Thursday June 30, 2005

The Pure Spanish Horse – P.R.E. Takes Hold in America

About the Pure Spanish Horse – P.R.E. Pura Raza Espanola

The P.R.E. horse is an exclusive subgroup of the breed known in the United States as the “Andalusian”. This is the catch-all name for the lush-maned, rounded horses from the Iberian Peninsula, and though it includes the P.R.E. (an acronym for Pura Raza Espanola, Spanish for “pure race of Spanish Horse” ) The P.R.E is distinct in two important ways from its Iberian counterparts.

Each P.R.E. horse is descended from the bloodstock carefully bred by Philippe II of Spain, nearly five hundred years ago. Each P.R.E. has a red passport booklet showing its prestigious inclusion in the Spanish Studbook maintained by the Cria Caballar, (Spanish Military Stud), in Spain. Every P.R.E. horse must eventually pass an inspection at breeding age to have its offspring included in the same studbook. It is a “quality control” mechanism that has resulted in a spectacularly gentle, educable and supple mount. The Spanish horse is used by the Vienna Riding School and is presently a renewed sensation throughout Europe as a dressage mount. The success of the 2004 Olympic Silver Medal Spanish Team in Athens, where three of the four horses were P.R.E., solidifies the respect they have earned from Olympic Dressage judging at the toughest of levels.