The Oryol trotter is a primordially Russian and very famous breed of horses in the world. The merit of its breeding belongs to the famous Russian politician of the mid-18th-early 19th centuries, Count Alexei Grigorievich Orlov-Chesmensky. Being a great fan of horses, he was engaged in horse breeding while still in the public service. The count dreamed of breeding a breed that would harmoniously combine beauty, grace of Arabian horses and endurance, power and trotting ability of draft horses from Western Europe. However, for a long time the political events with which Russia was rich at that time did not give Orlov the opportunity to fully devote himself to his beloved work - having a small stable on the Ostrov estate, he was engaged in selection work in his free time from public service.

He began to fulfill his dream after his retirement in 1775. During the first year, the count actively crossed Arabian stallions with the best draft massive mares of Danish, Dutch and English breeds. After such work did not give the desired result, a breeding stallion named Smetanka was bought and transported to Russia in Turkey for huge money at that time. Smetanka, who lived for a very short time (less than a year), fell, leaving behind offspring of three stallions and one mare. The most valuable qualities of them were possessed by a stallion named Polkan I - large and massive, with a majestic and smooth ride. Its main drawback was unstable trotting ability. That is why Orlov decided to cross him with mares of the most famous Friesian breed at that time, which has a smooth trotting pace. Foals from this crossing were born in 1784. Among them was the stallion Bars I. Possessing great growth, grace and ease of movement, a steady trotting move, it was he who embodied in reality all the thoughts and ideas of the count breeder, thereby becoming the ancestor of the Oryol breed.

Oryol trotter

Interesting. The founder of the Orlov trotters received the nickname because of the specific gray color in large apples, reminiscent of the skin of a mountain leopard.

Breed development

After the death of Count Orlov in 1808, the stud farm, where the Oryol trotters were bred, was inherited by his daughter Anna Alekseevna, who in 1811 installed the serf V.V. Shishkin. The talented horse breeder Shishkin, who learned a lot from the count, continued the work of his master, improving the breed.

The 19th century is considered to be the heyday of the Oryol people - at this time the Oryol trotters are actively bred in many stud farms and are widely used for riding in a team, sleigh, and a simple droshky. Thanks to their agility and endurance, Orlovtsy also found their place as racing horses. So, from the moment of the creation of the first running hippodrome in 1834 and until the end of the 19th century, Oryol residents set many records in races, both long and short distances.

Interesting. In tsarist Russia, a good Orlov horse cost a fortune - for one good purebred stallion showing good results at the hippodrome, they could pay up to 30,000-40,000 rubles. This was at a time when only 70 rubles were taken for a simple workhorse.

At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries, standardbreds, American trotters, were imported to Russia. Faster and more enduring, in comparison with the then Oryol people, they ousted them from equestrian sports, thereby causing the decline of the Oryol breed.Many horse breeders of that time abandoned the breeding of purebred Orlovs, crossing Orlov queens with American lynx

Breed development

 

The so-called "Americanization" of the Orlov trotters stopped only in 1908, when a four-year-old horse named Krepysh set a record of 2 minutes 18.3 seconds at a distance of 1600 m. Later, the same trotter 13 times broke records at distances of 1600 and 3200 meters, winning over famous American horses. After the victorious march of Krepysh, horse breeding of the Oryol breed in Tsarist Russia gradually resumed: already in 1910, at the stud farms, the number of stallions was about 10,000, and the number of queens (mares) was about 100,000.

Interesting. The Oryol trotter Krepysh was nicknamed "The Horse of the Century" for his records and a large number of victories in races - in 79 races the trotter was the first at the finish 55 times.

In Soviet times, the breeding of Orlovs reached a new level: they are raised in almost all stud farms using a pure-bred method, crossing stallions and mares belonging to the Orlov breed. This technique has borne fruit - the Orlov trotters set many new records in races. Subsequently, the development of the Oryol breed continued until the collapse of the USSR. Another significant decline in the number of the Orlov population to the critical level of 800 heads occurred in the period from 1990 to 1997. Due to the difficult economic situation in Russia (the ruin and closure of private and state stud farms), it almost led to the complete disappearance of the Oryol breed. However, thanks to the efforts of amateur horse breeders, Russian and French public organizations, over time, the number of the Orlov trotter at the remaining stud farms and private stables was restored.

Currently, large Russian stud farms such as Moskovsky, Khrenovsky, Chesmensky, Permsky, Altaysky are engaged in breeding of Orlov breed trotters. On the territory of the CIS, the Oryol trotter is also bred by the Dubrovsky stud farm located in Ukraine.

Dubrovsky stud farm.

Characteristics of horses

Horses trotters of the Oryol breed have a fairly recognizable appearance and characteristic disposition. The characteristics of the Orlovs include a description of their appearance (exterior), characteristics of the character and disposition of horses.

Appearance

The Oryol trotter of modern selection in the exterior (appearance) has all the features of the body structure of horses of trotting breeds. So, a typical Orlovian is a harmoniously built, beautiful and graceful harness horse, with a dry head of small size, a rather long neck with a swan bend, a powerful muscular back and legs. Representatives of this breed are distinguished by their proud posture, lush and beautiful mane and tail.

Oryol trotters belonging to the category of large horses have the following body sizes:

  • Height at the withers - from 155 to 170 cm (the average height of stallions and mares reaches 160-162 cm);
  • The average oblique body length is 161 cm,
  • Chest girth - up to 180 cm,
  • Metacarpus circumference - 20.3 cm;
  • Average weight - 500 kg.

Characteristics of horses

Oryol trotters can be of the following colors (suits):

  • Black;
  • Bay;
  • Red and gray;
  • Light gray ("white");
  • Gray in apples;
  • Gray.

Oryol trotters of red and roan stripes are much less common.

Depending on the structural features of the body, there are also 3 main exterior types of Orlov trotters:

  • Massive ("dense", the largest type of Orlovtsa, outwardly similar to a heavy truck);
  • Sukhoi ("prize", a typical running trotter Orlovets);
  • Intermediate ("medium", combines the features of a powerful, massive type and light "prize").

The breeding area of ​​the Orlovites is also extensive. Since the breeding of the breed, the Oryol trotters have spread quite over a large territory of the former USSR - they are grown in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic States. The Oryol trotter is not found only in the Far North, in the southern deserts and mountainous regions.

Features of character and disposition

Horses trotters of the Oryol breed are distinguished by their docile and kind character, devotion to the owner. Obstinacy and disobedience are shown only with a cruel and disrespectful attitude towards them. Thanks to such features, Orlovs are used not only as running horses, but also for riding under the saddle, in troikas (like rods), sleighs and droshky.

Horses trotters of the Oryol breed are distinguished by an agreeable and kind character

How to care

Horses of the Oryol trotter breed require very careful and attentive care for them, including the following activities:

  • Cleaning of wool with a brush after training and special trips;
  • Rubbing the horse's hair from sweat with a soft, dry and clean rag;
  • Washing the mane and tail with horse shampoo followed by brushing with a comb;
  • Weekly bathing, in which the horse is poured with warm water from a hose and washed with a special shampoo using a soft natural fiber brush;
  • Examination of the legs and hooves after each training session or departure for damage, cleaning and lubricating them with turpentine or lamb fat;
  • Keeping the stall clean - the room where the horse is kept: changing the bedding frequently, laying rubber sheets on the floor to reduce the load on the horse's legs and avoid hoof injuries.

Note! In order for the Orlovets to retain all its qualities and beautiful appearance, it must be walked in the open air as often as possible.

Diet and feeding

The Trotter of the Oryol breed requires a balanced and nutritious diet. The diet of the Orlov horse should consist of such feeds as:

  • Oats - feed oats and other cereals to horses early in the morning and late in the evening, after cleaning the stall and changing the litter.
  • Hay from beans-grass stand - give the trotters this coarse type of feed 2 times a day (at 4 o'clock in the afternoon and 11 o'clock at night), placing it in special feeders or on the floor of the stall. On the days of performances, the daily amount of hay is halved by removing uneaten food from the floor of the stall along with the litter.
  • Porridge, consisting of oats steamed in boiling water, bran, grass meal, oil cake - give this type of feed to trotters after active training or prize trips.
  • Vegetables - starting in autumn, and throughout the winter, trotters are fed with juicy red carrots, apples, watermelons.

Horse feed

In the spring-summer period, trotters graze on pastures adjacent to the stables with legume-grass stand or, with stall keeping in a stall, they give 6-8 kg of freshly cut green mass daily.

Important! The trotters are watered abundantly and often, but earlier than 3-4 hours after the end of the training or the prize trip. When kept in a stall, horses should always have water in open containers or special drinking bowls.

The Oryol horse is the pride and visiting card of Russian horse breeding, which over a two-hundred-year history of development and formation has turned into a breed known both in Russia and abroad. Used not only in trotting races, but also in dressage, show jumping, driving, amateur riding, the Oryol trotter does not give up its positions even now, remaining one of the fastest and most beautiful horse breeds in the world.