America’s national breed
· America’s best kept secret
· Developed in the era of the great plantations by using descendants of horses taken from England in early pioneering days (the ambling breeds that were the valued riding horses and formalised in USA as the Narragansett Pacer) and the blood of the Thoroughbred which was imported to the Americas a little later. As a result the Saddlebred is unique among gaited breeds as he has inherited a very strong trot from the TB and retained his natural ambling gaits from the amblers. His heritage is also uniquely English as his two ancestral breeds were from Great Britain, one of which ‘the ambler’ is now extinct.
· Stands 15hh-17hh
· Can be found in all colours except Appaloosa-type spots, but chestnut predominates often with flaxen manes and tails
· Is a supreme athlete : setting unique standards
· A jack of all trades – being an excellent horse for dressage, jumping, endurance, circus, family utility, driving – and master of most
· Supreme in his own specialities for which he is unique and highly valued – the high stepping show horse
· Has an exceptional and fantasy-style outline and presence, with a high arched neck, superb flexion, deeply sloping shoulder, elegant limbs and very long tail
· Has to be seen to be believed; but once tried he immediately becomes the breed of choice.