The Kalmyk horse, also called the

Kalmykia he official languages of the Republic of Kalmykia are the Kalmyk and Russian languages./ref> , official_lang_list= Kalmyk , official_lang_ref=Steppe Code (Constitution) of the Republic of Kalmykia, Article 17: he official languages of the ...

horse, is a rare

horse breed A horse breed is a selectively bred population of domesticated horses, often with pedigrees recorded in a breed registry. However, the term is sometimes used in a broader sense to define landrace animals of a common phenotype located within a lim ...

descended from horses first brought to Russia by the

Kalmyk people The Kalmyks ( Kalmyk: Хальмгуд, ''Xaľmgud'', Mongolian: Халимагууд, ''Halimaguud''; russian: Калмыки, translit=Kalmyki, archaically anglicised as ''Calmucks'') are a Mongolic ethnic group living mainly in Russia, w ...

from

Dzungaria Dzungaria (; from the Mongolian language, Mongolian words , meaning 'left hand') is a geographical subregion in Northwest China that corresponds to the northern half of Xinjiang. It is thus also known as Beijiang, which means "Northern Xinjiang" ...

during the 17th century.

History

The Kalmyk is considered part of the group of breeds that includes the

Mongolian horse The Mongol horse ( Mongolian Адуу, ''aduu'': "horse" or ''mori''; or as a herd, ''ado'') is the native horse breed of Mongolia. The breed is purported to be largely unchanged since the time of Genghis Khan. Nomads living in the traditio ...

. The original

foundation bloodstock Foundation bloodstock or foundation stock refers to animals that are the progenitors, or foundation, of a breed or of a given bloodline within such. Many modern breeds can be traced to specific, named foundation animals, but a group of animals m ...

brought to Russia by the Kalmyks was crossed with other breeds of saddle horse, including the Bashkort, Kazakh horse, Kabardin, Don horse, Anglo-Arab, and Orel horse. The Kalmyk people became the major supplier of horses to the Russian

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

from about the mid-1600s until about 1740. In 1688, the Kalmyks drove 6,400 horses to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

for sale, and thereafter, Russian officers traveled to the

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...

region to purchase Kalmyk horses. Records from the 1730s indicate that Russian merchants spent over 7000

ruble The ruble (American English) or rouble (Commonwealth English) (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the currency of the Russian Empire and of the Soviet Union. , currencies named ''rub ...

s a year on Kalmyk horses for Russian

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

regiments. At its peak, the breed may have reached one million horses, but today is nearly extinct. A census in 1803 found over 238,000. However, no known

selective breeding Selective breeding (also called artificial selection) is the process by which humans use animal breeding and plant breeding to selectively develop particular phenotypic traits (characteristics) by choosing which typically animal or plant mal ...

had been done since at least 1943, and by 1986, the breed was considered extinct other than through

crossbred A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. ''Crossbreeding'', sometimes called "designer crossbreeding", is the process of breeding such an organism, While crossbreeding is used to main ...

s. To resurrect the breed, 522 horses were located that still had characteristics of the original breed, mostly in isolated regions, and four breeding farms were set up in Russia to resurrect and preserve the breed.

Characteristics

The Kalmyk is said to resemble the Kirgiz horse, though taller, with a longer neck, steeper shoulder, and a less steep

croup Croup, also known as laryngotracheobronchitis, is a type of respiratory infection that is usually caused by a virus. The infection leads to swelling inside the trachea, which interferes with normal breathing and produces the classic symptoms o ...

. Their height averages , and some individuals may

pace Pace or paces may refer to: Business *Pace (transit), a bus operator in the suburbs of Chicago, US * Pace Airlines, an American charter airline *Pace Foods, a maker of a popular brand of salsa sold in North America, owned by Campbell Soup Compan ...

. They are sturdy with good endurance and able to withstand extremes of temperature.

Uses

The Kalmyk today is used for both riding and

driving Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to fol ...

. It was crossbred with the Kirgiz horse to create the foundation bloodstock for the Siberian horse.

References

{{equine Horse breeds

History

Characteristics

Uses

See also

References