Arabian Horse Controversies


Firm but gentle and patient handling is especially important for hot-blooded horses such as the Arabian.

Controversies
Misunderstandings and myths plague the Arabian breed. Through, as noted above, purebred Arabians are competitive against other breeds, Arabians are relatively uncommon at some high-level all-breed competitions. There are many reasons, some justifiable, others due to misunderstandings and inaccurate information.

"Hot blooded" Controversy
Firm but gentle and patient handling is especially important for hot-blooded horses such as the Arabian.

Some people believe that it is more difficult to train a hot-blooded horse. It is true that rough training methods are unsuitable for hot-blooded breeds. Most Arabians have a natural tendency to cooperate with humans, but when treated badly can become excessively nervous or anxious, though seldom become vicious unless seriously spoiled or subjected to extreme abuse. With proper handling, Arabians are suitable riding horses for riders at all levels.

"Weakness" Controversies
Some people confuse the refinement of Arabians with having weak or too-light bone. However, the USEF breed standard requires Arabians have solid bone and correct conformation, and the superiority of the breed in endurance competition clearly demonstrates that well-bred Arabians are strong, sound horses with good bone and superior stamina. At international levels of FEI-sponsored endurance events, Arabians and half-Arabians are the dominant performers in distance competition worldwide.

Physical Size
Another myth is that Arabians are not strong because of their size. However, the smaller size of the Arabian is not a physical liability. The Arabian horse is noted for dense, strong bone, short cannons, sound feet, and a broad, short back; all of which give the breed physical strength comparable to many taller animals. Clearly, for tasks where the sheer weight of the horse matters, such as farm work done by a draft horse, or team roping, any lighter-weight horse is at a disadvantage, but for most purposes, the Arabian is a strong and hardy breed of light horse able to carry any type of rider in most equestrian pursuits.

Hip Angle
Another misconception confuses the skeletal structure of the spine with the angle of the hip, implying that the comparatively horizontal croup and high-carried tail of Arabians make it difficult for them to use their hindquarters properly. However, the correlation of spine and hip is in LENGTH, not angle. All horses need a good length of croup and good length of hip, and the two go together as a rule. The hip ANGLE, on the other hand, is not necessarily correlated to the line of the Arabian's croup. The croup is formed by the sacral vertebrae. The hip angle is determined by the attachment of the illium to the spine, the structure and length of the femur, and the relationship to the cannon bone, and hindquarter anatomy. A good-quality Arabian has both a relatively horizontal croup and a properly angled pelvis with good length of croup and depth of hip to allow impulsion.


"Arabians Are Magic" Beliefs
Arabians are sometimes plagued by excessively romantic myths that give them near-human intelligence, mystical or psychic powers, telepathy, and other miraculous abilities. Though well-intentioned, such myths sometimes lead people who know little about horses to purchase an Arabian and expect them not to act like ordinary horses. However, like any horse, Arabians have natural horse behaviors and instincts, so people must never forget the basic rules of horse safety when handling them.

Ancestry In Other Breeds
There is intense debate over the role the Arabian played in the development of other light horse breeds. While the complete tale will not be verified until the horse genome is mapped, it is thought that all modern domesticated horse breeds descended from one of four Wild prototypes, one of which was the light, "dry," oriental horse adapted to the desert climate, the prototype of the modern Arabian. Because of the location of the Middle East as a crossroads of the ancient world, as well as one of the earliest locations of domestication of the horse, oriental horses spread throughout Europe and Asia both in ancient and modern times.

Thus, there is little doubt that "oriental" blood was crossed on that of other wild prototypes to create light riding horses; the only actual controversy is at what point the "oriental" prototype could be called an "Arabian," how much Arabian blood was mixed with local animals, and at what point in history. For some breeds, such as the Thoroughbred, Arabian influence of specific animals is documented in written stud books. For older breeds, dating the influx of Arabian ancestry is more difficult.

For example, Mitochondrial DNA studies of the modern Andalusian horse of the Iberian peninsula and Barb horse of North Africa, present convincing evidence that both breeds crossed the Strait of Gibralter and influenced one another. While outside cultures, and the horses they brought with them, influenced the predecessor to the Iberian horse in both the time of Ancient Rome and again with the Islamic invasions of the 8th century, it is difficult to precisely trace the details of the journeys taken by waves of conquerors and their horses as they traveled from the Middle East to North Africa and across Gibralter to southern Europe. Though the studies did not compare Andalusian and Barb mDNA to that of Arabian horses, there is evidence that horses resembling Arabians, whether before or after the breed was called an "Arabian," were part of this genetic mix. Arabians and Barbs, though related to one another, are quite different in appearance, particularly in tail carriage, and the historical record illustrates horses of Arabian, not Barb type, fighting against the armies of Europe. There is also historical documentation that Islamic invaders raised Arabian horses in Spain prior to the Reconquista.

"Purity" Question
One set of hot debates within the Arabian industry are about bloodlines. In particular, breeders argue about the genetic "purity" of various pedigrees, discussing whether some horses descend from "impure" animals that cannot be traced to the desert Bedouin. The major factions are as follows:

    * The Arabian Horse Association (AHA) states, "The origin of the purebred Arabian horse was the Arabian desert, and all Arabians ultimately trace their lineage to this source." In essence, all horses accepted for registration in the United States are deemed to be "purebred" Arabians by AHA.

    * The World Arabian Horse Association (WAHO) has the broadest definition of a purebred Arabian. WAHO states, "A Purebred Arabian horse is one which appears in any purebred Arabian Stud Book or Register listed by WAHO as acceptable." By this definition, over 95% of the known purebred Arabian horses in the world are registered in stud books acceptable to WAHO. WAHO also researched the purity question in general, and its findings are on its web site, describing both the research and the political issues surrounding Arabian horse bloodlines, particularly in America.

    * At the other end of the spectrum, the Al Khamsa organization takes the position that "The horses of primary interest to Al Khamsa, which are called "Al Khamsa Arabian Horses," are those horses in North America that can reasonably be assumed to descend entirely from bedouin Arabian horses bred by horse-breeding bedouin tribes of the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula without admixture from sources unacceptable to Al Khamsa." By this rigorous definition, only about 2% of all registered Arabian horses qualify as "Al Khamsa Arabian Horses."

    * "Blue Star" designation is the most rigid, accepting only horses who qualify as Al Khamsa, but also as having no lines to the "Mu'niqi" strain, which some claim was "contaminated" by crossbreeding with Turkoman Horses about 300 years ago. Horses who otherwise meet this standard except for Mu'niqi blood are sometimes referred to as "Blue List."

    * There are also a number of breeders who specialize in preservation breeding of various bloodlines. However, these breeders generally do not assert that their horses are the only "pure" Arabians.

    * Ironically, some pure-blooded desert-bred Arabians in the Middle East today cannot be registered because the Bedouin who own them see no need to obtain a piece of paper to verify the purity of their horses.

Genetic Diseases
There are four known genetic conditions in Arabian horses which usually result in euthansia of the affected animal. All four are thought to be autosomal recessive conditions, which means that the flawed gene is not sex-linked and has to come from both parents for an affected foal to be born. A fifth genetic condition is not usually fatal, but can be disabling if not treated.

Arabians are not the only breed of horse to have problems with inherited diseases; fatal or disabling genetic conditions also exist in the American Quarter Horse, American Paint Horse, American Saddlebred, Miniature horse, and Belgian. Lethal white syndrome and dominant white can affect several breeds (though not purebred Arabians).

The "genetic lethal" conditions (so called, though two of the four are not invariably lethal) in Arabian horses are:

    * Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID). Similar to the "bubble boy" condition in humans, an affected foal is born with no immune system, and thus generally dies of an opportunistic infection, usually before the age of five months. There is a DNA test that can detect healthy horses who are carriers of the gene causing SCID, thus testing and careful, planned matings can now eliminate the possibility of an affected foal ever being born.

    * Cerebellar abiotrophy (CA). An affected foal is usually born without symptoms, but at some point, usually after six weeks of age, develops severe incoordination, a head tremor, wide-legged stance and other symptoms related to the death of the purkinje cells in the cerebellum. Such foals are frequently diagnosed only after they have crashed into a fence or fallen over backwards, and sometimes their symptoms are misdiagnosed as a head injury caused by the accident. The only way to confirm a diagnosis of CA is to examine the brain after euthanasia. The degree of severity varies, with some foals having fast onset of severe coordination problems, others showing milder symptoms. In theory, mildly affected horses could live a full lifespan, but in practice most are euthanized before adulthood because they are so accident-prone as to be a danger to themselves and others. There is currently no genetic test for CA.

    * Lavender Foal Syndrome (LFS), also called Coat Color Dilution Lethal (CCDL). The condition gets it name because most affected foals are born with a coat color dilution that lightens the tips of the coat hairs, or even the entire hair shaft. Foals with LFS are unable to stand at birth, often have seizures, and are usually euthanized within a few days of birth. There is currently no genetic test for LFS.

    * Occipital Atlanto-Axial Malformation (OAAM). This is a condition where the cervical vertebrae fuse together in the neck and at the base of the skull. Symptoms range from mild incoordination to the paralysis of both front and rear legs. Some affected foals cannot stand to nurse, in others the symptoms may not be seen for several weeks. This is the only cervical spinal cord disease seen in horses less than 1 month of age, and a radiograph can diagnose the condition. There is no genetic test for OAAM, and the hereditary component of this condition is not well researched at present.

    * Juvenile epilepsy, sometimes referred to as "benign" epilepsy or "ideopathic" epilepsy, is not usually fatal. It occurs in foals of certain bloodlines. They are born normal and appear normal between epileptic seizures, usually outgrowing the condition between 12 and 18 months. Symptoms of the condition can be treated with traditional anti-seizure medications, which may reduce the severity of symptoms. There has been very little research on juvenile epilepsy in Arabian horses and the genetic mode of inheritance is unclear, though researchers have suggested that it may be linked in some fashion to Lavender Foal Syndrome due to the fact that it occurs in similar bloodlines and some horses have produced foals with both conditions.

The organization F.O.A.L. (Fight Off Arabian Lethals) is a clearinghouse for information on these conditions.