The Mongolian horse (Mongolian Мор, mor) is the favorite animal of the Mongols. Horses were the main tool of the nomad, enabling them not only to manage their herds, but also to become a potent militaty force when called upon to fight. World history was altered by the steppe horse and thise who rode them, and the horses found in Mongolia today are the decendents of those world-beating horses.

Ownership of large numbers of horses has always seen as a sign of wealth, with all horse-owners aspiring to breed a horse that can win races. Horse racing, particularly at the races at the Naadam festival held in the summer, is considered to be a very important, being linked with old shamanist notions of good fortune and blessings from the gods. Many people try to touch a winning horse after a race in order to accumulate some extra luck!

In Mongolia, the horses live outdoors all year (at 30°C in summer down to -40°C in winter) and are not provided with fodder except when the snow is more than a foot deep. In the summer, mare's milk is fermented into the mild and slightly sour national beverage Airag. Ethnic mongols rarely eat horseflesh, except for some medical conditions, but the Turkic Kazakh minority in the far-west of the country commonly eat horsemeat, much to the horror of the mongolians.

Appearance

Mongolian horses are of a stocky build, with relatively short legs and a large head. They have a certain resemblance to wild horses. The mane and tail are very long, and often get used for braiding ropes. Especially the tail hair can be found on almost any violin bow worldwide. The hooves are very robust, and very few animals are shod with Horseshoes.

Behaviour

Mongolian horses are frugal, arduous, and tread safely in rough terrain. In Mongolia, most animals are kept roaming free, and only a small number of riding animals get caught and tethered. Once the animal has become familiarized with carrying a rider, it will be calm, friendly, and very reliable.

The Mongolian saddle is very tall, with a wooden frame. It only allows marginal control of the gait. In most situations, the horse will decide the gait on its own, while the rider is occupied with other tasks (such as herding cattle). Very often, a Mongolian horse will choose to canter.

Racing horses with a child in the saddle will run in full gallop over 35 km at a time. They are trained to keep running even after losing their riders. In such a case, they need to be stopped in the finish zone by aides waiting there especially for that purpose.

Breeding history

The exact origins of the breed are hard to determine. Riding horses are documented with the nomads of the central Asian steppes since 2000 BC. Tests have shown, that among all horse breeds, Mongolian horses feature the largest genetic variety, followed by the tuwinian horses. This indicates that it is a very archaic breed suffering little human induced selection. The data also indicate that many other breeds descend from the Mongolian horses.