As a kid I only remember the bull dog type Quarter Horse, but now 40 years later there seems to be several “types of horses” within the breed, obviously chosen for the intended use - hunt seat, western pleasure, reining etc.
Or, is it based on the offspring of certain bloodlines…
Are there also those breeders of “color” (as in other breeds) that are not as picky in breeding for good conformation overall.
Please enlighten me…
There are definitely different types, to the point that I think they should start a sub-registry like the KWPN registry has. There is not much in common between a Cow Horse and a HUS horse any more! I think this is part of why Quarter Horses aren’t considered a “Breed” in Canada…there isn’t a standard type or a closed stud book.
And definitely some that breed for dilutes or Grullo with little thought to anything else, but I think that is try in all breeds that come in fancy colours.
haha! Well… you decide…
Halter: “Kids Classic Style” http://www.bobcarlsonquarterhorses.com/updates/07sept18/Janbucky.jpg
Reining: “Smart N Shiney” http://showhorsegallery.com/images/uploads/smartandshineyphoto1.jpg
“Spooks Gotta Gun”
http://www.infoalpartners.com/Media/Images/IT/Stalloni/Immagini/big/11.jpg
Cutting/Working Cow Horse: “Peptoboonsmal” http://www.mcintyreranches.com/sitebuilder/images/RED_PEPTO-342x221.jpg
Barrel Racing/Speed Events: “Dash Ta Fame” https://www.stallionesearch.com/images/stallions/Dash_Ta_Fame_2Large.jpg
Western Pleasure: “RL Best Of Sudden”
http://www.mastersonfarms.com/wp-content/uploads/rl-best-of-sudden_conf.jpg
Hunt Seat: “Allocate Your Assets”
http://allocateyourassets.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/AYA-Homepage-Gallery-3.jpg
Here’s a HUS horse next to a reiner-
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/1f/fa/4b/1ffa4bfa0eeb2a44264e140c2d9bbc99.jpg
So yeah, I’d say there is a little variation within the breed.
I see plenty of Krazy Kolor breeders, still, even though most markets are fully saturated with the low quality stock horses.
Nice examples, guys!
I had a Canadian Equine Book that had the following for a description of the Quarter Horse.
“A stock breed of the united states noted for an incapacity in endurance, a large jowl and tiny legs not capable of supporting its body weight.”
Aye … IDK But thinking they are not fans of the Quarter Horse ?
[QUOTE=propspony;7879031]
“Spooks Gotta Gun”
http://www.infoalpartners.com/Media/Images/IT/Stalloni/Immagini/big/11.jpg[/QUOTE]
OK, this horse is severely downhill and over at the knee, and he’s a breeding stallion? Why, oh why?
Because he was unbelievable in the show ring and a legend…
https://youtube.com/watch?v=JDwPtwtjZD0
Did you see how back at the knee Peptonoonsmal is? And he’s one of the top stallions.
There were different types among horses I can recall in the 60s. A friend’s nationally successful reining made was not at all bulldoggy, and a number of pleasure horses including one of mine come to mind. I did show a bulldog style stud in halter for a friend, ironically his pedigree showed he was 7/8 thoroughbred, going back 3 different ways through War Admiral to Man O’ War.
The hind legs on the halter horses these days are so straight they are nonfunctional. Wouldn’t have believed it was even possible. It’s such a shame and I don’t understand why judges reward a horse that is not built to be ridden.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/10625018_687339855120_6422297714900191877_n.jpg?oh=8c9df140ddbdd6d7274b2bff6d9676d9&oe=54C11CD4&gda=1422863499_7307a64d1cf76901f90aeb86e6446d24
A good quarter horse is a great horse, useful for just about everything. These show ring exaggerations are not a service.
Yes, there are different types, due partly because crossing out for an apendex horse to aTB is still allowed, plus families selected to excel in certain disciplines, that a sub type becomes selected over time
Any time you have a breed where versatility at upper end in many disciplines is strived for, you are going to have way different body types, versus, say a breed bred for one main function, or for just a few closely related disciplines
Halter also has become specialized, so forget the 'form to function, ect-it is an entity onto itself. I used to have a problem with that, but a reining trainer I was taking a clinic with, told me it had no influence on me if I bred like to like, (performance) and that halter people have a right to just lead them and feed them, if they wished
No serious performance person breeds to a halter horse
Look at some other breeds,and how they have changed over time. The Freisen is a recent example. The background of a Freisen was harness work, and once people over this side of the ocean decided to show Freisens under saddle, a new type emerged
An Arabian reiner certainly does not look like an Arabian halter horse, and in fact most Arabian reiners are half Arabs, because that classic topline and rear end of a straight Arabian is not conducive to hind end engagement
Name me any breed that excels at upper end in several wide apart disciplines, that has the same body type. This is the open venue for that discipline, and not just within their breed circuit
Yes, any good horse of any breed, with good training can do many events, but at what level? You can have a Jack of All trades, yet ,master of none
Once the horse becomes very specialized in any one event at upper end, the body type that does well in that event, is selected for
TBs are selected first and formost for speed, thus are known for poor hoof quality and if a horse could run with a conformation defect, it was bred on
HUS horses have a strong TB influence, as do running AQHA horses.
Yes, there are different types, due partly because crossing out for an apendex horse to aTB is still allowed, plus families selected to excel in certain disciplines, that a sub type becomes selected over time
Any time you have a breed where versatility at upper end in many disciplines is strived for, you are going to have way different body types, versus, say a breed bred for one main function, or for just a few closely related disciplines
Halter also has become specialized, so forget the 'form to function, ect-it is an entity onto itself. I used to have a problem with that, but a reining trainer I was taking a clinic with, told me it had no influence on me if I bred like to like, (performance) and that halter people have a right to just lead them and feed them, if they wished
No serious performance person breeds to a halter horse
Look at some other breeds,and how they have changed over time. The Freisen is a recent example. The background of a Freisen was harness work, and once people over this side of the ocean decided to show Freisens under saddle, a new type emerged
An Arabian reiner certainly does not look like an Arabian halter horse, and in fact most Arabian reiners are half Arabs, because that classic topline and rear end of a straight Arabian is not conducive to hind end engagement
Name me any breed that excels at upper end in several wide apart disciplines, that has the same body type. This is the open venue for that discipline, and not just within their breed circuit
Yes, any good horse of any breed, with good training can do many events, but at what level? You can have a Jack of All trades, yet ,master of none
Once the horse becomes very specialized in any one event at upper end, the body type that does well in that event, is selected for
TBs are selected first and formost for speed, thus are known for poor hoof quality and if a horse could run with a conformation defect, it was bred on
HUS horses have a strong TB influence, as do running AQHA horses.
[QUOTE=poltroon;7879336]
The hind legs on the halter horses these days are so straight they are nonfunctional. Wouldn’t have believed it was even possible. It’s such a shame and I don’t understand why judges reward a horse that is not built to be ridden.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/10625018_687339855120_6422297714900191877_n.jpg?oh=8c9df140ddbdd6d7274b2bff6d9676d9&oe=54C11CD4&gda=1422863499_7307a64d1cf76901f90aeb86e6446d24
A good quarter horse is a great horse, useful for just about everything. These show ring exaggerations are not a service.[/QUOTE]
oh my god… that is an atrocity.
I grew up showing quarterhorses. I have a soft spot for the breed, it’s my comfort zone for all things “horse”. But yeah… things like that photo are what got me out of that industry. What a joke.
[QUOTE=poltroon;7879336]
The hind legs on the halter horses these days are so straight they are nonfunctional. Wouldn’t have believed it was even possible. It’s such a shame and I don’t understand why judges reward a horse that is not built to be ridden.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/10625018_687339855120_6422297714900191877_n.jpg?oh=8c9df140ddbdd6d7274b2bff6d9676d9&oe=54C11CD4&gda=1422863499_7307a64d1cf76901f90aeb86e6446d24
A good quarter horse is a great horse, useful for just about everything. These show ring exaggerations are not a service.[/QUOTE]
That is just…sad…
[QUOTE=gaitedincali;7879065]
Here’s a HUS horse next to a reiner-
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/1f/fa/4b/1ffa4bfa0eeb2a44264e140c2d9bbc99.jpg
So yeah, I’d say there is a little variation within the breed.
I see plenty of Krazy Kolor breeders, still, even though most markets are fully saturated with the low quality stock horses.[/QUOTE]
Couldn’t help the giggle. I was visualizing the reining horse carrying its 6’, 180lb rider while the HUS’s 5’4", 110lb rider is worrying whether she’s too tall for her horse.
Once a registry is formed, man directs the path of that breed, through selective breeding, both for the good and the bad
Positive hypp horses were actually selected for , before hypp even became identified, by the simple fact that those halter horses that were hypp pos,had muscles always exercising at some extent, thus producing the muscle mass rewarded in halter
Even if the conformation of a World halter horse reflected athletic ability, once excess weight was taken off, the fact remains that many halter horses at upper end are never ridden, thus the mind in an un known quantity
To come to terms with halter having deviated from it’s original purpose, you have to let it be an industry onto itself, versus trying to have halter relate to ‘form to function’
The above reason is also why there are yearling lunge line classes, as it allows young pleasure and HUS horses to be shown, without going up against halter horses, with the major empathizes being on movement
Many modern Morgans look more like Saddlebreds then the old time Morgan
It is a simple fact that heart/ability is just as important as correct conformation in a performance horse, and thus some performance horses are in demand for breeding, even if they have some conformation defect.
Conversely, you can have the best conformation horse around, and if he does not have a good mind, he will never achieve his potencial as a performance horse
Ideally of course, one would want both in the same package
If you have a wide range of versatility, you are going to have different body types, and that is a fact
A human body builder certainly does not look like a marathon runner
A basket ball player does not look like a football player-and so on
Far as size of rider and horse size, it really is in material. Look at the size of some cutting horses, and the rider.
Look at the riders on Isl-antic horses, that are in reality ponies
Look at the size of riders on some 17hh warmblood
Does not matter much, beyond appearance at times
Far as that halter baby pic, yes the horse is very post legged, but to be fair to those judging halter, has this horse won anything, or is it just sale pic, of someone trying to sell a baby with a major defect?
I’m not defending halter trends, but to be fair, I have never seen a halter horse that is so post legged win anything
[QUOTE=poltroon;7879336]
The hind legs on the halter horses these days are so straight they are nonfunctional. Wouldn’t have believed it was even possible. It’s such a shame and I don’t understand why judges reward a horse that is not built to be ridden.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/10625018_687339855120_6422297714900191877_n.jpg?oh=8c9df140ddbdd6d7274b2bff6d9676d9&oe=54C11CD4&gda=1422863499_7307a64d1cf76901f90aeb86e6446d24
A good quarter horse is a great horse, useful for just about everything. These show ring exaggerations are not a service.[/QUOTE]
What has that horse won? I agree with Kilo Bright. I’ve never seen anything that post legged win much.
The Conclusion halter lines are well known for producing good performers. Check out Lazy Loper and Vital Signs are good. Both go back to Conclusive. That straight pastern on the colt shown in your picture, I don’t think would be competitive, except maybe at a local level.
I raised and showed an APHA stallion in the mid-90s to an APHA open championship. He was old school breeding, mainly Skipper W with some Leo and Thrre Bars. He was also 16.2 hands, 1350 pounds. He was a superior in halter and western pleasure. I even used him for a little Beginner Novice evening and fox hunting.
“The hind legs on the halter horses these days are so straight they are nonfunctional.”
Why do they think that is pretty/desirable???
How many people decrying what others choose to have in their horses have a short legged, long backed dwarfish dog, with the problems that brings and think that is fine?
People breed and have the animals they have because, for them, that is what they want in their animals.
I don’t know about that one straight legged one, I have not seen that so much that overly, practically double muscled halter horses that look deformed, like a Hulk in a horse suit.
Yes, Hulk looks deformed also, compared with a normally muscled human.
That quarter horses can be so different is exactly why they are called the versatile breed, you can find some that will fit most anything anyone wants to do with horses.
Remember, the more someone restricts any breed of animal, any genetic pool, the less those animals will thrive.
Some of the extremes can end up there, that is why people cross breeds.
In quarter horses, you can do that within the breed.
Two of the horses I have are at home and are very different in how they look and move, both AQHA.
One is a high performance bred, trained for years as a reiner, just not talented enough, turned into a ranch horse.
Still, he can move around carrying himself beautifully, he was bred to be that kind of athlete.
The other, I got him for company to the first one, is ranch bred and is an excellent ranch horse and arena team roping horse, both ends.
He moves like a car with square wheels, doesn’t really know how to use himself properly and does what he does, compared with the other horse, almost in slow motion and in a more jerky, forced way.
With some careful training he is learning more how to be easy on himself, but it is not bred in him, as it is in the previous horse.
He is the equivalent as a human learning to dance but has by nature “two left feet”, is just not going to compare with the one born to move in space light and correct.
Both have the wonderful, full of try and kind and easygoing personality quarter horses are generally known for and none are on any extreme of conformation, many/most quarter horses are not.
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