1. Amrita Ibold09/07/2005 12:13:25
Homepage: http://www.akhalteke.cc

I agree it would be nice to move on....but one has to understand the past.....
As I understand it, Phil Case started the first registry. But here is one thing he was not first in, he sold 4 mares to the US market, telling the buyers they were pure bred registerd wit MAAK horses. This happened before I was involved with this breed. Years down the road when Tatiana came to grade the horses people were told they had part bred horses, and all their off spring was not elegable for the stud book. So Phil created a category 2 in his registry. This is still today where people get confused. Because it is deceiving...in Russia a category 2 is still a pure bred, just not as good an animal. Phil gave up the association. Then the association did away with catergory 2, saying it was misleading, and Phil wanted to sue, and take the association back.
Not too long ago I got a letter from Germany with a sales list of horses Phil once took to Germany, half of the horses were being listed as pure breds, but where breedings of the non pure mares...
So as you can see, yes, it would be nice to forget and drop the past, BUT, there are some issues that people still struggle with.

2. Jessica 09/08/2005 21:11:47

I am not involved in the past and so are many with me. The Akhal-Teke breed already has a mother stud book that has set up the rules for what a pure bred Akhal-Teke is and what the breed is supposed to look like. No single breeder ( it doesn't matter if they start an association or not) can themselves set up their own rules and call the horses Akhal-Tekes, then they have to find out another name for a breed they create. It is as simple as that. I as a new breeder in the USA is not interested in the old history of a few partbreds and wish that the people involved in the associations that claim that the promote the breed do so instead of living in the past.

3. Katrina O'Neal09/11/2005 10:30:52

Yes, but what about Teke breeders here in America who do not feel the holder of the Russian studbook are doing what's best for the breed? There are many who feel that having a single person directing the future of the breed is dangerous to say the least. Therefore it is important that different options be explored.

Many people feel that, like every other association in America, it is important that members have a vote, which MAAK does not offer.

After attending a "grading" by the Russian representative here in America, I was not impressed by the system. The horses were not consistantly gaited, even though a Teke characteristic is suppose to be their unique trot. The bite was not checked and incorrect legs were not penalized.

This is yet another issue the American breeders grapple with.

I agree it is a fragmented system, but the Akhal-Teke will never be a mainstream breed.

Just because a country has a different registry does not mean they are "inventing" a different breed. Off the top of my head I can think of many cases where certain breeds of horses & dogs were represented by as many as three different registries in one country. All had different rules and different standards, but they represented the same breed.

And here in America there is an AMERICAN Hanoverian Society, AMERICAN Trakehner Assoc., AMERICAN Warmblood Society, etc. These are all separate and distinct registries who keep separate and distinct studbooks from the German registries. Their rules are different and not every horse from one will go in the other.

I agree that breeders need to focus on the future of the Akhal-Teke breed, but IMHO there is much that can be improved upon concerning the current system. I suspect many American breeders feel the same, therein some of the conflict.

Katrina O'Neal

4. FLORA09/11/2005 20:27:49

Pure breds are PURE. Partbreds are just that. PART. If you want a purebred, get the money and BUY ONE. If you want to breed, buy purebreds, and make sure they are the best horses possible concerning conformation and type. STOP MESSING AROUND WITH THE PARTBREDS, WISHING YOU COULD MAKE THEM PURE, OR PUT IN THE PUREBRED STUDBOOK. IF YOU ARE NOT HAPPY WITH YOUR PARTBRED HORSE, SELL IT. IF YOU WANT A PUREBRED, BUY ONE. This is the horse business, breed registrys are for the benefit of the BREED, not the owners little psyches. Its a mean business and buyer beware.

5. Katrina O'Neal09/12/2005 15:14:49

Flora ~

Pure defined as....DNA'ed? Hmmm,nope. How 'bout bloodtested? Uhhh, nope.

Purity defined by one person's opinion and decision...Yep! Show me ANY irrefutable proof these horses were impure and I will shut up. There is none, and in fact there is a fair amount of proof that some of them ARE.

What I want to breed are good Tekes with less genetic faults then I am seeing. And to think that registries are always for the good of the horse is a REAL dream. They aren't many times. If a registry does not have some form of strict quality control, they are NOT for the good of the breed.

Qtr. Horses: HYPP
Arab: SCID
Warmbloods:OCD


What about the AKC ~ how many breeds has that registry ruined?

I could go on and on. In each case the registries could have stopped these problems early on because they knew the genetic roots (less so in OCD than in HYPP), but they didn't want the bad press.

But thanks for your sweet and well informed comments anyway.

Katrina

6. Dasha09/04/2006 21:10:33
Homepage: http://www.akhalteke.homestead.com

Well, I think it is important to remember that Akhal Teke horses have originated in Turkmenistan and Russia.
I think it`s important to have governing association who holds most of historical records and maintains the rules. It does not matter if it is good or bad it`s the authority which makes final decision.
Part bred horses should not be included in the stud book. They are part breds. Why not try to train them and show how well part bred ATs can do in the show world? I am sure will be enough interest in breeding from other breeds. What is the purpose of including part bred horse in the pure bred registry?
I agree with Jessica that it`s silly to fight over who is the purest and most original when I only saw two articles last year in publications about Akhal Tekes.
It`s not serious to fight over small things when there is limited market for Akhal Tekes in the US. Not enough horses showing results or even being trained. The reason for battles is the amount of horses which I assume can not be sold due to the lack of awareness for the breed and lack of performance results.
Why not combine the efforts?