EquiPepper was born out of my love of thoroughbreds and my belief that they are just as good as other breeds. So many of the articles here on EquiPepper are aimed at improving the reputation of the thoroughbred. Showing that they can be a fantastic riding and competition horse. New research into temperament has found that thoroughbreds don’t deserve their quirky reputation.
Thoroughbreds are top athletes. They have been selectively bred for centuries to race. So it shouldn’t be surprising that this athletism makes them competitive in other sports. We regularly see thoroughbreds and ex racehorses at the top of eventing. Thoroughbreds have also been used extensively in many warmblood breeds to make them more athletic. Despite all of this, they still have a repuation of being more difficult than other breds, such as warmbloods.
But a recent study found that there were no signficant difference in behaviour or temperament in thoroughbreds when compared to other breeds. This research looked at horses in eventing, show jumping, dressage and general leisure riding. In fact the only slight difference they found is that thoroughbreds actually better suited to their job than other breeds. The research found that they were considered to have more self control and more socialable.
This was just a pilot study using horse owner questionaires. The study does suggest that while there might be differences in behaviour between thoroughbreds and other breeds, it doesn’t seem that this makes them less suitable for jobs outside of racing. This study also didn’t take into account the impact of racing might have on a horses behaviour. But it is certainly a move in the right direction in proving that thoroughbreds don’t deserve their quirky reputation.
Last Updated on 04/01/2022
