Arabians!!!

Arabian horses are my all time favorite bred!!! I love them! They are beautiful, majestic, brave, sadly a bit sassy, and are known for their endurance!

I found some facts about them on the web:

1. Arabians are known for their great physical endurance. 

The original Arabians were bred by the Bedouin tribes along the Arabian Peninsula. Dating as far back as 3000 BC, they used their horses for travel and war because of their physical endurance. Arabians have a large lung capacity and great strength, giving them the ability to travel long distances in desert conditions without much difficulty.

2. The skeleton of an Arabian is different than any other horse. 

Horses today have skeletons that offer 18 pairs of ribs and 6 vertebrae. Arabians have one fewer vertebrae and two fewer ribs. This hasn’t affected their overall height or stature when compared to other horses, however, as the average Arabian will stand at least 14.1 hands in height and weigh between 850-1,000 pounds.

3. Arabians are one of the few breeds of horses that can actually dance. 

Dancing might be too strong a term, considering the techniques used for dancing are more like dressage techniques and show gaits. The tradition of dancing Arabians, however, dates back for more than a century and is often included as an informal part of shows around the world.

4. The lineage of many Arabian horses can be tracked for hundreds of years. 

For the Bedouin tribes, the ancestry of each horse was tracked through oral traditions. Crossbreeding horses with “non-pure” blood was expressly forbidden. The Bedouins didn’t believe in gelding male horses either, so very few colts were kept and this helped to increase the strength of the Arabian bloodline while providing foundational genetics for several other horse breeds.

5. Arabian horses were introduced to Europe because of war. 

It is believed that the earliest horses with Arabian genetics came to Europe in the late 1000s because of wars that were being fought. When armies from Europe invaded Palestine, including during the years of the Crusades, the victorious knights would often return home with Arabians as part of their victory. As larger horse breeds were developed, Arabians then became light cavalry horses that were used for war until the 1900s.

6. In the early 1900s, the Arabian breed was almost completely decimated. 

The Russian Revolution stopped almost all breeding programs for Arabians under their control. World War I stopped most breeding programs as well. In Europe, there were believed to be just 17 purebred Arabians that remained by 1932 that were documented in studbooks. More studs were lost or destroyed in the aftermath of World War II. At one point in Europe, just three breeding programs were operational.

7. But…The end of the Cold War brought a recovery in the Arabian breed. 

Arabian horses were rare in the Americas until 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed. Those that were in the Americas were often half- or quarter-breed horses. The few pureblood Arabians that did get imported were highly prized and sought after. It wouldn’t be until the 1990s when breeding programs in the West would be started. This added interest and breeding caused the formation of the World Arabian Horse Association to be formed around the time the European Union was formed. Today Arabian horses can be traded all over the world.

8. All Arabian horses have the same physical trait. 

Arabian horses always have black skin underneath their coat. The only exception to this skin trait is when there is white hair as part of the coat. It is believed that this skin color developed as a way for the horse to be protected from the hot desert sun that is present in the Middle East.

9. Arabians were once given the nickname the “Drinkers of the Wind.” 

This nickname was due to their overall speed, strength, and endurance. During the later days of the Egyptian empire, these horses were often used to pull chariots. Sometimes they may have even been used for racing in addition to the benefits of having an Arabian around for transportation needs.

10. More than 500 horse shows for Arabians are held every year. 

In the US, more than 500 sanction Arabian Horse Association events are held annually. These events are sanctioned by the US Equestrian Federation and several different competitions are available for the breed. This includes equitation, sidesaddle, and dressage. Each horse that competes accumulates points toward various achievement awards.

HERE ARE SOME ARABIAN HORSES PICS:

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Here is some youtube videos about Arabian horses:

WARNING! This is a very long video on Arabians:

Well… thats all I have for you today! Hope you enjoyed it all! Feel free to post questions or comments!

Thanks for looking!