While any horse can be tranquil, certain breeds naturally exhibit these traits more often. Such horses can make excellent choice for beginners or riders looking to return to riding.
Appaloosa Horses are well known for their distinct appearance, which can both attract attention and be soothing for novice riders. Ideal for beginning riders and can easily carry both children and adults.
1. Arabians
The Arabian is one of the oldest purebred horse breeds, known for their beauty, elegance, and spirit. Furthermore, these horses are extremely versatile equestrian sports competitors that excel at any number of disciplines.
Bedouin tribes bred the Arabian for its endurance in harsh desert environments, necessitating compact bodies with large lung capacities and athletic builds. Their distinctive dished head, protruding eyes, and small muzzles give the Arabian its refined appearance; their backs are relatively short with one or two less vertebrae in their tails to allow power from their hindquarters and keep up with riders on long treks through the desert.
An Arabian’s dark skin provides protection from the harsh desert sun, while their high intelligence and “horse sense” allow them to quickly adapt and trust humans easily. Their steady yet energetic temperament makes them ideal competitors in racing or polo events.
Arabian horses make ideal beginners horses because they are easy to train and possess an accepting nature, yet can become stubborn if mistreated or given insufficient exercise. Therefore, any prospective Arabian owners should gain an extensive knowledge of horse handling and safety before purchasing an Arabian.
Most Arabian horses stand between 14.2-15.1 hands tall and weigh 800-1100 pounds, making them larger than ponies with the same energy and stamina of full-sized horses. Arabians come in different colors like grey, chestnut, bay, black or solid black with some showing roan coloring or rabicano white striping; many even feature natural high tail carriage that gives them an iconic appearance.
2. Connemara Ponies
Connemaras are intelligent, courageous animals with big hearts that form close relationships with humans. Riding these horses is suitable for children as well as adults (if properly trained) and they excel at all equestrian sports including dressage, show jumping, hunting and driving – which makes them popular all over the world but especially Australia and America.
Connemara Ponies are Ireland’s native equine breed, taking their name from the wild region west of Loughts Corrib and Mask. While early horses likely fended for themselves in this harsh terrain, farmers struggled to survive without aid from mares that could both help with fieldwork and be ridden. Arabian blood was introduced for speed and stamina while Thoroughbred blood also came through at various points during history; finally in 1923 the Connemara Pony Breeders Society was created in order to preserve purity of this distinctive breed.
Researchers speculate that horses rescued from the Armada that sank off Galway in 1588 interbred with local stock, leading to the genesis of the hardy Connemara Pony breed that lives today in mountainous terrain with bogs and rocky slopes. Over generations they developed agility and sure-footedness traits essential for survival within such treacherous terrain.
The pony breed is known to have compact bodies with deep, healthy bodies. The neck is fine and graceful with well-defined cheekbones and an elegant jaw, short ears with finely shaped canals, and flowing manes characterized by natural movement. Color options typically seen include grey with occasional glimpses of black bay brown dun (buckskin), palomino or roan variations present.
3. Haflingers
Haflingers are well-known for their versatility, making them the ideal companions for leisure riders looking to indulge their passions in various disciplines. You’ll often see Haflingers working in harness or pulling wheeled vehicles; other times they may even be found being used under saddle for dressage and jumping as well as endurance or trail riding competitions.
Haflings are small draught horses known for their big hearts and allure. Popular among horse enthusiasts alike, these Alpine natives make great mountain workers and make for enjoyable riding experiences on treacherous terrain. Haflings also exude charm that is hard to resist – which makes them irresistibly charming.
World War II saw breeding practices change to focus on creating a smaller draftier version of the breed, leading to its modern form; today’s modern Haflinger is an exquisite and versatile equine with a well-shaped body and substantial bone structure, featuring refined features such as large eyes, light poll, medium length neck slimmer towards head, medium height back with strong knee joints, strong hock joints and clearly defined, straight limbs.
As a result of wartime confiscations, three distinct kinds of Haflinger horses emerged: A-line, B-line and W-line Haflingers are known by their respective stallions as A, B or W lines; five postwar stallion lines directly descend from Folie while A and W lines come from Stallion Liz. 42 Mandl via Liz. 54 Genter and 291 Jenner respectively.
4. Irish Vanner
European Gypsies were responsible for creating an exceptional horse breed known as the Gypsy Vanner or Irish Cob, but most often known as such. They were created specifically to pull wagons known as Vardos. These magnificent horses possess incredible temperaments and make wonderful family or competition horses; furthermore they’re used in dressage, English riding and jumping as well.
Romani (Gypsy) nomadic people of Europe required strong and reliable cart horses to pull their vardos carts, carrying essential goods and people for travel purposes. Traveling travelers needed horses that would work all day without getting easily distracted or frightened off by noise or activity around them; additionally they wanted beautiful ones so bred for coloration as well as strength when breeding new stock.
Sables possess a sturdy build with long flowing manes and tails. Piebald or skewbald (having irregular patches of two colors, typically black and white) coat patterns are commonly seen, though any color may be possible. The GVHS Standard calls for a blaze that runs from front of face to neck with strong hindquarter angles to complete their appearance.
Today, the GVHS strives to preserve and refine their genetics into user-friendly draft horses that both experienced horsemen and newcomers can appreciate. Draft horses remain popular choice for pulling caravans and carriages, yet can also be enjoyed as rides for pleasure or competitive events. Due to their smaller height, these draft horses make great options for adults with health conditions or pain issues who would find riding larger horses challenging; and are an excellent option for beginning riders as they are extremely reliable and patient when training starts!
5. Cobs
Cobs, considered more as a type rather than breed, are durable horses known for their sturdy yet resilient build. Their substantial bone structure makes them well-suited to multiple disciplines; they enjoy living out year round and typically experience fewer health issues than finer-boned counterparts.
Due to their size and muscle development, draft horses are frequently employed for tasks such as drafting, pulling carriages and working in fields. Their robust physique also makes them excellent work horses in any setting; yet they make excellent riding horses as their calm temperament and comfortable gaits make them suitable for riders of all skill levels. Their adaptability has made draft horses immensely popular and beloved companions.
These horses are highly patient, making them the perfect choice for beginners or riders with disabilities. Naturally nimble, they can even be taught to jump quite effectively.
These horses possess both compassion and intelligence. Their resourcefulness can be useful during training sessions, yet can sometimes lead to them trying to solve problems independently – which may result in stubbornness. Early training and socialization is vital in creating positive personalities among these horses.
Cobs may seem cumbersome at first glance, but their agility belies their size; Cob riders can often be delighted by how their Cob performs at show jumping events.
Most Cobs are friendly and docile animals, yet some can take their playful antics too far. These horse may bang their stall toys together or kick hay out at passerby without warning, creating issues in the herd environment. With proper training and socialization programs for Cobs in herd environments such as paddocks or herds. these horse will learn when to be more responsible with their behaviors – especially important when living alongside other horses that could take advantage of any playfulness!