The Magnificent Marching Mangalarga Marchador Horse

The Mangalarga Marchador is the National Horse of Brazil and is one of the most popular and widespread horses in South America. It has been exported to Germany, Portugal, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Holland, but did not arrive in the United States until 1991 where it is still a rare breed. The United States Mangalarga Marchador in America (USMMA) is working with breeders in many states to promote this beautiful and uniquely gaited horse that exhibits classic Spanish conformation and charm and is a wonderful sport horse that can be inspected and registered as a warmblood. Traditional tack that is used for showing the Mangalarga is quite simple with the saddle resembling an Australian stock saddle. The headset is clean cut with a snaffle bit and the rider's clothing, when showing the Mangalarga in Brazil varies from region to region but it is always colorful and unique.

The Mangalarga is the product of a rich agricultural area and its haciendas where the farmers and ranchers have always valued a smooth and comfortable ride and superb temperament since they spent a large part of their work day on horseback.

The Mangalarga Marchador was originally developed in 1740 as an Iberian breed, descending from the Andalusian stallions of Portugal and Barb mares. In 1812, Prince Pedro I (1798-1834), soon to become Emperor of Brazil, presented one of his fine Portuguese Alter Real stallions, Sublime, as a gift to his friend Gabriel Francisco Junqueira, Baron of Alfenas, whose Hacienda Campo Alegre was an established horse breeding farm of over 70 years. Sublime was the descendant of 2 horses brought from the breeding farm Coudelaria Alter do Chao in Portugal by Dom Joao VI during the invasion of the Iberian Peninsula by Napoleon. Sublime was bred to the native colonial mares in Brazil, many of whom were fast and smooth amblers of Spanish Jennet, Criollo, Andalusian and Barb breeding. The first foals produced from this cross were called Sublime horses and had the characteristics of the current Mangalarga Marchador horse, including the cadenced rhythmic gait called the Marcha. It was this stallion that founded the modern Mangalarga.

The breed's name comes from the Hacienda Mangalarga who acquired some of the Sublime breeding stock from Hacienda Campo Alegre and the smooth, rhythmic marcha. Local ranchers became interested in the horses from Hacienda Mangalarga and soon started to buy their own breeding stock from Hacienda Campo Alegre. Since then, the Mangalarga Marchador has been selectively bred for over 180 years with no other breed being used. The traditional breeding of the Mangalarga Marchador horse has concentrated on the original pure foundation lines from Hacienda Campo Alegre. Since the famous Spanish Jennets are now extinct, the Mangalarga Marchador is probably the purest surviving remnant of that breed. .Genetic studies of these lines show many specimens with very little or no outside influences and these lines produced horses that were sure footed, graceful, comfortable and of excellent temperament.

The first breed association, Associação dos Criadores do Cavalo Marchador de Raça Mangalarga was founded in 1949 to distinguish the Mangalarga Marchador as a unique breed, particularly in regards to the gait, and to set down the standards for the breed. It is now called the Associação Brasileira dos Criadores do Cavalo Mangalarga Marchador (ABCCMM). The USMMA is affiliated with the ABCCMM and. Mangalarga Marchador must pass rigid standards for conformation, gait, performance and endurance. In many cases, the horses in the U.S. maintain dual registry with the ABCCMM in Brazil.

There are however, two varieties of Mangalarga. The original Marchador (also known as the Mineiro) which is of straight Iberian heritage and the Mangalarga Paulisto from São Paulo which has more European breeds in its ancestry. When the Junqueira family moved to São Paulo, the terrain and local culture required a horse with different characteristics, so they started to cross the Mangalarga Marchador with Hackey, Morgan, American Saddle Horse, Hanoverian and Trakehner, which meant that Arabian and Thoroughbred also found their way into the breeding programs. This made the Mangalarga Paulisto, which is lighter and leggier, a completely different breed form the Mangalarga Marchador and led to a separate registry of Mangalarga Paulisto horses in 1934. Both Mangalarga varieties are registered with ABCCRM but they are so different that each variety has its own studbook.

The Mangalarga Marchador is a very versatile breed and there are over 350,000 registered Mangalarga Marchador horses in Brazil. They are good cattle horses, show horses, riding and jumping horses, even polo is in their functional realm. The Mangalarga Marchador set the Guinness Book of World Records endurance record in 1994 when two 60-year-old Brazilian men completed a trail ride of 8,694 miles to prove the stamina of the Mangalarga Marchador by riding all day long for one and a half years with the same horses.

The Mangalarga Marchador stands 14.2 to16 hands and weighs between 850 and 1100 pounds, with 1000 pounds be average. Horses that are shorter than14.2 hands are not acceptable for registration. Most colors are represented in the breed, but grays tend to predominate. Chestnut and bay are also popular with black, buckskin, palomino and paint horses being present in the genotype.

The Mangalarga Marchador has a medium structure that is strong and well proportioned, with agility, vigor and soundness. The head is triangular in shape with a straight profile that is rounded over the nose region which is typical of the Barb horse. The large, dark eyes are set wide apart and the ears are proportional to the head with tips turned inward. The coat is fine and silky with an abundant mane and tail. The neck is of medium length and arched which gives balance and a proud, high carriage. The chest is deep for a great lung capacity and is reason for the legendary stamina of the breed. The pasterns and hooves are at the slightly lower angle that is typical of Spanish horses which allows the breed to overreach well without excessive stress.
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This breed has an active but docile temperament and is well known for keen intelligence, excellent stamina and regal bearing. They are alert, attentive and easily trained for most disciplines, but most of all, they are renowned for their incredibly smooth and fluid ride even at high speeds using a gait that is unique in the world.

The Mangalarga Marchador has the natural gaits; the walk, the marches, and the canter and neither trots nor paces but moves naturally from the smooth marching gait into the canter. There are two different 4-beat marcha types, the lateral Marcha Picada (light touch) and the natural diagonal Marcha Batida (to hit), with the Marcha Picada being a bit smoother. The marcha can be sustained for long periods of time, allowing the rider hours of enjoyable riding with little discomfort.

The marcha is remarkably fast and smooth. The horse moves its feet alternately laterally and diagonally with moments in which triple hoof support can be verified. If the horse is marching on level ground at a normal rhythm, the tracks of the rear feet will cover or pass slightly ahead of the tracks of the front feet.

When the horse places the feet diagonally and with moments of triple hoof support, the gait is called Marcha Batida. It is a diagonal four-beat gait, similar to the Trocha in the Paso Fino. When the horse moves the feet laterally and separately and also has moments of triple hoof support, it is called Marcha Picada. This is a broken gait and therefore creates little vertical movement, similar to the Paso Fino corto or Largo, and has also been compared to the Peruvian Paso Llano.

Due to the triple hoof support exhibited in the Mangalarga Marchador, the marcha gives a very comfortable ride with little friction since the horse is always in contact with the ground. The longer and more frequent the moments of triple hooves support are, the more comfortable the ride will be.


About Crystal Eikanger

Crystal Eikanger is a freelance writer, web designer, video editor and voice talent working as Ei-Kan Productions on www.rentacoder.com as well as other freelance sites. www.HorseClicks.com is a popular website filled with classifieds of horses for sale, horse trailers, tack, and horse related properties.

The Magnificent Modern Morab Horse

The Morab breed of horse is a selectively bred equine that combines the finest traits of two treasured and well documented breeds, the Morgan horse and the Arabian horse, to form the best of both parent breeds. It has been the dream horse of breeders since the 1800's. The combination of the Arabian and Morgan characteristics is genetically complementary and gives a refined, muscular, graceful horse with enhanced beauty and strength.

Crosses between breeds can produce foals that look nothing like their own siblings or like the other crossbred foals down the road. But this is not true of the Morab. First generation Morabs have a consistently uniform look, with some degree of refinement with very little change shown in the second, third, forth, and even fifth generation of Morabs. In fact, they transmit their characteristics with such a high degree of certainty to their progeny that it is possible to predict with incredible accuracy what the successive generations of foals will look like, and what traits they are likely to inherit. It is this ability of Morabs to transmit their distinguishing characteristics to their progeny, called "prepotency”, which makes the Morab a distinct breed from the very first generation, rather than just a nice cross-bred horse.

Only the first generation Morabs can be triple breed registered. They are eligible for Morab registration, Half-Morgan registration in the Archival Morgan Record, and Half-Arabian registration in the Half-Arabian Registry (IAHA), even though they are technically neither half-Morgan nor half-Arab. In addition, many are eligible for registration in the various color registries such as Pinto, Palomino and Buckskin, and also as American Warmbloods. Successive generations of Morabs, bred Morab-to-Morab, are no longer eligible for either half-registry, but they continue to be registerable in the aforementioned specialty registries, as well as in the Morab registry.

Although the Morab’s official status as a distinct breed began in 1973 with the establishment of the first Morab registry, its history traces back as far as the original Morgan horse, Justin Morgan, who can be traced back to the Godolphin Arabian. The Morab history appears to have begun in the west and comes from both the Arabian horse side of the story, and the Morgan horse side, but there has been limited information prior to 1973.

When the 1857 book "The Morgan Horse", by D. C. Lindsley came out, a lot of background was filled in. In his book he stated that when mares of Morgan blood could not be obtained, mares possessing a strain of racing or Arabian blood could be considered; and he specifically recommended 1/8 to 1/4 Arabian blood as suitable. Because of this statement, there were many Morgan/Arab crosses registered in the American Morgan Horse Association registry prior to 1948. After that date outcrosses were no longer allowed.

History’s first recorded Morab was bred in 1855. This stallion was named Golddust and he had great merit because his sire was a Vermont Morgan and his dam was an unregistered Hoke mare that said to be by Zicaaldi, a chestnut Arabian stallion presented by the Sultan to the United States Consul, Mr. Rhind, and imported by him. Golddust was pure gold in color, stood 16 hands and weighed in at 1275 pounds. He was never defeated in the show ring at the trot, and it was rumored that he could cover 6 miles per hour at the flat walk. No other stallion of his time produced better horses.

Golddust was recorded as Morab #69 in the Morgan Registry when provisions for recording the Morgan/Arabian crosses were made in both the early Morgan and Arabian Registries. However, this was discontinued in the Arabian Horse Club Registry around World War I just before International Arabian Horse Association formed in the 1940's and began registering only purebred Arabians. Unfortunately, with that change, those earlier records were lost, but according to the IMR records, over 100 of today’s Morabs can trace back to Golddust. The connection to him passes through their pedigrees in great numbers primarily through the 103 progeny of Flyhawk MHA7526.

After that, little is recorded about Morabs until the 1920’s, when the famous publisher, William Randolph Hearst, had a short-lived Morgan breeding program which included breeding Morabs for use in the mountainous terrain of the Hearst Ranch. Hearst is credited with coining the term "Morab". He registered 18 Morabs and some of them were registered as Morgans with the "Sunical" prefix, under the now-extinct outcross rule of the American Morgan Horse Association (AMHA).

The first Morab registry, the American Morab Horse Association Inc. (a closed corporation where members had no vote) was founded by Ilene Miller in 1973 and was also called Morab Horse Registry of America, which was often shortened to “Clovis” for the California town where it was located. When she died in 1980, this first registry rapidly faded away. In 1976, The Hearst Memorial Morab Horse Registry was started, and registered 50 horses. With the retirement of the founders, the Hearst Registry merged with the North American Morab Horse Association (NAMHA) that was formed in Wisconsin after Mrs. Miller’s death. NAMHA accepted all "Clovis" horses and began registering as many Morabs as they could find. The first Morab registered by NAMHA was in 1984.

The International Morab Breeders' Association (IMBA) was founded in 1986 as a full-service breed association and registry for Morabs and half-Morabs, and incorporated in 1987 by Morab horse breeders who wanted an organized way to promote their horses. The International Morab Registry (IMR) then started in 1992, and represents the Morab breed back to 1973. The IMR requires documented Arabian and Morgan bloodlines and allows a horse to be no more than 75% Arabian to 25% Morgan, or vice versa.

So, just what are the characteristics that make the average 950 to 1200 pound Morab that ranges from 14.1 hands to 15.2 hands in the variety of colors and markings common to both Morgans and Arabians so magnificent?

For starters, the Arabian's skeleton is different from other horse breeds in that it has fewer bones. It has 17 ribs, while other horses have 18; it has 5 lumbar vertebrae, while other horses have 6; and it has 16 tall vertebrae while other horses have 18. This skeleton was also passed onto the Morab, so there are only two breeds with this distinct and unusual skeletal structure.

The Arabian's powerful lungs and endurance capacity, combined with the broad, powerful chest of the Morgan, gives the Morab a naturally superior breathing system for enhanced endurance and stamina. The shorter back in the Morab, combined with the longer croup of the Morgan, gives the Morab a natural athletic ability, great strength and a smooth gait which enables them to excel in competitive and endurance riding, dressage, jumping and as a cutting horse.

The head of the Morab may be straight or slightly dished with a large powerful jaw in contrast to a small muzzle with large nostrils. A wide forehead sets off the Morab’s large expressive eyes. The body is compact, well muscled, stylish and smooth. The Morgan genes add a thick, luxuriant mane and tail to the Morab, which balances out the breed's muscular build. Many breeders report that their Morabs are never shod and require minimum hoof trimming.

Its intelligent, dependable and affectionate nature is the Morab's most valued quality. When the people-loving nature of the spirited Arabian is added, the breed cannot be beat in temperament and it is an easy horse to train and handle.

In fact, the refined, sculpted beauty of the Arabian, joined with the Morgan’s dramatic natural style and stamina, creates an elegant yet powerful horse that makes it is easy to see why Morab owners treasure their horses and usually keep them for life.


About Crystal Eikanger
Crystal Eikanger is a freelance writer, web designer, video editor and voice talent working as Ei-Kan Productions on www.rentacoder.com as well as other freelance sites. www.HorseClicks.com is a popular website filled with classifieds of horses for sale, horse trailers, tack, and horse related properties.

Harness a Retired Standardbred Racing Horse to Your Life

Standardbreds are a relatively new breed, dating back just over 200 years, but it is a true American breed that began from crossing Morgan Horses and English Thoroughbreds. The origins of the Standardbred trace back to an English Thoroughbred stallion named Messenger that was foaled in 1780's. Messenger was not only a Darley Arabian descendent, but he was the great-grandsire of a horse named Hambletonian 10, back to whom every Standardbred can trace its heritage.

The name "Standardbred" refers to the early trotters that were bred to reach a certain standard for trotting the distance of a mile in order to be registered as part of the new breed. Pacers would not come into the picture until much later, but to this day, the mile is still the standard distance covered in nearly every harness race. In 1871, the American Trotting Register was founded and in 1879, the racing standard was determined. Over a distance of 1 mile, trotters were to clock in at 2 minutes 30 seconds and pacers at 2 minutes 25 seconds and it is these standards that gave the breed its name. That also means that the average speed of these races is approximately 30 miles per hour.

So you can see that this horse is bred for speed not for conformation, and now the Standardbred is widely considered to be the fastest harness racing horse in the world. There is no typical look to the Standardbred and individual Standardbreds have been mistaken for Thoroughbreds, Warmbloods, Morgans, Arabians, Quarter Horses, Tennessee Walkers, etc. So, as you can see, there is a look and style for every taste, but generally they have the physique of a Thoroughbred but with a heavier Morgan body. They stand between 14.1 and16 hands and weigh between 800 and 1,000 pounds. A Standardbred must be registered with the United States Trotting Association (USTA) before it is allowed to either race or breed before the horse becomes two years old on the universal birthday of January 1.

The majority of Standardbred racing is harness racing that takes place with a driver holding the reins from his seat in a sulky racing cart. Racing under saddle was a type of Standardbred racing that was popular early in the breed’s development, and has become popular once again in the United States.

Most Standardbreds start racing as 2- or 3-year-olds. Standardbreds are either pacing bred or trotting bred; pacers never trot in a race, and vice versa. Trotters race only trotters and pacers race only pacers. However, pacing does not dominate the rest of their daily activities. Standardbreds trot, and pace, from birth and will do either one on their own when left to themselves. Standardbred racing is based on only these two gaits. Any trotter or pacer who breaks their gait and goes into a canter or a gallop during a race must be pulled back to its correct gait and also lose ground to its competitors or else it will be disqualified from the race.

Trotters move with a diagonal gait; the left front and right rear legs move in unison, as do the right front and left rear when it is their turn. This gait requires a highly skilled trainer to get a trotter to move perfectly at high speeds, even though the trotting gait is natural to the equine world.

Pacers move both legs on one side of their body in tandem: left front and rear, and then right front and rear, and they often called side-wheelers. Pacers account for about 80 percent of contestants in harness racing and it is the faster of the two gaits. Pacers are aided in maintaining their high speed gait by plastic loops called hobbles, which keep their legs moving in synchronization.

North America’s top trotting races that make up the Trotting Triple Crown are the Yonkers Trot, the Hambletonian, and the Kentucky Futurity for 3-year-olds. For pacers, the Pacing Triple Crown is made from the Little Brown Jug, the Messenger Stake and the Cane Pace.

Standardbreds are primarily used for racing, since they are the fastest trotting horses in the world.  But Standardbreds that have been retired from the track make excellent all-around horses.  Unfortunately, most horses that have been retired from racing are sold at auctions, usually to meat buyers, even though many of these horses are perfectly sound and healthy and could live for many more years if they only had a suitable, loving home.  

More and more people are enjoying retired racing Standardbreds for pleasure riding, jumping, ranch work, competitive trail and endurance riding, even Western and English flat classes, barrel racing, etc. With time and patience, the retired Standardbred horse can learn new skills. Their attitude and temperament make them very willing partners in any equine discipline that is desired. New experiences are accepted with interest and enthusiasm and they "bomb-proof", not skittish, in terms of bravery. They are kind, gentle, and love to be handled and having had personal attention every day for most of their racing lives, Standardbreds adore attention and return the affection readily.

These horses are genuinely loved and respected and their care has been meticulous throughout their racing life. Their diets, health, and exercise are all carefully monitored; they've had warm baths, relaxing massages, warm blankets, clean and well-bedded stalls provided seven days a week. To describe purchasing a retired Standardbred as "saving him from the track" is doing the breed and harness racing a grave injustice, when you know what the horse's life was really like. So treat yourself to a very special horse, and enjoy the experience while offering the retired Standardbred a new beginning at perhaps a bit slower life's pace.


About Crystal Eikanger
Crystal Eikanger is a freelance writer, web designer, video editor and voice talent working as Ei-Kan Productions on www.rentacoder.com as well as other freelance sites. www.HorseClicks.com is a popular website filled with classifieds of horses for sale, horse trailers, tack, and horse related properties.