The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is a popular breed of heavy workhorse with many uses. Aras, a representative of this breed, set the USSR speed record in 1961. In Lithuania, the most pedigreed examples of this breed are bred on horse farms. The breed’s characteristics and life span make it an ideal breed for working heavy machinery. To learn more about this breed, read on.

Breed standard

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught is a large draft horse that was developed a few centuries ago in the country of Lithuania. These horses are predominantly chestnut in colour but can be bay, grey, or roan. Their calm and placid temperament has made them a popular choice for draft work. The breed was recognized as a breed in 1963, and there are now about 62,000 registered horses in Lithuania.

The breed is closely related to the native horses of Estonia, Finland, and Russia. The breed also shares genetic markers with the native British and Irish breeds. The breed’s close relationship to native breeds in eastern and western regions may have contributed to its high genetic variability. In the early 16th century, King Gustav Vasa founded stud farms in Finland, and imported horses from northern Germany and the Netherlands. This helped to establish the breed’s standard of conformation.

Today, the Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is considered to be one of the strongest draft horses in the world. This breed is about 17 hands tall and easily trained. It is an easy breed to maintain and care for. It is the ideal animal for a farm, with easy-going temperament. This breed was originally used for heavy labor and farm work during the Great Depression, but has since become a sought-after show horse.

Characteristics

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught horse is a large breed of draft horse that originated in the early nineteenth century in Lithuania. The breed developed through crossbreeding local Zhmud mares with heavy breeds. Testing for draught capacity began in Lithuania in 1857 and continued until 2002, when the Lithuanian Horse Breeders Association took over testing. In addition to its draught capacity, the Lithuanian Heavy Draught is used to improve other breeds by improving their growth rate, meat and milk yields, and the ability to endure year-round grazing conditions.

The Lithuanian Heavy Draft Horse was developed by crossing Zhumudka mares with imported heavy breeds. The Lithuanian Society for Breeding Work and Driving Horses (LSBWD) oversaw the breeding program. However, after the First World War, the population of these horses declined. In 1923 and 1925, new heavy draft breeds were imported from Sweden and the Netherlands. In the 1930s, Lithuanian Heavy Drafts had more than six thousand horses.

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse’s genetic variability was higher than other native breeds in Europe, and the proportion of allozygous individuals at the HTG6 locus was higher than in the other three types. Despite these differences in genetic variability, the Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is the largest draught horse breed in the Baltic States. While it is not a popular breed in the United States, it is still considered one of the most important domestic horse breeds.

Origins

The origins of the Lithuanian heavy draught horse are difficult to pinpoint, but they do have a common theme: the country is located in the Baltic region of Europe, on the shores of the Baltic Sea. The borders of Lithuania are shared with Belarus, Poland, and Russia to the north, south, and east. As a result, the horse is a great representation of the culture and history of the Baltic area.

The origins of the Lithuanian Heavy Draught are largely unknown, but the breed was developed in the 19th century through breeding local Zhmud mares with heavy breeds from other countries. Testing for draught capacity began in Lithuania in 1857, and the Lithuanian Horse Breeders Association took on the responsibility of testing heavy horses in 2002. In addition to their draught capacity, the Lithuanian Heavy Draught is also used for breeding purposes, helping to improve other breeds of draft horses for improved meat and milk yield, growth rate, and resistance to year-round grazing conditions.

The breed is not very common in Europe, and the first horses were probably not the biggest. In the Middle Ages, horses were smaller, and warhorses were not much bigger. The Lithuanian Heavy Draught horse is one of the smallest and oldest draft breeds in existence. Despite the fact that the Lithuanian Heavy Draught is not widely distributed, its existence is a testament to the strength of the Lithuanian horse.

Lifespan

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is one of the largest breeds of horse in the world. This breed was developed around two centuries ago from a cross between native Zhmud mares and imported heavy breeds. The breed was developed under the supervision of the Lithuanian Society for Breeding Work and Driving Horses (LTSBDHA). After the First World War, its numbers decreased but new heavy horses were brought from Sweden and the Netherlands. Today, this breed has a high life span, proving that it is a sturdy horse that is well-suited to heavy draft work.

While the life span of the Lithuanian Heavy Draft Horse is generally acceptable, there are some important characteristics that should be considered when breeding this breed. The breed’s fertility is fairly high, with 80% of foals born at the best studs. The foal survival rate at one year is approximately 77%. The breed has a high milk yield, and the average lifespan of its stud mares is about eleven and a half years.

In addition to being very durable, the breed is also very fertile, with a lifetime fertility rate of 88138 kg. Moreover, the longevity of the Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is excellent compared to its counterpart in other breeds, which have short life spans compared to their endurance-driven cousins. Its longevity is determined largely by its performance in sport, and the amount of milk it produces in a year.

Milk yield

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse is a breed of draught horses developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The breed developed as a result of crossbreeding local Zhmud mares with heavier breeds. Draught capacity testing began in Lithuania in 1857, and the breed is still used for research and improvement of other breeds. The breeds increased meat and milk yield, growth rate, and year-round grazing. Sadly, the breed has been declining in popularity, and is now in danger of extinction.

The Lithuanian Heavy Draft’s milk yield has been a common trait for this breed for decades. Its solid body withstands cold temperatures and has good paces at the walk and trot. The breed is often crossed with the native Altai horse, and the results show increased live weight and growth rate. The crossbreds are able to endure harsh conditions and are well adapted to year-round grazing.

The Lithuanian Heavy Draught Horse has a relatively high milk yield, which makes it a good choice for dairy production. The breed was developed in the late nineteenth century by crossing imported heavy breeds with native Zhmud mares. The Lithuanian Society for Breeding Work and Driving Horses was responsible for overseeing the breeding program. However, after the First World War, the number of these horses dropped dramatically, and only 1,000 remained as recently as 20 years ago.

Genetic variation

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Kentucky examined the genetic diversity of three Lithuanian horse breeds. Their results showed that genetic variation in seven red blood cell alloantigen loci, 10 biochemical loci, and 16 microsatellites was higher than the average for domestic horse breeds. The genetic variability in Zemaitukai breeds was significantly higher than that of other Lithuanian horse breeds, and they also showed greater variability than the mean variation of domestic horses.

The Lithuanian Heavy Draft is a draught horse breed developed in the 19th century and is currently near extinction. It was used for heavy draught, farm work, meat production, and improved other breeds. While it may seem like a rare breed, it has a long history of improvement in other breeds and is a highly valuable asset. However, the genetic diversity of this breed is rapidly declining.

Using FIS, the authors determined that the effective number of founders compared to the effective number of ancestors was less than one. Their analysis also showed that HWE had a higher F IS value than CPH. However, their study also showed that genetic variation was low and there was no significant inter-line differentiation between the CPH and the other breeds. However, these results were not consistent across the entire breed.