Haflinger

The Arabian influence is documented: the stallion El Bedavi was imported to Austria in the 1800s and stands behind Folie. From Folie the breed runs through seven stallion lines, A, B, M, N, S, ST and W, and every purebred traces through one of them.

The Haflinger Breeders' Cooperative formed at Molten in 1904, the first studbook opened in North Tyrol in 1926, and after the Second World War the breeders committed to pure breeding and a closed book. The first Haflingers reached the United States in 1958, imported by Tempel Smith. By 2005 there were nearly 250,000 in the world.

Chestnut from light gold to liver, always, under a white or flaxen mane and tail. A refined head, pronounced withers, sloping shoulders, a deep chest and a muscular back: draft structure at pony height.

The gaits are rhythmic, ground-covering and elastic, with more reach than the build suggests.

A quiet, kind nature is written into the official breed standard, which is rare: temperament is a registration matter for this breed, not a marketing line.

They were bred to work steep alpine ground, so they are sure-footed, strong for their size, and quiet enough for beginners.

They drive, they pack, they ride. The Austrian and German militaries still use them as pack animals, and the civilian list runs dressage, endurance, vaulting, therapeutic riding and combined driving.

The size is the versatility: strong enough for light draft and harness work, small enough for a child to ride.

The trade is metabolic. Haflingers are extremely easy keepers, bred for country where feed was scarce, and on good pasture they become obese and are prone to insulin resistance and laminitis. Grazing has to be restricted deliberately.

They also mature slowly and live long, so plan the workload for the age, not the size.

Registration in the US runs through the American Haflinger Registry, which keeps the studbook and runs inspection and classification programs; every purebred traces to Folie through the seven stallion lines.

Ask about weight history and laminitis specifically. An easy keeper's problems are management problems, and the previous owner's pasture practice tells you what you are inheriting.

A slow-maturing, long-lived horse changes the arithmetic: a Haflinger in its teens can be mid-career.

Recent sale prices on HoofnHorn, where there are any, are further down this page.