work, etc.
Those who catch the judge’s eye are called into the ring and lined up to wait until this initial selection process is completed.
When the rank and file has been dismissed, the selected ponies who remain are put through their paces one by one, performing at the walk, collected and extended trot, and collected and extended canter.
What do Judges look for when Assessing Show Ponies?
Some display of elementary dressage is usually required. The judge will inspect each pony from all angles, and will usually run his hand over its body and down its legs.
At this halfway stage, the best ponies are moved into the front of two ranks, and from then on it becomes a battle of nerves (for the rider) while the judge considers minute details.
As the object is to select the perfect child’s pony, color and breed are not material.
A show pony can come from any background, but since it must be both elegant and conventionally good-looking to reach the top, it is usually, though not necessarily, a small Thoroughbred or near-Thoroughbred.
Show Jumper Horse Type
In many competitions, speed is also a factor.
Showjumpers must also be handy, able to cope with sharp turns and difficult approaches to fences and possess nerves equal to the strain of competition, and resilient to the noise and electricity generated by an excited crowd.
The best of them love an audience, responding to the “oohs” and “aahs” of suspense as they clear each jump.
The popularity of Show Jumper Horse Type
It’s a Formidable and Impressive Jumper Horse.
Top-class show jumper horses command prices far in excess of anything they can ever be expected to win in prize money, and as such is the prerogative of the luxury market.
Often they provide a hobby (but a very serious one) for those who can comfortably afford not only the purchase price but the high cost, in the cases of the best horses, of international travel, and horses of this caliber are frequently not owner-ridden but are piloted by the cream of the amateur and professional riders.
Good show jumpers are distinguished by the compactness of build and by the tremendous power of their hindquarters.
Most are mongrels who show an aptitude for jumping, though, like Hanoverians, Irish horses, and hunters and are conspicuous in the top ranks.
In 1902 the North American hunter Heatherbloom cleared the astonishing height of 8ft 3in.
Specifics of Show Jumper Horse Type
As long as it can and will jump formidable obstacles in cold blood, a showjumper can be any size, color, breed, or height; successful ones must be bold, brave, disciplined, and must have a tremendous power of thrust.
Hunter Horse Type | Most Suited for Hunt Activities
A hunter is an Equine Type most suited for Foxhunting and Hunt.
As such, it must be bold, intelligent, and tractable, capable of negotiating all kinds of obstacles that come in its path and sound enough in wind and limb to last up to 5 hours at a trot and gallop without tiring.
Hunters vary according to the type of country hunted. In heavy going, a strong-built horse will endure the exhausting suck of a plough which will cause a lightweight horse to stagger and quickly tire.
On fast grassland, a Thoroughbred or another lightweight animal will sweep past the slow-footed heavy horses.
How do you determine whether a horse falls under the Hunter Horse Type?
In a trappy country, a courageous and resourceful horse will prove to be the best.
Variations also exist according to the weight and strength of the rider, since there is no point in the chase if the horse cannot carry you, and no point also if the horse is so strong that he carries you past the Master and into the pack of hounds.
The essential qualities of a hunter are soundness, endurance, intelligence, jumping ability, good manners, an equable temperament, and stamina. In the show ring, hunters are judged on appearance, good behavior, and comfortable action.
Show hunters are divided into 5 categories according to weight: up to 175lb (lightweight), up to 196 (middleweight), over 196 (heavyweight), small (14.2-15.2hh), and ladies’.
The classic type of hunter, the famous Irish horse – is a cross between a Thoroughbred and an Irish Draught or Cleveland Bay mare, brought on slowly on good land.
Racehorse Equine Type | Why is Racehorse NOT a Horse Breed?
Though the word “racehorse” has become synonymous with the word “Thoroughbred”, it does not necessarily follow that Thoroughbreds are the only horses that are raced.
Testing horses against each other for speed has been known to exist for more than 5,000 years, or for 4,800-4,900 years before the Thoroughbred was evolved, and races were likely held for many centuries or millennia before this.
Very early forms of racing are thought to have involved restricting horses from water until they were extremely thirsty and then losing them to see which would get to the water first.
How was Racehorse Equine Type used?
Wherever and whenever man had a horse he was proud of, or simply whenever he felt like a gamble, races have been held, be it Roman chariot racing, a private match between gentlemen, steeplechasing, trotting racing, or any other form of speed or endurance contest that could be imagined.
Modern-day racing includes such widely-diverse forms as speed tests for Arabs, for Shetland ponies (in North America), and for sulky trotters.
Thoroughbreds are raced the world over. The standard of their performances varies quite strongly from country to country, since the performance of horse versus horse and not horse versus clock is what matters, and thus rejects from a good racing nation often become winners in a weak one.
In a sense, all of these animals qualify for the description of racing horses or ponies; but it is to the Thoroughbred alone, with its unique turn of foot, that the title of “racehorse” truly belongs.
Polo Pony Equine Type
Polo ponies are not usually bred as such, but are picked out as young adults if they show an aptitude for the game.
They need to stand around 15hh or a little over – not “ponies” at all in the strict sense of the word-and they must be fast, bold, intelligent, and extremely handy.
Most are of near or pure Thoroughbred ancestry. Training them takes a good deal of time and patience.
The origins of polo are obscure. It seems to have been played in the east.
Asia for many centuries, and has lost its popularity in such countries as China and Mongolia only comparatively recently.
Western enthusiasm for the game came about through its discovery by English tea planters in Assam a little more than a century ago.
The Silchar Club, founded in 1859 in Assam, is the oldest polo club in the world, and its rules provided the basis for modern polo.
It is a game well suited to regimental life, and many of its successful participants have consistently been army officers.
Spreading back with the British regiments from India to England, it quickly (the 1870s) found a home at the Hurlingham Club.
From there, it was successfully taken up in the United States, and since 1945 the North American supremacy has been overcome by that of Argentina.
Today, most of the world’s polo ponies are bred in Argentina, which has roughly three times as many polo players as any other nation in the world.
Wrapping Up about Horse Types which are actually NOT Horse Breeds
For a quick summary, in this article, we have looked at 7 Equine Types that are actually NOT Considered to be Horse Breeds (but are still Horses).
We have discussed how these horses perform in their particular field and how they differ.
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