This article has appeared previously with Equestrian Life. To read the current digital issue, click here.
The Falabella miniature horse is one of the smallest breeds of horse in the world, with the breed rarely standing above 8 hands! Despite their tiny size, these adorable ponies are still considered a horse, not a pony.
The Falabella breed was originally developed in Argentina in 1868 from local horses of Criollo stock, which are the native horses of Pampas. These horses were bred by Patrick Newtall, who instigated the breeding of the Falabella breed. The breeding methods were eventually passed on to Juan Falabella, who continued to add additional bloodlines to the breed, including shetland pony, Welsh pony and small thoroughbreds.
In the 1940s, a descendent of Juan Falabella created a formal breeding registry, called the Establecimientos Falabella, which today is called the Falabella Horse Breeders Association.
A fully grown Falabella horse often stand between 71 and 86 cm. The small breed come in a variety of colours, but are often bay, black, grey, pinto and palomino. Appaloosa and roan colouring Falabellas do exist, but are considered not common.
Falabellas have a trainable nature, and are often used for driving. They make good companion horses and guide animals due to their size and trainable nature.
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