What do people have against Arab horses?

I personally have been put off by the very extreme and, IMO, ugly look of the "show Arabian". The popping eyes, bulging forehead and six-foot-long neck just isn't attractive. Same reason I don't like Welsh As (being pretty similar in type).

HOWEVER I'm not half so silly to go assuming that all Arabs are like that, and certainly not to tell people with Arabs that I don't like them - after all, the closest I've got to an Arab has been sharing two nutty Anglos!

The AAs I used to ride were very different and nuts in their own ways - both would get hot and bouncy in what I assumed was a bit of an Arab way, but one would act far more TB about it (less spook and more GO) and one was prissy and stupid and spooky, and couldn't bear to walk across poles in case one bit him ... :rolleyes: I do completely recognise though that they are both individuals and I would never assume the next AA I meet will be like those two, or the next Arab I meet will be off its head and spook every time someone sneezed.

I would never buy another Welsh D, come to think of it, because my first one was too strong and sensitive; doesn't mean I won't like any Welsh Ds or would slag off someone else's.

There certainly are breed stereotypes, but people (especially on here) take it quite far sometimes, quite unecessarily.

I assume I'm just lucky really that whenever I post a pic of my (in all honesty, really UN-photogenic and badly put-together) ID x, no-one comments. Obviously no-one has anything nice to say, but I'm glad no-one posts nasty comments either! :p
 
As one who said that I can explain why :)

We used to have an arab on loan, sweetest boy ever but used to wreck my back!
I think I know a lot of bum high overbent, tail up, look like they are driving themselves into the floor, pointy never really going anywhere arabs and just think they do the breed a disservice.

I spent the week at malvern at the national arab championships a few years ago, in a tent :eek:. I found it really interesting to see the variety of types and soon decided what I liked and what I didn't. I suppose that is like all horses though really, I like a nice TB, but would probably say that I don't like most of them.

Jess's arab just comes across to me as a proper example of the breed, multipurpose and beautiful doing it.
 
Probably a bit over simplistic, but I believe there are 2 types of arabs - egyptian and crabbet - and that its the egyptian ones that are spindly and with the massively dished faces. I'm fairly sure the crabbet ones have more bone and less dished faces. Its the latter I really like.

My mum had the most amazing arab mare. My dad won her at poker! (The horse, not my mum lol) She was the kindest, least spooky, most forgiving mare of all time. As a teenager I raced her a couple of times and she was fast. Our best result was a 2nd in a photo finish. Yet a couple of days later my mum and I would hack out and Dondy would canter along behind on a loose rein. She was the perfect horse and I'd have one like that tomorrow. She had a good bit of bone too and just a pretty dished face with amazing movement.
 
Personally, I don't think they're too flighty or ugly or whatever. I just PERSONALLY feel that they're too slight in build. When I've ridden a few I've always felt like there's nothing underneath me.
 
I really like Arabs, and have 'clicked' with a few Arabs and Anglo-Arabs I've worked with, very well.
When I was looking for a horse, though, I couldn't find an Arab or Anglo to suit my height (I'm 5'10 ish) so bought a Tb instead.
S :D
 
Just upping this because I took some pics yesterday.

Oldmare - there's loads of strains of arab these days, as different countries have headed in different directions with their breeding programmes. I'm really no expert and someone else will probably be able to explain far better than me what the main differences are. If you head back to the arabian tribes, they used to have just three types: 'masculine', 'feminine' and 'speedy', and the various family lines were bred with these qualities in mind. They considered the mare line to be of the utmost importance, in particular.

Anyhows, just to show how many different shapes and sizes ayrabs can come in, these are all purebreds:

This little lass is pretty much straight crabbet:
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This chap (the black) is straight Egyptian:
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This rather handsome chap is French:
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My own two arabs are more of a mix. Harry (the bay in my sig) is Spanish, Polish & Old English. Spud (the grey) is Egyptian, Spanish & Crabbet. The arab bits of my part bred babypony are American (via Polish and Crabbet strains).
 
I have just bought one and he is actually the most gentle and sensible horse I have ridden for years. But fun and beautiful - exactly what I was looking for and he passed his 5 stage vetting
 
For me personally, they're just not my cup of tea. The Arabs I've met have been those ones with the overly exaggerated characteristics (which I dislike in any horse). Not only that, but the ones I've met so far (and there haven't been that many) have been flighty, spooky, and without a good head screwed on straight. That being said, they were being forced into (american) hunter type shows and forced to do the jumpers shows as well when that really wasn't what their personalities or body-types have been suited to. To be honest, I really don't harbour any hatred or anything for them. I think I met a few horses that aren't what I would be interested in but I'm not going to label every Arab as being a spooky, ugly, git!
 
Arabelle said:
I do think the extreme in-hand show type of Arab has done the breed no favours in the eyes of the general public.

I compete in endurance, so of course I adore Arabs and understand what tough little horses they actually are. Very few endurance horses have the extreme dish, hooky necky and spindly legs of the show Arab. I think they are quite misunderstood as a breed.
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I agree with you, like you i do Endurance none of my Arabs have the show type dish heads etc infact one of my Arabs (pure) doesnt even have a high tail carrage, nor a dished head he is 16.1hh and very chunky even my instructor who was anti Arabs thought he was a part breed.

I like the way people think they are flighty.....again ive never had this with any of the Arab i have ridden/owned in the past 26yrs in fact its the Arabs that escort out all the young cobs, TB, ID and ponys from the yard down the road from me.

I just think its each to there own but most people like ALL breeds of horses i know i do.
 
Millreef - the pics aren't of my horses, I just thought of this thread when I was crewing yesterday as I realised that three of my mates had horses who were very different 'straight' strains of a definite type rather than mixtures.
 
I love arabs to look at, but I've never met a nice one.

Milo, my sister's colt, is PBA and he is a psycho. I wonder if the lovely mix of shire, highland and arab has created a creature with spirit and sheer dogged stubbornness!
And I resent the implication that his nervousness is caused by mishandling!!!

FTR though, my probably arab free cob has spirit. Scares some people, but I wouldn't have her any other way!
 
I love them! I have my 7 yo Anglo Arab, Ari, who is VERY Araby looking (60%) and he is the most laid back, positively lazy git you could hope to meet. No one has told him he is supposed to be a snorty, prancey son of the desert apparently.

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I also have a very round, compact little PRE cross who I love just the same :D

My friend's PRA endurance horses are the most sensible and sane horses I have ever known, including his stallion.
 
One of my proudest moments was borrowing someones arab to do a show jumping class and getting my first red rosette.

A few weeks before that I'd had a pretty bad accident on my own cob and was never getting on a horse again. S pursaded me to give Jontz a go promising me that he would look after me.

Well bugger me-I felt safer on him with all his arabness than I had on my own sec d!

That said, I'm far too rotund now to have an arab!
 
I have one purebred and one Anglo, would never have anything but an Arab. They are clever little critters with an opinion which is why I think some folks dont 'get' them. Mine are both Crabbet and I prefer this traditional breeding to the over bred show ring models that we see so much of. There faces are too dished and they are built as if they would snap in a high wind! I too think it looks ugly, thankfully they aren't all like this! They are fun, bold are up for anything and are pretty good at saving your butt! (My Anglo prevented us going through a windscreen last week!)
 
Chico Mio said:
I love them! I have my 7 yo Anglo Arab, Ari, who is VERY Araby looking (60%) and he is the most laid back, positively lazy git you could hope to meet. No one has told him he is supposed to be a snorty, prancey son of the desert apparently.

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41164_152913848055070_100000093683043_460143_3211874_n.jpg


I also have a very round, compact little PRE cross who I love just the same :D

My friend's PRA endurance horses are the most sensible and sane horses I have ever known, including his stallion.
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He is gorgeous! :D
 
Chico Mio said:
I love them! I have my 7 yo Anglo Arab, Ari, who is VERY Araby looking (60%) and he is the most laid back, positively lazy git you could hope to meet. No one has told him he is supposed to be a snorty, prancey son of the desert apparently.
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Same with my mare! She's the sweetest, gentlest, doziest thing I've ever met, and is great fun to ride. I don't half miss the scruffy little monster - can't wait to give that nose a big kiss again :D

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