10/29/2024
I found profoundly important for those that know very little or nothing about Arabians and constantly banter with me in any I chose them.
Here is my response. I borrowed it from another Arabian rescue and would like to give them credit for it Love this Horse, Equine Rescue Inc.
Today, a lady looking for a horse for herself told me that she was not keen on Arabian horses. I almost went to try to educate her on what an amazing creature the Arabian horse is, but instead, I decided to write this post.
And God formed a horse, saying: "I create thee, O Arabian! To thy forelock I bind victory in battle, on thy back I set a rich spoil, and a treasure in thy loins. I establish thee as one of the glories of the earth. I give thee flight without wings."
The Arabian horse is the original war horse! It is one of the oldest human-developed breeds in the world and was domesticated c. 5,000 years ago by the Bedouin's of the Arabian peninsula. The desert environment pushed the Arabian horse into cooperating with humans in order to survive - even these hardy horses require more water than camels - and where there was no water, the Bedouins fed them dates and camels milk.
The Arabian horse was bred to be a war horse with soundness, speed, endurance and intelligence. As many raids required stealth, the Bedouins preferred mares to stallions as they were quieter and wouldn't give away their position - prized war mares were often brought into the family tents to protect them from the weather and from theft.
Arabians developed into warhorses by selective breeding. Bedouins developed five primary strains of Arabian horses named Keheilan, Abeyan, Seglawi, Hamdani, and Hadban. These strains represented body type and unique traits.
Speed, alertness, endurance, and intelligence are the desired traits of a warhorse. Arabian horses were bred to have all of them.
Arabian horses were used for hunting, carrying warriors, and pulling chariots in war. Arabian breed appeared in many artworks of Ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, Ancient Greece, and Mesopotamia where an Arabian was seen serving in the war.
Muslim warriors rode on Arabians in many wars. When they got control of the Iberian Peninsula in 720 AD, most of them were taken to the battlefield by the Arabian horses. Arabian served the Ottoman Empire in many wars.
Each strain, when bred pure, developed characteristics that could be recognized and identified.
The Kehilan strain was noted for depth of chest, masculine power and size. The average pure in strain Kehilan stood up to 15 hands. Their heads were short with broad foreheads and great width in the jowls. Most common colors were gray and chestnut.
The Seglawi was known for refinement and almost feminine elegance. This strain was more likely to be fast rather than have great endurance. Seglawi horses have fine bone, longer faces and necks than the Kehilan. The average height for a Seglawi would be 14.2 hands, the most common color Bay.
The Abeyan strain is very similar to the Seglawi. They tended to be refined. The pure in strain Abeyan would often have a longer back than a typical Arabian. They were small horses, seldom above 14.2 hands, commonly gray and carried more white markings than other strains.
Hamdani horses were often considered plain, with an athletic if somewhat masculine, large b***d build. Their heads were more often straight in profile, lacking an extreme Jibbah.
The Hamdani strain was one of the largest, standing as much as 15.2 hands. The common colors were gray and bay.
The Hadban strain was a smaller version of the Hamdani. Sharing several traits including big bone and muscular build. They were also known for possessing an extremely gentle nature. The average height of a Hadban was 14.3 hands, the primary color brown or bay with few if any white markings.
These Bedouins tribes, although their breeding records were kept by memory and passed down through the ages verbally, are also credited as the first to keep breeding records and maintaining the purity of the Arabian breed. To this date, many Arabian pedigrees can be traced to desert breeding meaning there is no written record but because of the importance of purity to the Bedouins, “desert bred” is accepted as an authentic verification of pure blood for those early imports.
We proudly rescue, rehabilitate, train War Horses that will go through fire with you, if you treat them right and form that bond! 💖🐴💖
Link to a great article:
