{"id":26,"date":"2010-08-08T22:03:22","date_gmt":"2010-08-08T22:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theequinest.com\/breeds\/?p=26"},"modified":"2025-01-28T16:09:03","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T16:09:03","slug":"altai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theequinest.com\/breeds\/altai","title":{"rendered":"Altai Horse"},"content":{"rendered":"

Intro<\/h3>\n

One of most ancient breeds of Siberia, the Oirot, Altaiskaya or Altai has been shaped in large part by the harsh mountainous climate of their native land. This breed has had a close relationship with the tribesman of the region for centuries.
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Origins<\/h3>\n

These animals take their name from the Altai mountains in Southern Siberia and like many breeds from unforgiving climates, they are robustly surefooted. They have always been relied on to carry people and other precious cargo over steep mountainous terrain or through fast moving rivers.<\/p>\n

Pure Strain<\/h3>\n

Through their relative physical isolation, for many years their bloodlines remained fairly pure and new blood was never an accident. Until early in the 20th century, when different breeds were introduced to the Altai stock with the intention of creating larger animals with more capacity for work.<\/p>\n

While there may have been new blood introduced over the years, there is always a portion of the breed that is kept pure to maintain a strain of their ancient gene pool. In fact, there are still small bands of aboriginal horses in some regions of the Upper Altai even today and their physical characteristics retain many of the qualities of their ancestors.<\/p>\n

Features<\/h3>\n

Average height 13.5 – 13.8 hands
\nPerform well under adverse conditions
\nSurefooted and tough
\nHardy and undemanding animals<\/p>\n

Physique<\/h3>\n

Large, coarse head with small eyes
\nShort, fleshy neck
\nLong, dipped back
\nLegs are short and well-set
\nFeet and strong and sound<\/p>\n

Traditional Colors<\/h3>\n

All colors<\/a><\/p>\n

Temperament<\/h3>\n

Stable and sensible animals
\nStrong and true
\nHard workers
\nEasy to care for<\/p>\n

Use<\/h3>\n

Trekking animals
\nBeasts of burden
\nRiding horses
\nMeat<\/p>\n

More Images<\/h3>\n
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Video<\/h3>\n