Horse Breeds: Caspian Horses

Sometimes, a breed that was thought to be lost is preserved by nature itself. Such is the case with Caspian horses. The Caspian is a rather small horse that was thought to have gone extinct 1300 years ago. But in 1965, an American living in Iran discovered a Arabian-like horse in the Elborz Mountains. The American (a woman named Louise Firouz) named the small horse Caspian.

Eventually, though various bone, blood, and DNA tests, archeo-zoologists were able to prove that Caspian, the tiny horse from the mountains, was actually a descendant of the small Mesopotamian horse of antiquity. It turns out that these little horses had found sanctuary between the mountains and the Caspian Sea. There they'd survived, untouched by humans and forgotten by most of the world.

Because they lacked any outside interference from either man or other types of horses, the Caspian horse has several unique characteristics. The scapula, for example, is wider at the base than at the top and there's an extra molar in the top jaw. They look a little like Arabians, but they're smaller with almond-shaped eyes and tiny but graceful tipped-in ears. They come in any color and stand a mere 10 to 12 hands high. Because of their small size, they are sometimes called Caspian ponies, but they're horses.

Today, Caspians are found in any sport that needs both sturdiness and speed. These sports include carriage driving, specifically scurry driving, and occasionally in barrel races. The Caspian Horse Society of the Americas is currently one of the few bodies devoted to preserving the blood line and integrity of this unique and sweet breed.