Spanish Horses

Information on the PRE from that published by ANCCE. My comments in italics, and I exercised a couple of minor grammatical alterations for ease of comprehension.

1 | NAME: CABALLO DE PURA RAZA ESPAÑOLA - The Purebred Spanish Horse
Also known by its initials as the PRE horse. Each letter is pronounced separately.
Other names such as Andalusian or Iberian horse do not represent this breed. These terms are generally used to describe crossbreds that lack the quality controls and purity, as well as the official documentation from the Spanish Stud Book.

The PRE horses known as Carthusian horses are a family or bloodline within the PRE breed. more on carthusian bloodlines

2 | OFFICIAL DOCUMENTATION FOR PRE HORSES
There is a single PRE Stud Book for the entire world. Only the LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book is authorized, internationally, to issue official documentation for PRE Horses.

This is the one and only guarantee for breed purity and it applies the internationally accepted controls for the breed: DNA confirmation of the paternity; complete graphic description and microchip at weaning; assessment as breeding stock as a 3 year-old; assignment of a registration code in the Stud Book, etc.

The passport issued by MARM (Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs) and ANCCE(National Association of Breeders of the Pure Spanish Horse) is the only documentation that guarantees that the horse is a PRE and that it fulfills all the requirements for the identification of equines as established by the European Union.

The PRE and ANCCE. For discussion relating to other organisations see the right hand menu.

3 | COLORS OF THE PUREBRED SPANISH HORSE
According to the breed description in the PRE Rules and Regulations, all colors are permitted (as I understand, except the broken colors of piebald or skewbald.) Grey and bay are the most common colors of the breed.

4 | PRE ANCCE IDENTIFICATION CONTROLS
When a PRE Horse is born, it must undergo a series of specifically designed controls carried out by the veterinary personnel from the LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book:
- Parentage is determined by DNA.
- Internationally accepted graphic forms are completed.
- The horse is given an identification code in the Stud Book.
- An identification microchip is inserted into the horse’s neck.
- It is registered in the Stud Book Birth Register.

These controls identify each foal born, and enable a lifetime tracking of every PRE horse in the world.

5 | BREEDING STOCK PERMITTED IN THE PRE
When a PRE Horse reaches the age of three, the owner requests an assessment for grading as Basic Breeding Stock from the PRE Stud Book. The appointed LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book veterinarians perform the assessment of the horse, and issue a certificate of Basic Approval as Breeding Stock.

The requirements for passing this basic assessment are:
- Stallions must measure more than 1.52 m. at the withers (1.50 m. in the case of mares).
- There must be no sign of a fallen or broken crest, or a ewe neck.
- They must be neither monorchid nor cryptorchid.
- They must remain true to the breed pattern.

When a horse acquires this grading, his/her descendants are eligible to be registered in the Stud Book.

If a horse fails to pass this assessment,
- it retains its original registration papers
- it continues to be registered in the Birth Registry
- it is considered as a PRE horse
but
- progeny are not eligible for registry in the stud book.

If a horse’s registration papers have not been stamped and signed to prove that the horse is approved as Basic Breeding Stock, it means that the horse has not yet passed the assessment legitimizing its use for breeding purposes within the breed’s legal selection scheme.

Any horse that does not pass this assessment may be presented a second time, if the owner should so desire.

5 | PRE ANCCE QUALIFIED BREEDING STOCK
The owner of any horse with the Basic Approval who wishes to include a horse in the LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book Register of Qualified Breeding Stock may present their horses for an additional assessment at one of the Tribunals for Qualified Breeding Stock (TQB), in which their conformation, behavior, movement, functionality and aptitude for riding are analyzed. A veterinary examination is also carried out, to detect any possible hereditary defects and to evaluate reproductive characteristics.

The requirements to pass the assessment as Qualified Breeding Stock are as follows:
- The stallions must measure more than 1.55 m. at the withers (1.53 m. for the mares).
- They must fulfill the minimum established conformation and functional requirements established in the TQB Rules and Regulations.
- Horses must undergo an X-ray examination, which must discard any possibility of osteochondrosis, osteoarthritis and various bone problems.
- Horses must undergo an examination of their reproductive apparatus, which must discard any defects that would affect their reproduction or which could be hereditary.
- Stallions must pass a Ridden Test in which their aptitude for riding is assessed.

5 | PRE ANCCE GENETIC IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
Since the 14th of November of 2003, ANCCE has been responsible for handling the PRE Genetic Improvement Program, as charged by the Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs. There are three Breeding Stock categories, in which case the horses have undergone genetic assessment within the Selection Scheme, and this is indicated in the registers of the LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book.

These categories are as follows:
Young Recommended Breeding Stock: Any horse that has participated in the performance tests established within the PRE Improvement Program (Dressage, Conformation or Aptitude for riding); has undergone an annual Genetic assessment within the framework of the said Program; has obtained a Global Genetic Index above the average of the population assessed (100); and is between four and six years of age.

From the age of seven years, such a horse could continue to be included in the category of IMPROVER BREEDING STOCK and/or ELITE BREEDING STOCK, providing the horse fulfils the necessary requirements as established in the Improvement Program. Among these is the increase of repeatability (reliability) of the Genetic Index up to a determined threshold, which can be obtained by increasing the number of times the horse itself, or its offspring or other close relatives (siblings, etc), take part in performance tests.

Improver Breeding Stock: A horse aged seven or over that has been genetically assessed within the framework of the Improvement Program, and having obtained a Global Genetic Index above the average of the population assessed (100) and a reliability value equal to or exceeding 0.6, fulfils all the requirements established in the Improvement Program. This level of reliability can be obtained by increasing the number of times the horse itself, or its offspring or other close relatives (siblings, etc), take part in performance tests.

Elite Breeding Stock: The LG-PRE-ANCCE Stud Book register for ELITE BREEDING STOCK is open to those breeding horses that have achieved the category of IMPROVER BREEDING STOCK for some of the disciplines contemplated in the PRE Selection Scheme, and that fulfil the requirements contemplated in this Program.

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