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Dot writes:

> But I think my all time choice is the Arab/QH cross.
> Best of both worlds.
Heidi writes:

Yeah--except to get a good one, you have to first find a good riding-style
QH and a good riding-style Arab...  ;-)


*The jury (me) is still out on my mare (Arab/QH).  And I do totally have to
agree
with Heidi about first selecting good individuals to breed.  I have seen too
many
QH that are built downhill with big enormous high butts, post legged in
back,
straight shoulder, small feet....in my neck of the woods.....and if you
breed one of
those to one of the high-crouped Arabs you get a total mess.

However, I did buy a 5 week old filly from a breeder who seemed to be
extremely picky
about which mares she bred to which stallions.  She is doing quite a bit of
breeding
for color (palomino and buckskin half Arabs), but is not breeding all of her
mares to her
own QH stallion (paint cremello).  So she sends some of her mares to other
stallions.
She seemed quite opinionated about conformation also and what she was
breeding for,
and in all honesty, I do believe she is breeding for the Arab show circuit
(half Arabs),
as most of what she sells goes on to show; a new have made national level.
I am probalby
the first person who bought one of her babies with distance riding in
mind....

Anyway, I liked the conformation of the stallion and the mare was the
clincher (being
old Polish, some Witez II, one of my favorites).  The stallion really had a
topline I
liked (not being downhill, having a really nice shoulder with good withers,
and hip,
and a bit leggier than some of the really squatty QH).  I do admit I was
interestd in some
height  as I am very tall.

So, I took a huge chance as I never bought a baby before....but was also
ready to put
the time into the whole baby-raising project.....and had my own feelings on
exericse
and feeding.

So, now I have a 5 year old....who is 15.3 even....and I think pretty wel
put togther.  She
is a glittery deep golden buckskin, which is a bonus....but I do believe if
she was a bay
or chesnut...people would guess more of an Anglo Arab than QH cross.  If  I
could change
anything I would say, well, she could be a bit bigger boned.....feet are
marginal size for a horse
her size...as she is probably 1050 lbs, guess.....feet are close to size
2.......To look at her she
does have a "refined" look about her......my vet has also been watching the
growing-up
process, advising on feeding and exercise and watching conformation. She did
say she felt
her legs were very, very correct....

This refinement is really made more apparent by parking the mustang mare
next to her.....who at 15.2, is
bigger boned with size 2 plus feet, and nothing at all refined looking about
her!!!  We have
to say we suspected some draft blood in that mustang...but ran into a gal
who is sending me a
genetic study from her herd managemenet area, which interestingly enough she
says shows no
draft markers...but consistent with many of the American gaited breeds
(Standardbred, TWH,
Rocky Mountain, Saddlebred), and some of those breeds were big boned....also
some Spanish,
ranch QH and old Army remount (TB, Morgan, even Arab).....

Getting back to the Arab/QH....what I have as a 5 year old is one of the
nicest horses to deal with
as far as disposition and cooperation.  Extremely laid back, , which has
been a complaint of mine as
she has tended to be ploddy and slow.....but now that seems to be picking
up.  The most recent camping
trip with fitter horses, doing a long ride with some climbing, she had a
good attitude the whole ride and
wanted to keep up just fine...rest of time I can drop reins and relax as she
is that steady 99% of the time.
Her gaits are very smooth, which was also important to me; although the area
she needs work on is extending
the stride ( she does tend to get lazy and a bit short strided at times). We
are working on that with dressage
lessons.  But, very, very nice trot and canter.....and she finally has shown
the ability to walk out when motivated.

Back to the comparison with the 4 year old mongrel of a mustang.....well,
the mustang has a much longer
stride at all gaits....and seems to cover more ground even at a slow trot.
She trot feels more "elastic",  and her
walk has more motion than the Arab/QH.  She uses her butt better to motor up
hills.  The mustang also has much
higher knee action....and can you can stretch her front legs up
higher....she has a faster walk than the other.  It is
easy now to see maybe some TWH in her (and that might explain the head shape
too!).

Both are projects in the works.....and the jury is out for several years on
which I would prefer to ride all day!  It
very well might come down to who and where I ride with.  The buckskin is
quite happy to be at the back of the
group and will go whatever gait I ask.  The grulla (mustang), is a hotter
horse with more go....and will take a WHOLE
lot more riding and schooling before she is comfortable moving out in a
group.  She mustang has more of what I
would consider an Arab personality.....

But then....I know of two Quarter Horse mares that are really Arabs in
disguise.  Hot, hot hot!!!

Anyway, if anyone interested I can email photos of both

Karen


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