The American Holsteiner Horse Association, Inc.
222 East Main Street, Suite 1
Georgetown, Kentucky 40324
www.holsteiner.com
The Holsteiner Horse originated in the Schleswig-Holstein region of northern Germany and is the product of a systematic breeding program that originated over seven hundred years ago. Its breeders always included visionaries who recognized the outstanding traits of the breed, yet were not afraid to bring in new bloodlines to adapt their horses to the changing needs of the market.
The Holsteiner initially evolved from native North German stock, with monasteries of the region conducting its early breeding. This included special emphasis on producing a carriage horse that could also work the fields in the harsh climate of the area. Following the Reformation, breeding initiatives fell to the state and individual farmers. Great pride was taken in selecting the best quality mares and stallions and in keeping accurate breeding records. Numbers, called stamms or stems, were assigned to each new mare line and were passed down through the generations from mother to daughter. This practice is still in existence today.
The Holsteiner was in high demand by the military and royalty throughout Europe. As demand grew for a lighter horse, however, the elegant driving horses of the 1800s were produced through infusions of the Yorkshire Coach Horse and Cleveland Bay bloodlines with the importation of stallions of those breeds.
In response to the shift toward the breeding of horses especially suited to the Olympic disciplines of dressage, eventing, and show jumping, the Holsteiner Verband (the Elmshorn, Germany, registry) brought in English Thoroughbred, Anglo-Arab, and Selle Francais (Anglo-Norman) stallions to modernize the Holsteiner type. This began the shaping of the breed to a world-class performance horse.
A Holsteiner with beautiful form in dressage. This is an 18.3-hand gelding. Vey Martini
With the progression toward superb quality, Holsteiner blood was also greatly valued in other warmblood breeds and can be found conspicuously in the Dutch Warmblood and Oldenburg horses of today.
Registry
In North America, the American Holsteiner Horse Association (AHHA), established in 1978, is dedicated to carrying out the breeding practices of the German Holsteiner Verband. The AHHA functions as an independent organization while maintaining an informal working relationship with the Verband. It is committed to adhering as close as possible to the selective breeding standards practiced since the thirteenth century by the Holsteiner Horse breeders of the province of Schleswig-Holstein. It recognizes the Holsteiner Verband as the ultimate authority on the Holsteiner bloodlines.
In order to achieve its breeding goal, the AHHA conducts annual stallion and mare inspections. Only those horses that are of sufficient quality are eligible to produce registered offspring. It maintains a public registry of Holsteiner Horses and brands qualified stallions, mares, and foals with the AHHA brand. Mares are judged by an official inspection team and are presented standing, at the walk, and at the trot. Gaits, including canter, are observed with the mare at liberty as well. Mares may be presented for evaluation more than once without penalty.
To be eligible for listing in the stallion book, stallions must be registered by either the AHHA or the German Verband. They must have Holsteiner dams that have at least two generations of registered Holsteiner in their dam line. Stallions are judged by an official inspection team and must present a record of performance in sport, if applicable. The stallion also must be at least two years old at time of presentation for AHHA stallion inspection and stand at least 16 hands tall.
Stallions that are two years old and those that have not yet reached their sixth birthday may be presented for preliminary approval at an official AHHA inspection site. They are presented on hard ground and judged at liberty and free jumping. They must receive a type score of not less than 7 and not less than 6 in any other subgroup. Those that pass the preliminary approval are granted a temporary breeding permit and must complete performance sport requirements before their sixth year.
Mature and other qualifying stallions must pass the inspection with qualifying scores, as well as a veterinary inspection and drug screening. They must complete a performance test in order to demonstrate the stallion’s versatility, athletic ability, and stamina as a saddle horse, as well as its soundness of mind and body to withstand the demands of the modern sport horse disciplines. The performance requirements are for dressage, show jumping, hunter, or combined training. Stallions may be presented more than once.
Standards
Traditional Holsteiner Verband standards and AHHA breeding goals serve as the standard for grading. The goal is to produce a well-balanced, sturdy horse possessing Holsteiner blood and an even, willing temperament that is physically and mentally able to perform at a level of excellence in the modern sport horse disciplines. Stallions and mares are graded on a scale from 1 to 10 for each of the following:
• Type
• Topline
• Front legs
• Hind legs
• Walk
• Trot
• Canter
Characteristics
The modern Holsteiner is of medium frame and stands 16 to 17 hands. A small lovely head with large, intelligent, kind eyes is carried on a beautifully arched neck. This arched neck rises upward out of the withers and from a well angled shoulder, producing elegance and lightness. It has a strong back and loin with a powerful hind leg, making it an exceptionally talented jumper.
The Holsteiner’s conformation adapts easily to self carriage, that expressive, elegant quality so essential in modern equestrian sports. When the Holsteiner begins to move, its reputation as one of the world’s finest sport horses is understood. The horse is well balanced with round, generous strides and a natural, elastic movement.
Its temperament is relaxed and willing, but sensitive, with good character and an eagerness for work.
Traditionally, the Holsteiner has been bay in color, with a preference for few or no white markings.
Performance Achievements
The Holsteiner stud book is one of the smallest studbooks in Germany, listing only approximately 6 percent of the total horse population, yet it has consistently produced some of the world’s most successful international horses in all disciplines. At the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, Holsteiners dominated the proceedings by winning gold and silver medals in dressage and silver medals in three-day eventing and show jumping. The same year, the World Championship in combined driving was won with a team of four Holsteiners.
In 1996, Calvaro 5, an 18-hand gray gelding, won the individual silver medal in show jumping at the Atlanta Olympics and was voted Best Horse at the World Equestrian Games in 1998. Despite her Hanoverian brand, Olympic gold medalist Ratina Z is by the Holsteiner stallion Ramiro, and her second dam, or grandmother, is a Holsteiner mare that won the prestigious Grand Prix of Aachen, Germany. Landlady, an American bred mare, was short listed for the United States Equestrian Team (USET) three-day event team for the 1999 Pan American Games.
In North America, most of the top show jumping riders have had at least one Holsteiner in the barn. Holsteiner stallions continue to produce some of the United States’ top dressage horses, including Lifetime, U.S. Dressage Federation (USDF) Horse of the Year at Second Level. In the Adult Amateur divisions, where good temperament is of the utmost importance, both Contango, USDF Horse of the Year at Grand Prix, and Jagger, USDF Fourth Level Horse of the Year, are by Holsteiner stallions.
That high performance quality has carried on into the present era. The 2008 Olympic Holsteiner winners included Marius, a fourteen-year-old gelding that won the individual gold and Eventing team gold for Germany in three-day eventing. In the Team Show Jumping, gold medals went to Carlsson Vom Dach, an eleven-year-old gelding, and Cedric, a ten-year-old gelding for the United States. In Team Show Jumping, a silver medal went to In Style, a thirteen-year-old gelding for Canada. Also Team Show Jumping’s bronze medal team from Norway was entirely mounted on Holsteiners: Le Beau and Cattani were both thirteen-year-old geldings, Camiro was an eleven-year-old gelding, and Casino was a stallion bred in Holland.
Credit: The American Holsteiner Horse Association, Inc.