The Largest & Smallest Breeds of Horses

Horses have been in existence for thousands of years and ancient drawings depicting horses have been found in caves around the world. Domestication of these animals began in central Asia between 3000 and 4000 B.C. when horses were raised for meat and milk. Today, horses are bred for specific color, size and disposition, and can be seen displaying their grace and coordination in dressage competitions or at fairs, where they impress audiences with their size and beauty.

  1. Draft Horses

    • Draft horses, which include Belgians, Clydesdales and Percherons, are the largest breed of horses. The Guinness Book of Records for 2006 claims that Radar, a member of the Belgian draft horse breed, was the tallest living horse in the world. Born in Iowa and now residing on the Priefert Ranch in Texas, he stands at 19.3 hands (one hand is equal to four inches) and weighs a massive 2,400 pounds. Belgian horses have an appetite equaling their size and can consume a daily meal of 40 pounds of hay, 18 pounds of grain and 20 gallons of water. This extremely patient and gentle animal is bred for hard work, such as pulling loads and plowing fields.

    Percherons

    • The Percheron is one of the most popular breeds of large horses in the United States. Well known for their reliable and docile personality, Percherons have an uncanny ability to adapt to different climates and are used around the world for trail riding.

      Also residing on the Priefert Ranch in Texas, is another horse that entered the Guinness Record Book in 2003 as the world's largest horse. Goliath, an 18-year-old Percheron draft horse, stands at 19.1 hands and weighs about 2,200 pounds. Born in Alberta, Canada in 1992, Goliath now lives in Texas and over the years he was part of a team of horses used to pull a promotional wagon around the United States. Although he has been retired since 2006, he is very popular and still makes some personal appearances around the country.

    Miniature Horses

    • In the mid 1840s, a horse breeder in Buenos Aires started building and breeding a herd of horses from the smallest found in his herd. His knowledge of breeding was passed on to his son-in-law, Juan Falabella, and later to Juan's son Emilio. The miniature Falabella horse named after this family is known around the world as the smallest breed of horses. Standing at a mere 7 hands, or 28 inches, this rare horse still is bred in Argentina. The Falabella horse is unique due to the limited number of horses within its gene pool and its pure ancestry. Small enough to be ponies, but classified as miniature horses, their good nature and small stature make them ideal for showing and as riding horses for very small children.