Kerry Bogs as the Last of the Hobby Horses

Dr. Ruth Bennett identifies the Kerry Bog as "probably the last population in the world of nearly pure Hobby extraction," a horse breed that she argues is the world's most important horse breed. The Kerry Bog horse is an ancient breed from Ireland. They have long adapted to the bogs and moorelands of Ireland over which their ability to amble is especially useful in traveling over soft, unstable ground. Some herds have historically run feral. Rarely attaining 12 hands*, the Kerry bog breed has traditionally been used to haul peat and pull carts in Ireland. Genetically the Kerry Bog is closely related to the Icelandic, Shetland, and Dartmoor breeds. Between 300 and 400 are recognized the breed registry. But why would Dr. Bennett declare the Hobby horse as the world's most important breed compared to Arabians, Thoroughbred, or Quarter Horses? (*Hobby horses might have been taller than 12 hands based on geographic location. Today's Kerry Bog horses are rarely above 12 hands.)

Last year we read with interest, the research study that proposed the first gaited/ambling horses derive from a mutation from York in England around 850 AD, a mutation that was spread through the horses of Eurasia as the Viking traded and raided across Europe. In the November 2014 edition of Equus magazine, Dr. Bennett proposed a different theory for the origin and spread of the easy gaited horses that, perhaps, better accounts for the pre-850 AD written and pictorial representations of ambling horses.

Around 1100 BC, Lydian and Danuvian traders from Western Turkey and Phoenicians from Tyre started trade routes from the Eastern Mediteranean to what is now the coastal areas of Spain, France, and even as far north as England. One of the trade goods were the native, domesticated stallions from the subspecies equus caballus pumpelli (think AkhalTeke not Arabian which is derived from a different subspecies) which carried the mutation DMRT3 for gaitedness. These imported stallions were then crossed with the native horse breeds which derived from the subspecies equus caballus caballus (think Kerry Bog or Icelandic looking) which carried the sprint speed gene. These new crosses ended up being called by their region of origin--Breton, Asturian, Galician, Merens, Scottish Galway, and Irish Hobby among others.

As Dr., Bennett states, "Explosive speed suited them for the ancient style of cavalry warfare...A knack for ambling at the same time made them comfortable mounts for travel..." During the Roman empire, hobby horses were taken from Britain back to Rome where they proved especially successful in chariot racing as shown by the horse portraits of the time. Other than a fully trained destrier or war horse, an easy gaited ambling horse or palfrey were among the most valuable horses of the Middle Ages. Henry VIII maintained a stable of racing Irish and English hobbies.

Source: Wikipedia

But whence comes Dr. Bennett's claim that "by far and away, the Hobby is the most important horse breed ever to have existed"? The hobby horses with their unique combination of speed and gait formed the genetic foundation of the Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse, Morgan, and gaited breeds derived from the Morgan. Recent mtDNA research has shown that the genetic input of the English thoroughbred is about 60% native British and Irish mares (hobby horses) outcrossed with Turkomen and some Barb stallions. Very little genetic input comes from the Arabian.

""The results suggest that the founders of the Thoroughbred breed imported fast Middle East and West Asian stallions into an already thriving racehorse breeding scene, then bred them with the best mares available at their stud," added Dr Bower. The most surprising finding was that, contrary to assertions by some influential breeders that Thoroughbreds are purely Oriental (specifically Arabian) in origin, these results argue strongly against this claim. Instead, thoroughbred maternal lineages most likely represent a cross-section of female bloodstock available at each stud participating in the foundation of the breed -- with a minimal contribution from Arabian horses. "[M]ost of the founding mares came from Britain and Ireland. They are not these exotic foreign creatures everyone thinks they are," explained Dr Bower. "Having said that, they were not just any mares. They were themselves descended from the fastest horses in the country." "
https://www.theguardian.com/…/punctuated-equi…/2010/oct/18/3