Inroduction and Brief History

Introduction And A Brief History

Even Though many people have no contact with horses, the domestication of the horse has had and impact on humankind. Although other animals are capable of fulfilling many of the horse�s tasks, few have developed the same level of attraction to their beauty and grace. Few have had such an undeniable impact on every country.

horse � solid-hoofed perissodactyl quadruped � equus caballus

Humans have long used the horse for exploration, war, working the land, stock work, trade to operate machinery and to transport people and goods. Although we live in a hight tech world the horse is still the best option for some work, such as herding cattle. The horse has other jobs today include policing, armed forces, and in a therapeutic role (eg with the disabled).

Horses also play an increasingly important role in leisure. As either spectators or participant people enjoy a variety of sports, including races, endurance, jumping, dressage, eventing, western riding, driving, polo, rodeos.

It was probably around the Asia/Europe, in about 3000 BC, that horses stoped being just a source of food and clothing and people started to domesticate them. There were only two types of horse by 1500 BC, these being the small tuff ponies of the north (Asiatic Wild horse, aka Przewalski�s horse) and the fine southern horse Tarpan.

Humans soon started to domesticate the horse and develop breeds to improve submissiveness, ease of feeding, and hardiness, also for specific tasks. This probably started in western Asia and then in Europe in about 2000 BC. From here the horse was slowly introduced to the rest of the world. There is little certainty as to the reasons and techniques used to domesticate the horse. What is certain is that there are nearly no breeds around that are not the result of human intervention. Breeds are constantly being developed and refined as they have been for centuries.

There were at this point in time four types of horse, compared to over 150 today, each with distinct characteristics.

Pony Type 1 was probably around the 12.2hh mark, built much like the Exmoor pony, and lived in North West Europe.

Pony Type 2 probably stood around 14hh with a build similar to that of today�s Highland pony, and lived in Northern Europe and Asia.

Horse Type 3 would have been about 14.2hh with a long, tall, narrow body, much like that of the Akhal-Tek� of today, and probably lived in Central Asia.

Horse type 4 was the smallest (the early ancestor of the Caspian) and lived in Asia�s west.

During The Iron Age (700-500 BC) the horse was the inspiration of a cult in Britain known as the cult of Epona (the Great Mare). This lasted up to the Christian era at which point this cult was eradicated. The horse also features in much western mythology. At one point it was believed that you would receive some horse like qualities if you consumed the meat.

Horses were used from 1715 B.C as a vehicle for war when the Egyptians introduced chariots. From around 1000 B.C the horse was ridden into battle by the Scythians and Mongols. However it is believed to have been the Chinese that began training horses in around 3000 BC, mostly for battle. A few hundred years later the Mongols (known at the times as the Tatars) started polo (even the women participated).

Somewhere around AD475 the stirrup was introduced. This was a huge development as it improved the rider�s stability. The stirrup didn�t reach Europe until about AD800. This played a large part in warfare style as it allowed heavier equipment to be used.

Until AD900 the horse could only be used for minimal agricultural work as this is when the hames collar was invented. The mass introduction of the horse as a replacement for the ox for agricultural and stock work probably began in the eighteenth century. It was also around this time that large breeds were used for logging and transporting goods. Also, smaller ponies were used in the mines.

Horse drawn transport started to be developed and by the middle of the 1800�s they played a large par in developing Western America.

The invention of the motor had a huge impact on demand for draft (heavy) horses. The development of modern vehicles meant that most of these breeds were no longer needed for work. This how ever does not mean the end of horses. More and more people are discovering the pleasure of the horse for leisure. The change in demand has meant a change in the breeds that are being developed. There is now a much larger demand for light horses than the larger cousins. As a result, in recent times many new breeds have been and are being developed.