Origin
of Quarter Horse
Quarter
Horse breed was the first one to be developed
in America. It appeared in the United States
around the 1600's. The first animals were brought
from Arabia and Turkey to North America by the
explorers and Spanish merchants. The chosen
stallions were bred with mares that came from
England in 1611. The breeding produced compact
horses, with strong muscles, being able to run
short distances more quickly than any other.
Working
in the field, exploring the West, the Quarter
Horse got very specialized in working with cattle.
On the weekends the workers and peasants used
to have some fun by promoting horse races on
the streets of villages or on the field roads,
nearby the plantation, within distance about
one quarter of mile (402 meters), giving origin
to the horse´s name.
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On
March 15, 1940, the American Quarter Horse Association
"AQHA" was established in College Station,
Texas. In 1946, AQHA was moved to Amarillo, Texas,
where it has remained until today, becoming the
biggest breeders' association around the world,
providing services for about 338.000 members and
for over 4,2 millions registered horses, divided
in 43 countries, corresponding to 53% of the equines
all over the world (updated: Dec. 31, 2002).
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