The Belgian Draught, french: Trait belge, italic=no, nl, Belgisch Trekpaard, italic=no, is a Belgian breed of

draught horse A draft horse (US), draught horse (UK) or dray horse (from the Old English ''dragan'' meaning "to draw or haul"; compare Dutch ''dragen'' and German ''tragen'' meaning "to carry" and Danish ''drage'' meaning "to draw" or "to fare"), less oft ...

. It originates from the

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

region of modern Belgium, and is one of the strongest of the heavy breeds. The breed associations are the Société Royale Le Cheval de Trait Belge/ Koninklijke Maatschappij van het Belgisch Trekpaard and the Eleveurs Wallons du Cheval de Trait Belge/ Vlaamse Fokkers van het Belgisch Trekpaard.

History

Closely related breeds include the

Trait du Nord The Trait du Nord, previously also known as Ardennais du Nord or Ardennais de type Nord, is a breed of heavy draft horse developed and bred in the area of Hainaut in western Belgium and in northeastern France. Originally considered a subtype o ...

and Nederlands Trekpaard.

Characteristics

Genetic Diversity

The Belgian Draught horse has been identified as having an intermediate level of genetic diversity, and found to have relatively low levels of inbreeding. However due to low founder diversity, the breed is identified as likely to have a potential compromise of genetic diversity in future generations.

Uses

References

Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in Belgium {{equine-stub