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American Quarter Horses

There are many breeds of horse in existence, but none are as integral a part of the American experience as the American quarter horse. When one thinks of the quarter horse, one is immediately drawn to the days of the old west, when the world was still untamed and a man could make his own way in the world.

The Quarter Horse is the most popular horse breed in the US. It's also one of the fastest horses in the world. They were originally bred to race the quarter mile.

Indeed, quarter horses were the preferred mount of the cowboys who settled the west, and they were perfectly suited to the work they were asked to do. It seems that nature has created in the quarter horse a perfect machine for working cattle, whether on the working ranch of the 1800’s or in the rodeo of today. There is perhaps no other horse in the world that possesses the combination of speed, agility and cow sense that typifies the American quarter horse.

Of course quarter horses today are quite a bit different than the foundation stock the cowboys used to settle the west. The quarter horses of today are a versatile lot, and quarter horse breeders have bred in the characteristics of other types of horses in an attempt to improve the breed an expand the gene pool.

It seems that there are few things the modern quarter horses are incapable of doing, and the modern breed has producing some exception specimens indeed. One of the most famous of the breed, a stallion named Rugged Lark, excelled at the world of dressage and was perhaps most famous for being ridden through a perfect dressage pattern with neither bit nor bridle. This is by no means a unique feat, and quarter horses are indeed known for its good sense, its calm temperament and above al its willingness to please.

Some quarter horses excel on the racetrack, while others are perfectly at home in the show ring. Still others have entered venues like the dressage ring and even the show jumping competition. The American quarter horse is nothing if not versatile, and they are indeed a special breed.