{{Short description|South African breed of horse}} {{use dmy dates|date=October 2015}} {{use list-defined references|date=October 2015}} {{Infobox horse breed | name = Nooitgedachter | image = | image_size = | image_alt = | image_caption = | image2 = | image_size2 = | image_alt2 = | image_caption2 = | standard = [https://web.archive.org/web/20160305084359/http://www.nooitgedachter.co.za/index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&download=44:2015-eng-standaard-van-voortreflikheid-aanhangsel-vir-ajv-agenda&id=16:society&Itemid=586 {{nobreak|Nooitgedachter Perdetelers Genootskap}}] | altname = {{ubl|Nooitgedachtperd|Nooitgedacht Pony|Nooitgedacht Horse}} | country = South Africa | distribution = | use = {{ubl|riding|driving}} | colour = any solid colour | height = {{right|138–163 cm}} | male_height = | female_height = | weight = | male_weight = 440 kg{{r|agr|page=60}} | female_weight = 340 kg{{r|agr|page=60}} | status = {{ubl|FAO (2007): endangered{{r|barb|page=134}}|DAD-IS (2021): unknown{{r|dad}}}} | note = | group1 = | std1 = }}
The '''Nooitgedachter''' is a South African breed of riding horse.{{r|agr|page=59}} It is the result of a selective breeding programme established in 1952 to preserve the Basutho Pony of Lesotho. It was later decided to give it a different name; it was at first called the '''Nooitgedacht Pony''', named for the Proefplaas Nooitgedacht, the research station near Ermelo in Eastern Transvaal (now Mpumalanga) where it was bred; it was later called the '''Nooitgedacht Horse''' until the present name was chosen.{{r|ass|cabi|page2=490}} It is a rare breed, with only about 400 purebreds in existence.{{cn|date=March 2021}}
== History ==
The Nooitgedachter was created in the mid-twentieth century by the Department of Agriculture of the Union of South Africa, which established a programme of selective breeding at the Proefplaas Nooitgedacht, a research station near Ermelo in Eastern Transvaal (now Mpumalanga). The project was initially called the Basutho Pony Project, and had two aims: to preserve the Basutho Pony of Lesotho, which had been in decline since the time of the Anglo-Boer War of 1899–1902; and to create a breed of hardy riding horse for South Africa.{{r|agr|page=59}} The name was later changed, first to Nooitgedacht Pony, then to Nooitgedacht Horse, and finally to Nooitgedachter.{{r|agr|page=60|ass}} Although the Afrikaans word {{lang|af|nooitgedacht}} means roughly "never imagined", this is not the origin of the name of the breed, which derives from that of the research station.{{r|ass|cabi|page2=490}}
== Characteristics ==
The Nooitgedachter was bred to be a sturdy and compact riding horse capable of carrying a heavy adult rider over difficult terrain for extended periods, with good stamina, a good temperament, and hooves so strong that it does not normally need to be shod.{{r|agr|page=60}} Height at the withers ranges from {{convert|138|to|163|cm|hands|abbr=in|lk=out}}.{{r|standard}}
In the early years of the breeding programme grey – in all its shades – was the preferred coat colour.{{r|agr|page=60}} Under the 2015 breed standard, the horses may be of any solid colour; patterned coats – such as spotted, skewbald or piebald – are disallowed, as are blue eyes and de-pigmented skin.{{r|standard}}
The horses commonly have five gaits. In addition to the usual walk, trot and canter they may also have an ambling gait, known as {{lang|af|strykstap}}, and a rack, which in South Africa is called "triple".{{r|standard}}
== Uses ==
The Nooitgedachter is a strong and hardy riding horse, well adapted to the environmental conditions of South Africa, and suitable for use as a working horse in the management of farm livestock. In modern times, Nooitgedachters are used for English riding disciplines including dressage, show jumping, equitation, showing, distance riding, and endurance riding.<ref>{{Cite web |last=International Federation for Equestrian Sports |date=8 June 2022 |title=Breed Profile: Nooitgedacht Horse of South Africa |url=https://www.fei.org/stories/lifestyle/health-fitness/breed-profile-nooitgedacht-horse-south-africa}}</ref>
==References== <references>
<ref name=agr>F. J. Van der Merwe, J. Martin (2002). [http://www.fao.org/3/ak990t/ak990t00.pdf Four southern african horse breeds]. ''Animal Genetic Resources''/''Resources génétiques animales''/''Recursos genéticos animales''. '''32''' (2002): 57–72.</ref>
<ref name=ass>[http://nooitgedachter.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=114&Itemid=101 Ken jou Nooitie] (in Afrikaans). Nooitgedachter Perdetelers Genootskap. Accessed March 2021.</ref>
<ref name=barb>Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20200623201209/http://www.fao.org/3/a1250e/annexes/List%20of%20breeds%20documented%20in%20the%20Global%20Databank%20for%20Animal%20Genetic%20Resources/List_breeds.pdf List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources], annex to [https://web.archive.org/web/20170110125634/http://www.fao.org/3/a-a1250e.pdf ''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture'']. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{ISBN|9789251057629}}. Archived 23 June 2020.</ref>
<ref name=cabi>Valerie Porter, Lawrence Alderson, Stephen J.G. Hall, D. Phillip Sponenberg (2016). [https://books.google.com/books?id=2UEJDAAAQBAJ ''Mason's World Encyclopedia of Livestock Breeds and Breeding''] (sixth edition). Wallingford: CABI. {{ISBN|9781780647944}}.</ref>
<ref name=dad>[https://fao-dadis-breed-detail.firebaseapp.com/?country=ZAF&specie=Horse&breed=Nooitgedacht%20Pony Breed data sheet: Nooitgedacht Pony / South Africa (Horse)]. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed March 2021.</ref>
<ref name=standard>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160305084359/http://www.nooitgedachter.co.za/index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&download=44:2015-eng-standaard-van-voortreflikheid-aanhangsel-vir-ajv-agenda&id=16:society&Itemid=586 Nooitgedachter Standard Of Excellence: Appendix B Of The Constitution (8 Aug 2015)]. Nooitgedachter Perdetelers Genootskap. Archived 5 March 2016.</ref>
</references>
{{Horse breeds of Africa}}
Category:Horse breeds originating in South Africa Category:Horse breeds