Karabakh

Also Known By: Karabakhskaya (Russian)

The Karabakh is an ancient mountain saddle breed. It was developed in Nagorny Karabakh in Azerbaijan between the Araks and Kura rivers.

Prior to the 19th century the Karabakh had a substantial influence in improving horse breeds in the neighboring countries. It was developed by crossing the native Azerbaijan horses with Persians, Arabs and Turkmenians. The Arabian influence was most pronounced; there are important similarities in appearance between the Karabakh and the Arabian.

Long-term breeding based on taboon management in the mountains has led to the evolution of specific features in the breed. The horse is not large; its build is clean and thick-set; the muscles are well developed and the tendons are well defined. The head is small and clean-cut; the profile is straight and the eyes alert. The neck is set high and average in length; the withers are average in height; the back is average in length; the loin is flat, short and wide; the croup is average in length , wide and well muscled; the chest is deep. The limbs are properly set, sometimes bowed; the hoofs are not large yet solid. The skin is thin; the hair is soft and gleaming; the hair of the forelock, mane and tail is thin. The color is chestnut, or bay with a characteristic golden tint. The average measurements (in cm) of stallions are: height at withers 150, oblique body length 147, chest girth 169, cannon bone girth 18.6; mares: 146, 145, 164 and 18.5 respectively.

Breed numbers are very small. At present, the Karabakh is bred at Agdam stud, yet the total herd is composed of Arab Karabakh crossbred of various grades. Effort are currently under way to regenerate the Karabakh breed. In 1981, Volume 1 of the studbook was published.

Kazakh

This group of steppe horses was numerous as early as the 5th century B.C. Since then Kazakh horses were influenced by many breeds - Mongolian, Karabair, Arabian and Akhal-Teke. In the late 20th century, Kazakh horses have been improved by the Thoroughbred, Orlov Trotter and Don.
Kazakhstan horses are kept on pastures the year round. They are concentrated in western Kazakhstan. In this vast territory they have become differentiated into various ecological types and varieties. The most widespread are: the Jabe and the Adaev.
Jabe horses were formed in southern districts of Aktubinsk regions and then spread all over Kazakhstan. Their most important characteristics are: rugged head, thick neck, wide body and deep chest. The back is straight and the croup well muscled. Legs are set correctly and are sufficiently strong. The skin is thick and dense; hair covering is rather good. Color is bay, dark bay or red, occasionally grayish or grey.
The measurements of stallions (in cm) are: height at withers 144, chest girth 180, cannon bone girth 19; those of mares are lower 142, 178, and 18.8 respectively. Considering their small measurements, Kazakh horses of the Jabe type have a high live weight - 400-500 kg.
Milk and meat performance of Jabe horses are very high - some mares yield up to 20 kg of milk at hand-milking and they fatten quickly.
Horses of the Adaev type have a more pronounced saddle character; they have a more clean-cut conformation, light head, long neck, well-defined withers, and straight back. However, horses with narrow chest and too light bone occur because of the primitive management conditions.
All in all, Kazakh horses fall short in performance. Their gaits are poor: short stride, jolting and not strong trot. At the same time they are very hardy. Thus the stallion Zolotnik covered 264 km per day and Adaev horses did 297 km during a daily run. Jabe horses are noted for their good meat characteristics - the meat yield at slaughter is 57-60%. The Kazakh breed numbers over 300,000. The best farm in the Mugojar stud.