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The Vladimir Heavy Draft is a young breed of horse, having
only been recognized as an official breed since 1946. The breed was developed in
the late 1800s at the collective and state breeding establishments in the
Vladimir and Ivanovo regions of Russia. The state stables of Gavrilovo-Posadsk
also played quite a role in the development of the Vladimir in the late 1800s.
The breed was established primarily through crosses between
Clydesdale, Shire, and local mares, and was developed with the aim of producing
a middleweight draft horse with good puling power, but also with some speed. The
foundation sires can be traced back to three Clydesdales called Lord James,
Border Brand, and Glen Albin - the first two foaled in 1910 and the latter in
1923. There were also infusions of Cleveland Bay, Percheron, and Suffolk Punch
blood, as well as some contribution from the Ardennes. From 1925 onward, no new
blood was allowed to be introduced, and the breed was further evolved by taking
the best of the progeny and interbreeding to produce the standard Vladimir of
today.
The Vladimir is an attractive, useful stamp of horse that has
great strength without being too massive. They clearly show the influence of the
Clydesdale, especially in their free-flowing action. They have a presence
and quality to them, especially in the head region, which is particularly
unusual for a draft breed. They have, like many draft horses, a gentle and
willing temperament, making them easy to handle. They mature early and are in
work by the age of three, and they are valued for puling the traditional Russian
troika, which they do with elegance, hitched three abreast.
In appearance, their head is quite large with a straight or
convex profile. They have a nicely proportioned neck which is very muscular and
is set on powerful shoulders. The chest is more developed than that of the
Clydesdale, and is very broad. The withers are quite pronounced and the back
sometimes rather long and sometimes weak. They are tremendously deep through the
girth and have sloping muscular quarters. They are short in the leg, which often
have plenty of feathering, and white markings. All whole colors are allowed, and
they stand approximately 16 hands high.
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