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Kirgiz
The Kirgiz is a small, hardy riding horse native to the highland steppes and mountain pastures of Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, where it has been bred by nomadic Kyrgyz people for at least several centuries. The breed’s entire development occurred under conditions of extreme seasonal temperature variation, sparse high-altitude grazing, and the practical demands of…
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Karachai
The Karachai is a mountain riding horse breed native to the northern Caucasus Mountains, developed by the Karachay people of what is now the Karachay-Cherkess Republic in southern Russia. The breed evolved over centuries at high altitude under conditions of extreme cold, sparse forage, and rugged terrain, producing an exceptionally sure-footed horse with strong bone…
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Jinzhou
The Jinzhou is a draft-riding horse breed developed in Jinzhou, Liaoning Province, northeastern China, and selectively bred over centuries to withstand the harsh continental climate of the region. The breed combines the endurance and compact build associated with indigenous Chinese steppe horses with the muscular depth needed for agricultural and light transport work. Jinzhou horses…
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Hungarian Coldblood: Central Europe’s Agricultural Draft Horse
The Hungarian Coldblood is a heavy draft horse breed developed in Hungary, with its foundation stock attributed primarily to horses brought back by borderland residents returning from Austria and the broader Habsburg Empire during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The breed name follows the European convention of designating heavy draft horses as “coldbloods” (German: Kaltblut),…
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Hirzai Horse: Pakistan’s Rare Baluchistan Breed
The Hirzai is a rare horse breed developed in Baluchistan province, Pakistan, by the tribal communities of that arid and mountainous region. The breed takes its name from the Hirzai tribe and reflects the selective pressures of the Baluchistan landscape: extreme heat and cold, sparse vegetation, rocky terrain, and the endurance demands of long-distance travel…
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Hypocalcemia in Horses: Definition, Causes, and Clinical Signs
Hypocalcemia is an abnormally low concentration of ionized calcium in the blood. Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the equine body, and its ionized (free) fraction in the bloodstream is maintained within a narrow range by parathyroid hormone, calcitonin, and vitamin D acting on bone, kidney, and intestine. Normal ionized calcium in horses is…
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Hyperthermia in Horses: Definition, Causes, and Response
Hyperthermia is the condition in which the core body temperature rises above the normal physiological range. In horses the normal rectal temperature is 99.0 to 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit (37.2 to 38.6 degrees Celsius); readings above 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit constitute hyperthermia, and readings above 104 degrees Fahrenheit represent a medical emergency. The term encompasses both fever…
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Paralysis
Paralysis is the complete or partial loss of voluntary motor function in one or more muscle groups, resulting from disruption at any level of the motor pathway from the cerebral cortex through the spinal cord to the peripheral nerve and neuromuscular junction. In horses, paralysis is classified by anatomical distribution: monoplegia (one limb), hemiplegia (one…
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Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is a neurological sleep disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of uncontrollable drowsiness and sudden loss of muscle tone (cataplexy) that precipitate collapse into sleep. In horses, narcolepsy is rare and can be idiopathic or secondary to underlying conditions such as liver disease, equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, or hypersomnia associated with sleep deprivation from an inability…