What do you like/dislike about Arabs?

I know plenty of people who don't like Arabs!! They do show off with their beautiful looks but thats what i like about them!! The way they hold their tails they always look like they are having fun. My mum used to have an arab which was cheeky but he was part of the family :)
 
I love the Crabbet type Arabs, starting to meet some nice Polish ones too (though not as pretty!) but not a huge fan of the Egyptian show type.

Generalising like mad here but the Crabbets I have met (used to livery on a Crabbet Stud) were sturdy sensible and a leg in each corner sorts but still floated, rode, drove (yes, really :D) jumped and were great fun.They could also carry my fat @rse and long legs with ease! A lot of that may have been the way they were brought up, while cheeky and sometimes stubborn they were very well mannered. They also lived out 24/7/365 usually unrugged without hard feed - the real problem was keeping them slim in summer.

However the Egyptians appear, to me to be small, spindly and very often neurotic......they also usually have the silly owners IME :o

The only reason I don't have/want a crabbet is that I don't think I could cope with a horse that is considerably brighter than me;)
 
I am not sure that I understand peoples comments about hating arabs because they are 'pointless' as they arent out there winning SJ, eventing and dressage etc - does that mean you hate anything that isn't the run of the mill sport horse type?! And dont forget, most of these modern sport horse types have arab blood in them somewhere along the line.
 
From exsperiance although anglo.
There movement is Beautiful! Especially canter :)
Bold, Stunning, Full of charachter and go on and on and on.

my old loan pony brought all my confidence back and has brought my riding on very much so, he may be in his twenties but he moves beautifully and you'd think he was 4!!!

dislikes.
appart from being slightly mad i could'nt fault them
 
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Tinypony said:
Great breeding Faracat! I love to look and see what other people's horses have in common with mine. Quite a lot in the case of your foalie.
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I'm glad that you like her breeding. I know that her sire was bred by Biddesden Stud, which I had heard of because they bred Tamarillo (now there's a PBA that really can't do anything! ;) :p ). However I actually bought her because I loved her Dam, I really wanted to take her home but she wasn't for sale. The Sire was super-fantastic too, kind, calm and a super built guy (he's now doing really well in ridden classes). So if she turns out even somewhere close to her parents, she's going to be everything I wanted and more. :)

Sorry for the gushy post. :D
 
Judging by some of the comments they're definitely a marmite type horse! Ive got a chunky welsh but my second favourite breed is the arab, probably because of the similarity....beauty, brains, stamina and eagerness to please. Its the beauty that gets me though, Im afraid even at some in hand shows I went to in Oz where they love their arabs, I was blown away by the breathtaking looks of some of the stallions, make up or not, Im surprised not everyone agrees but each to their own! There was one stallion, Im not sure exactly but I think it was WN Dajmir, probably spelt wrong but it was over 20 years ago, my God Id have married him!
 
I like the look of them without tack on (may be a strange thing to say lol) and I like the fact they thrive on a relationship with one person (my old arab x did anyway)
However I don't think I would ever buy one after my previous arab x r.i.p
 
Love: everything

Hate: nothing

People who hate Arabs with so much passion as i sometimes see on HHO don't deserve to have one in their life, or even to know one. Arabs are so special, they are completely unlike any other horse. They can do anything they want to, and do it well. And if you treat them right, they will want to do it. There's nothing as beautiful on the entire earth as a good arab showing off. I could watch them all day, every day for the rest of my life and never get bored of them :)
 
Wow - there are some pretty harsh opinions on here. Ironically some of them are calling themselves broad minded!

I used to love arabs as a child, but never had a pure one. I think that they are beautiful looking horses. Some of the pictures on here are lovely. As someone has already said, they look best with no tack on trotting around the field! They are not my cup of tea as an adult, but I can appreciate whats to like about them..

They are one of the best horses to cross breed with in the world - perhaps to rival the T or ID for that. The TB breed itself comes from arab lines. Crossed with a native pony they make a super competition pony.

I used to work in Italy and we had an anglo arab that evented. He later on went onto be on the italian eventing squad. He wasn't the most generous horse, but was very talented.
 
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Oldmare, keep an eye on Arabian Lines sales pages, that's how I found mine. You tend to get a lot of Arab for your money as well, as some people (can't imagine who!) don't like them much.
Faracat, here's the breeding of my mare, you'll see some things in common with your foalie. http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/crystal+fire4
My boy is a son of Padron's Psyche, so half brother to Magnum Psyche (I can't believe he's in my field sometimes).
http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/celebrity+psyche
 
I am astonished that so many people say they hate them because they are "Loonie Diva's" Surely all of you, with your experience with horses, know, there is hardly any bad horses in the world, just bad people or rather people who do a bad job with a horse. And if you stand behind ANY horse, all you see is an A*** hole! Lol:D
 
flamehead said:
The other thing I always hate about Arabs is how their owners feel the need to slag off everyone else who doesnt like their horse. Owners of hairies/cobs/warmbloods can often laugh at themselves - hell, I KNOW my hairy looks like a yak - and can laugh at her. Arab owners feel the need to state that they're the best....
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Haha, can I change this by saying my horse is a complete wuss and a ponce and I laugh at him all the time. He's anglo though, so maybe I'm not an arab owner.

Seems you don't like the owners not the horse!
 
To me it's funny that peple say they worry about there legs cos I rode a 25 year old arab who had never had a days lameness in his life. Even when another horse kick him. He didn't go lame and the cut healed in a week. He's very hardy.

But then all horses are individuals. My last 4 rides have been arab-y. 2 anglos and 2 purebreds. All were lovely, kind, generous, but quirky.

I like them, it's a personal thing and maybe I've just not met enough horses, but I wouldn't rule out any breed or type. They are all individual and maybe we can all be a bit too quick to judge. For instance I always think welsh a are not always the best as they are the height for children, but can be very sharp which isn't suitable for learners.

But arabs. ...I like the turn of speed on my horse and the 25 year old horse I mentioned at the start of this rather long and rambling post was so kind and gentle that a tiny tot could lead him, he'd jump anything and was incredibly brave. They spook, but it all feels cheeky, not nasty and it doesn't bother me. I love them. I also love new forests.
 
paulineh said:
The trouble is the Arab is too intelligent for most people.
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Yep that about covers it, there is not a breed or type of horse or pony I dislike, but some of the owners, of any breed, get right up my nose! There was this one woman on my old yard who had a New Forest pony who could do no wrong, ever, over rugged, over fed, and spoilt rotten, but she was a fun riding pony, and I liked her, but could happily have shot her owner! :D:mad::p
 
Tinypony said:
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My boy is a son of Padron's Psyche, so half brother to Magnum Psyche (I can't believe he's in my field sometimes).
http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/celebrity+psyche
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Woooooooooo, sorry, but forget Padron and his get.

You have enough to crow about with my all time favourite, the absolutely legendary Ben Rabba.

I bred my wonderful Crabbet mare ( http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/eastern+celestial+magic) to Ablak (Ben Rabba son) and got the most fabulous, typey colt that was typical Ben Rabba. I was heartbroken when, for the only time, I capitulated to the "Me or the horse" ultimatum:mad: (almost caused a divorce) and he had to go. That was 15 years ago as a 4 year old, I hear he went to Sussex and is/or was, with the same owners all that time. Horse of a life time, after his dam that is.

Current mare is completely different in looks, temperament, everything, but I quite like her too. http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/baikala+bey
 
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There are as many different 'attitudes' amongst arabs as there are amongst the general horse population. They're horses, that's all. Some are outgoing, some are reserved. Some are brave, some are scared. Some are intelligent, some are 'differently clued'. Some are generous, some not so much.

Even in our straw poll of two, they are both completely and utterly different in personality. Chalk and cheese. Although clearly both wild neurotic types:
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And yet, there are 3 owners there I've just seen saying that they're intelligent enough to own one and the rest of us must be too useless.......hmm, obviously right though, arent i!
 
But I cheerfully admit to being less bright than mine on occasion - although I did list it as a dislike rather than a like.... Thing is, he's very forgiving about it when I do catch up :rolleyes:

And we also have partbreds from TB type and warmblood mares and a section B and a connemara pony. I grew up riding at a riding school where they also bred TB's. I treat horses as a chiropractor.

Yes I choose to keep arabians but I can't think of a single horse that I have met that I don't like something about them.

Enfys, I agree about the Ben Rabba lines :D
 
I have five - all different in character, shape and size. One is very sharp and spooky, one sane and very sensible - the others vary somewhere in between. The smallest is 14.1hh and quite fine. The biggest is 16hh with 8 1/2 inches of bone. My oldest raced and won many times in 100 mile in a day races. He's now 22 and still sound and healthy. They are smart, generous, inquisitive, full of character. The thing that differentiates them with other breeds - in my experience anyway - is that you are always having a two way conversation with them. They are as interested in you as you are in them - so many other breeds of horses just seem to have nothing going on behind their eyes. They are the ultimate sports horse - how many other breeds can cover 100 miles in a day in less than ten hours and still be sound and fresh at the end of the day?
 
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I completely understand why some people don't find arabians (or warmbloods, or cobs, or chestnuts, or palominos, or appys, etc ad nauseum) attractive, exactly the same as not finding some members of the opposite sex appealing, entirely down to personal preference.

The high tail carriage seems to be a sticking point too, I find the almost dislocated, numb looking low tail carriage of many horses unattractive but if pushed I couldn't say more than I simply don't like the way it looks, so I don't find it in the least offensive/annoying if an opinion differs from mine.:) As for arabian owners being more intelligent, piffle, if you don't like a type, and don't own/ride one, then that strikes me as pretty intelligent! ;)

Some heads are a bit too lumpy, this yearling had an extreme jibbah (doesn't look too bad in photo) and in profile was quite odd looking, obviously, as she is a palomino she isn't a purebred (arabian dam, best of scrubby backyard grade sire) - and, I had nothing to do with the breeding of that one!
 
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I think Arabs are the ultimate allrounder afterall how many horse owners actually want to compete at a high level of show jumping, dressage etc etc. However arabs are more than capable at competing in any sphere it's just that they seem to be best known for showing. My old mare had ago at anything I asked of her be it show jumping, dressage, cross country, the only thing holding her back was me! I have two now who are very different. One is quite hot but still young and on the whole pretty sensible but can be slightly high maintenance. She's not spooky but can be if she's bored and wants to liven things up. My boy is spooky but he's not had the best of lives so is more insecure but again he is very sensible and listens. I can understand why they aren't for everyone as yes they are sensitive and very much feed off their persons moods. I don't know why I love them I just do but quite like most other ponies too. Not a fan of big horses as I find them slightly intimidating and I suffer from vertigo but don't dislike them.
 
Note the Arab fans sneaking in a bit of comparing bloodlines on this thread.
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I can often spot my horses' relatives in photos, particularly my gelding's rellies, who can be quite distinctive. Then I nip off to Allbreeds to see if I'm right. Sad eh?
I was going to take a "natural Arab" photo of my boy today to post here, but he's gathered some "plaits" and is wearing half the field in his hair, so I changed my mind on that one. He looks more like a hippo than a horse.
 
I love my arab, i brought him because i have a dogey back and arabs dont seem to hurt it.
He is so intelligent and utterly gives his all in everything he does for us.

I hate seeing spindley legged , dish faced, snorting mostrosity's that bare little or no resemblence to the true desert arab.


Arabians are such fantastic stock improvers , a purebred stallion magic domino has been voted us sport horse sire of all breeds on thre occassions i belive !


also , though i know i've posted these pics before i cant help but share!

just to help dispel the myth that 'arabs cant jump' , here's our lad jumping loose for the first time. ( the jump is collapseable and no we did not 'bash' him.)
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And 'arabs dont like water'.


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I'm biased, had a terrific part bred out of Cranleigh Red Shadow, what a game mare she was pts at 28 after a bad accident. Since then I've had a Crabbett mare who had the most amazing bloodlines and knew it, was awfully opinionated and bossy, was a good old fashioned type stocky and a lovely head got her when she was 17 pts at 25, now I have another mare who is french/polish breeding done loads is quite charming , no dished head canturn on sixpence and leave me behind!

She is currently living out with a shetland chum getting hairier by the day no rug. Wish I could tell her that I'm not going to take her anywhere awful or dangerous. She is a bit woosie about water and mud but hopefully is getting better. She can also eat for England. I don't hate any horse just prefer some to others.
 
These are the reason I changed my mind...up until working at the Moonshine Stud with Moonshine Romany Luck, Moonshine Mirriam, Moonshine Angelica, and Moonshine Diva , I thought they weren't for me.....now I want one of them myself...especially a Moonshine PB

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