Ventasso Horse
Encyclopedia
The Ventasso Horse is a rare breed of horse
originating from the upper Val d'Enza valley in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy
. It is one of the fifteen indigenous horse "breeds of limited distribution" recognised by the AIA, the Italian breeders' association. It takes its name from the Monte Ventasso, in the province of Reggio Emilia
.
The Ventasso Horse breed was formed through the interbreeding of local horses with the Lipizzaner and the Maremmano
. Until the 1940s the horses were supplied to the military. Today it is used as a general riding horse and as a competition sport horse. It is critically endangered, with less than 50 purebred horses remaining.
They are well proportioned and expressive, with a straight profile and a muscular, medium-length neck. The shoulder is sloping. The chest is deep and the back is of good length. bay and gray
are the most common colours.
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
originating from the upper Val d'Enza valley in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is one of the fifteen indigenous horse "breeds of limited distribution" recognised by the AIA, the Italian breeders' association. It takes its name from the Monte Ventasso, in the province of Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
.
The Ventasso Horse breed was formed through the interbreeding of local horses with the Lipizzaner and the Maremmano
Maremmano
The Maremmano is a breed of horse originating in the Maremma area of Tuscany and Lazio in Italy. Traditionally a hardy working horse used by the Butteri for livestock management, it is today principally a saddle horse...
. Until the 1940s the horses were supplied to the military. Today it is used as a general riding horse and as a competition sport horse. It is critically endangered, with less than 50 purebred horses remaining.
They are well proportioned and expressive, with a straight profile and a muscular, medium-length neck. The shoulder is sloping. The chest is deep and the back is of good length. bay and gray
Gray (horse)
Gray or grey is a coat color of horses characterized by progressive silvering of the colored hairs of the coat. Most gray horses have black skin and dark eyes; unlike many depigmentation genes, gray does not affect skin or eye color Their adult hair coat is white, dappled, or white intermingled...
are the most common colours.