New findings challenge the Arabian as a founder of the Thoroughbred breed

[sporthorse]

The majestic Arabian horse has swept the globe, but their desert cousins still harbor a genetic diversity not seen elsewhere in the world, according to researchers.

Arabian horses are renowned for their athleticism, endurance and natural beauty — qualities which resulted in breeding stock being exported over the centuries to virtually every corner of the equestrian globe.

Now, a major new study has delved into the genetic diversity of the historic breed, shedding new light on its origins.

The findings include surprising revelations, including the likelihood that the founding “Arabians” that gave rise to the Thoroughbred were Oriental breeds, but probably not Arabians.

See full article here https://sporthorse-data.com/article...-challenge-arabian-founder-thoroughbred-breed

 

[millikins]

It's not a subject I'm knowledgeable about but I did read a study that considered the Akhal Teke a more likely ancestor which makes sense to me, they are far more TB in type.

 

[Widgeon]

This is really interesting but I guess not surprising - from what I can remember of how those three horses were sourced, I always got the impression that they didn't exactly have enormous written pedigrees!
millikins you're right about TBs looking more like Akhal Tekes, I'd never thought of that.

No one *really* seems to know the background of the Byerley Turk (except that obviously it's interesting that he's referred to as a "Turk"). Then the Godolphin Arabian is AKA the Godolphin Barb, so possibly not an Arab at all, and seems to have come from Yemen. The Darley Arabian was imported from Syria. So of the three, only one seems to be a relatively certain candidate for actually being an Arab as we would define it now.

This is so much more interesting than sorting through the morning's emails....!

 

[Orangehorse]

This was touched on by the american Dr Deb Bennett. It was at a clinic I went to which was 16 years ago (horse was 6 then I think and is now 22). Probably something about it in her book called The Conquerers too, which is the origin and bloodlines of horses taken from Europe to the New World, all the Americas.

So not new, but not widely circulated.

Interesting on a horse holiday advertisement I saw a very quick video of an Indian horse doing the 4 gaited trot, which some of the American breeds have retained, and the Icelandic. Now that was new, never seen that before.

 

[Cortez]

No surprises in the article; even the names give a clue: the Byerly Turk, the Godolphin Barb (article gets it wrong) and the Darley Arabian. There is also an identifiable DNA link to the Shetland pony in TB ancestry......

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

No surprises in the article; even the names give a clue: the Byerly Turk, the Godolphin Barb (article gets it wrong) and the Darley Arabian. There is also an identifiable DNA link to the Shetland pony in TB ancestry......

Yup! They think the Shetland put in the fast muscle twitch gene which allows TB's to go from stand still to gallop in a ping - like when a Shetland hears a bucket of nuts ?? There is nothing faster on this planet than a Shetland that thinksit's hungry!

 

[molar roller]

Why people focus on Arabians while talking about TB genes ? No one says that TB is %100 arab. There are a few misconceptions about TB history.

1- Byerley Turk is a Turkish horse not an arab. still why people suppose that he was an Arab I do not understand.
Also he was not an Akhal Teke. Turkish horse does not mean Akhal Teke, there are a few diffrerent type of Turkish horses. (A lot of people ask that question ''hey mollar roller you are saying that he was a turkish horse but does not look like an Akhal Teke''

it sounds like ''it can not be a british food because it does not look like fish & chips''

2- British breeders used a lot of stallions, not just only 3 sires (BT, Godolphin A, Darley A.) there are a lot of founder sires. Arabians, Turkish sires, Barb sires.... People can see this if they check out pedigree of the any TB horse. For example ;

- darcy's white turk
- taffolet barb
- oglethorpe arabian
- leedes arabian
- lister turk
- st victors barb
- akaster turk


3 big sires (BT,GA,DA) means : theese father lines directly still reaching to date. does not mean british breeders used just only 3 sires.

3- this is the most funny one. people supposed that some of arabian sires imported to GB and mated with local british mares. So sires arabian, mares are locals. Not true.

Actually Frederico tesio's book explains, everybody most read it. ''Breeding the race horse''