Sections - Stock Breeds

Breyer Canción in red dun overo, designed by Lesli Kathman for the 2024 BreyerFest Auction

Criollos

The first section on the Horse Breed Reference List is for Stock Breeds. Of the traditional sections included on the list, it is the one with the fewest changes. The only real surprise might be the absence of Criollo breeds, which have often been included in this section in the past. 

I made this change based on the difference in body type. Readers might remember there was a silhouette of a Criollo in the first post on body shapes. Here it is again, paired with the original photo. The horse is Meli, a champion stallion from Chile. 

I have placed this image where it can be compared with the Breyer's Canción mold. They aren't that far apart in proportions. 

Now compare Meli's outline with the Stone "Ideal Stock Horse". In years past, it was not uncommon for showers to attempt to show this mold as a Criollo. 

The Canción mold was sculpted to be a Paso Fino. Using traditional model horse categories, the Pasos (a "Gaited" breed) and the Criollos (a "Stock" breed) would seem unrelated. Their silhouettes tell a different story. They have a similar body shape because they share common Colonial Spanish origins, and because breeders of Pasos and Criollos are both seeking a rounded, compact type.

One of the founders of the Chilean Horse, Aculeo Alfil II, showing the same compact type seen in Meli (right). 

Mustangs

American model horse shows often separate generic, range-bred mustangs from Spanish Mustangs. The latter designation is for those mustangs that retained their Colonial Spanish traits, either because their herd was isolated or because they were part of a preservation program. Generic mustangs vary dramatically in body shape because their genetic heritage is mixed. 

Stock horses are common across the range of the American mustang, so that is the typical body shape. For that reason, generic mustangs have traditionally been included in the Stock Breeds Section. It should be noted, however, that models that depict mustangs of a different body type might be more suited to a different Section. For example, an obvious draft cross mustang might find a better fit in the "Light Draft and Cob" class. Ideally, show holders and judges would be open to these kinds of class placements. 

Instructions for entrants

The Horse Breed Reference List lets entrants know that the breeds listed should show in this section. It also tells them that the breeds listed as part of a group (Australian Stock or Other American Stock) should go in those classes, if they are offered. By omission, it tells them that their Criollos and their Spanish Mustangs will show later in a different section.

If a show holder looked at the rationale for moving the Criollos to the Spanish Section and disagreed, they could use the Editable Breed Reference List and add them back. 

Options for structuring classes

For the show host, the reference list offers different ways to group breeds within a particular Section. Large sub-sections appear in boldface. Sub-sections could be split into two different Sections if that fits a show holder's needs. The Stock Breeds Section does not have any of these sub-sections.

More specific breed groups appear as bulleted lists under the group name. The Stock Breeds Section has two of these: Australian Stock Breeds and Other American Stock Breeds. The intent with groupings like these is to offer show holders flexible options to expand the classes in the section. Currently, a Stock Breed Section might look like this:

1. Appaloosas
2. Paint Horses
3. Quarter Horses
4. Mustangs
5. Other Stock Breeds 

In a situation where the next "Brioso moment" happened with Australian Stock Horses—to use a potential example—the expanded class list might look like this:

1. Appaloosas 
2. Australian Stock breeds
3. Paint Horses
4. Quarter Horses
5. Mustangs
6. Other Stock Breeds

Adding the group, rather than a specific Australian Stock Horse class, might give a more robust class because breeds like Walers and Brumbies could fill out the numbers. Also, notice that the last class is still "Other Stock Breeds" and not "Other American Stock Breeds" (the other breed group in the section). That's because the last class should always be a catch-all for the section's type. This prevents realistic horses from ending up in the Other section. Ideally, that should be reserved for other equids, decorators, and fantasy equines. 

Breed groups can also be used to avoid losing a class that has not been well-supported. Say after using the classes in the first example, a show holder notices that there just haven't been as many generic mustangs lately. Instead of dropping the mustang class, she might change her class list this way:

1. Appaloosas
2. Paint Horses
3. Quarter Horses
4. Other American Stock
5. Other Stock Breeds

This way, a few Colorado Rangers and Camarillo White Horses might fill out the class. A show holder could call that fourth class "Other American Stock". Entrants should know that mustangs are an American breed, even though they are not on the bulleted list. If a show holder is concerned about confusion, they can use the editable list to add mustangs under the Other American Stock group. 

The next Section is Light Breeds, but I might take a break and share some of my adventures with National Retro Vintage Month (NaReViMo).