Trakehner Horse

History of Trakehner Horse

Trakehner Horse is amongst the oldest warmblood breeds of Germany today but the efforts were bore by the King of Prussia. King Frederick William I of Prussia wanted his soldiers to have a consistent transportation that was quicker, sounder and more stable than that of the breeds developed by his contemporaries in 1732. To do the needful, a royal stud farm at Trakehnen in East Prussia was opened by him. He crossbred English Thouroughbreds and purebred Arabians with small local mares known as Schwaike. The stud directors of the king limited themselves to the Thoroughbred and the Arabian bred after trying several breeds. This fashioned exactly the horse breed which the king desired. The average product was considered to be a riding horse and the strict selection accepted no other than the best to breed. Thus, a distinctively new breed was produced. Initially, a horse born at Trakehnen was known as Trakehner. After the end of Second World War, East Prussia and Trakehnen stud existed no more. Now, every horse belonging to the bloodline of Trakehnen or East Prussia came to be known as Trakehner Horse. Some of the horses flee towards the West while pulling the wagons of their owners in 1945 when the advancing Soviet army forced them to do so.

Physique of Trakehner Horse

Trakehner Horse is an attractive saddle horse of good conformation. It possesses somewhat ram-shaped head, broad between the eyes and tapering to a pointed muzzle. Its eyes are alert, rather long and ears are pricked. Its neck is long and strong and rests on good shoulders. Its withers are prominent, girth is deep and chest is roomy. Its back has a medium-length and is strong and well-ribbed-up with good hindquarters. It has slender and hard legs, with short cannon bones. Its feet are excellent. At its best, the Trakehner is a quality show hack.

Height of Trakehner Horse

Body Color of Trakehner Horse

You can see Trakehner Horse in any solid color. The colors you will find most frequently on the body of this horse are gray, black, bay and chestnut. There are some roan and tobiano pinto horses as well.

Temperament of Trakehner Horse

As far as the temperament or character of Trakehner Horse is concerned, it is a charming, very stable and accepting, good-natured, keen, active, alert, intelligent, anxious to please and a loyal horse.

Uses of Trakehner Horse

Trakehner Horse is well competent in almost all equestrian disciplines. Their aptitude, way of going and understanding make them gifted ones as Dressage mounts. They are not only expert dressage horses but also skilled show jumpers. Truly, Trakehner Horse is a sports horse. It can be said undoubtedly that this horse breed is the most influential and significant among all the horse breeds that are warm-blooded.

Trakehnen Stud, now administered by the Polish Ministry of Agriculture, was founded by King Frederick William I of Prussia in 1732, when the land on which it stood was part of the province of East Prussia. Horses have been bred there ever since, enriched by imported Arab and Thoroughbred blood. Trakehners have been privately bred in West Germany since the end of World War II, when some 5% of the 25,000 horses registered in the East Prussian Stud Book filtered through as refugees, many of them on foot. The Trakehner is perhaps the best of the modern West German breeds. It combines good looks and stamina with enormous versatility and has proved successful in all kinds of sports as well as in dressage, between the shafts and on the farm.