The German Sporthorse

Abstract

Objective of the thesis was the presentation of a newly introduced horse breed called German Sporthorse. The great breed diversity in Germany decreased in the late fifties due to intensive exchange of mainly sires beyond regional borders. Consequently, in 1975 the Deutsche Reiterliche Vereinigung (FN) formulated guidelines for planning and realizing strategic breeding goals, valid for the entire sport horse population. While the breeding program in Western Germany was facultative, the former GDR combined the previously existing associations to a single organization and introduced an obligatory breeding program called “Edles Warmblut” in 1971. Following the German reunification in 1990, the former GDR was redivided into five regions (Bundesländer), with them the former breeding associations were recreated. In 2003, the breeding organisations of Saxony, Thuringia, Brandenburg and Saxony – Anhalt realized that a successful horse breeding in these regions required intensive cooperation and exchange of high valued breeding sires, especially to keep up on international level. Therefore, they reconnected and introduced the breed German Sporthorse, equally valid for the above mentioned regions.