Is an Al Khamsa affiliate organization based in Oregon, but including interested people from Washington and Idaho. We get together several times a year to share interests, have an occassional trail ride, and/or learn about some aspect of horsemanship or horse management. We also have a delegate to the Al Khamsa Board of Directors. Among our members you will find people with Al Khamsa horses of almost every eligible bloodline, including straight Egyptian, straight Davenport, Blue Stars and all the wonderful bloodline blends.

        There are a number of Preservation organizations that are of interest to Cenpak members. Please read the following definitions which are provided by Al Khamsa, Inc.

        The term, "Al Khamsa" is not synonymous or interchangeable with any other term or designation used by any other organization or entity, including the Blue Catalog, the Pyramid Society, the Asil Club, the Sheykh Obeyd Foundation, the Davenport Conservancy, the World Arabian Horse Organization or the Arabian Horse Registry, etc. As a service to interested readers, the following information is provided concerning some of the various preservation oriented organizations and entities. No attempt has been made to cover all current preservationist groups. Although the definitions given here are believed to be correct at the time of printing, Al Khamsa, Inc. is not responsible for the accuracy of definitions herein provided. Readers are advised to contact the specific organizations, etc. for their current definitions and/or eligibility requirements.

        AL KHAMSA, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization devoted to the preservation of the horse of Bedouin Arabia through research and education in a social climate which draws admirers of such horses together in a cooperative effort. The horses of primary interest to AL KHAMSA are those in North America that can be reasonably assumed to descend entirely from Bedouin Arabian horses bred by the nomadic horse-breeding tribes of the deserts of the Arabian peninsula and without admixture of horses unacceptable to AL KHAMSA.

        After preliminary meetings starting in 1973 in Illinois, Al Khamsa held it first national meeting in 1975. The organization was formed as an outgrowth of interest in horses of the Blue Arabian Horse Catalog (see below). Initially, Al Khamsa eligibility was based primarily, though not exclusively, on the Blue Catalog horses. Al Khamsa's by-laws provide for the procedure by which horses and/or bloodlines may be added or deleted from the roster of eligible horses. Over the years, several new bloodlines have been added and none have been deleted.

        AL KHAMSA, inc. has published three major reference books, each of which includes a Pedigree Index of eligible horses along with currently available information about Foundation Horses and other material of an educational nature. The first two books are now out of print, while the third book., the 700 page AL KHAMSA ARABIANS, II (1993) is available in North America for $35.00 postpaid ($40.00 foreign countries) through the business office (see below). Owners have not had to pay anything to have their eligible horses recorded in these books. Al Khamsa also publishes The Khamsat, a high quality quarterly magazine with articles of general horse related interest as well as articles of special interest to Al Khamsa supporters. The annual subscription rate is $15.00, but subscribers are encouraged to send an extra donation to the organization. (see below)

        AL KHAMSA, Inc. has an annual business meeting which is held in various parts of the country. The Officers and Board of Directors who govern the organization are selected at the annual meeting. The occasion of this meeting also provides an educational program and an opportunity for social interaction. Anyone with an interest in these horses is welcome to attend and to take part in these meetings. There are no dues! However our projects and educational programs are costly and donations in any amount are gladly accepted. We invite you to contribute to this worthwhile research organization, and you are welcome to attend our meetings.

        The AL KHAMSA, Inc. Business Office address is: 7275 Manchester Road, Capron, IL 61012, Phone. 815-737-8102)

        The ASIL CLUB is an international membership association for the preservation and rearing of the Asil Arabian Horse. It was founded by Georg Olms and is headquartered in Germany. The Club definition of its bloodlines is as follows:

"The ASIL ARABIAN is a horse whose pedigree is exclusively based on Bedouin breeding of the Arabian peninsula, without any crossbreeding with non-Arabian horses at any time. The word "asil" is derived from the Arabic language and means pure, true, noble and genuine. The ASIL ARABIAN horse should have the riding qualities and the characteristics of type which distinguish the desert Arabian."

        The Asil Club has published 4 books with considerable historical information, an Anthology, a beautiful advertising section, and quality reproduction of some of the most beautiful and historical artwork depicting the Arabian horse to be found in any book. The latest volume has over 500 pictures, most in color.

        Historically the Asil Club has accepted all horses eligible for any one of the following : AL KHAMSA, Inc., the Blue Catalog, and any horse bred by the Egyptian Agricultural Organization or any stud in Egypt which is supervised by the EAO with the exception of those horses which are descendents of Registan, Sharkasi or Ibn Galabawi, (which are also not Al Khamsa eligible.) The latest Asil Club book indicates that it will also accept horses registered in the Bahrain or Saudi Arabian stud books. Not all Asil Club horses are eligible for Al Khamsa. Contact Asil Club, Hagentorwal 7, D-31134 Hildesheim, Germany

        The "Blue Catalog" as it was frequently called was compiled by Miss Jane Ott, and published in 1961 with updates through 1969. Miss Ott's mother, Mrs. John Ott was an outspoken proponent of her daughter's project. The Otts deserve credit for being among the mid-twentieth century American preservationists. In her catalog, Miss Ott describes it's purpose as follows: (Italics are Miss Ott's, whereas the blue type colour is for emphasizing aspects of the catalog which are often overlooked.)

"The Blue Arabian Horse Catalog is published to encourage the preservation and increased production of the type of Arabian Horse originally found in the possession of the Bedouin tribes of Arabia, and bred in other countries by breeders whose foundation stock was drawn entirely from those tribes. The Catalog is devoted to those bloodlines which its sponsors believe to be suitable for that purpose, and is designed to help American breeders identify those animals still living ..... the catalog contains every animal - good, bad, and indifferent - which is bred entirely from those foundation bloodlines the sponsors believe suitable for maintaining the kind of horse the Catalog is designed to preserve."

Miss Ott divided the horses she found eligible into two categories. If, in her opinion, the animals had no recorded crosses to the Muniqi strain they were called "Blue Star" , while the others were termed "Blue List". She also identified some bloodlines as "sub-lists".

        There is no Blue Catalog organization. Only Miss Ott can designate whether or not she considers an individual horse to be eligible for her Blue Catalog if it were to be updated. Miss Ott has not updated the Blue Catalog after 1969, so it is not known whether she would accept the numerous bloodlines imported to the U.S.A. since then.

        The Davenport Arabian Horse Conservancy is a not-for-profit (501c-3) organization whose purpose is

"to enhance public awareness and appreciation of the Davenport Arabian Horse as Homer Davenport knew it, with emphasis on its usefulness, aesthetic merit, historical tradition, and appropriate place in contemporary Arabian horse breeding."

Horses known as Davenport Arabians are totally descended from the horses registered by the Arabian Horse Registry of America as imported directly from Arabia to the United States by Homer Davenport in 1906. There are currently about 650 living Davenport horses. All Davenport horses are Al Khamsa, Asil Club, Blue Catalog and CMK eligible. The Davenport Conservancy: 254 E. Jefferson, Winchester, IL 62694

        The Pyramid Society is a membership organization devoted to "the preservation and perpetuation of Egyptian bloodlines as a nucleus of outcross blood". It's definition of a Pyramid Society "Straight" Egyptian Arabian horse reads in part as

" a horse which traces in every line of its pedigree to a horse which ... is a numbered horse found in the Royal Agricultural Organization stud books beginning on page 45 of Volume 1 and ending on page 230 of Volume 4... (or) a horse which is a lineal ancestor of a horse described (above), (or) a horse... which was conceived and born in a private stud program in Egypt and which was imported directly to the United States and registered by the Arabian Horse Registry of America prior to the extension of EAO supervision to private Egyptian stud programs as reflected in Volume 4 of the EAO stud book."

The horses Registan and Sharkasi and their descendents are specifically excluded (see also under Asil Club). For a copy of the full Pyramid Society definition, please contact that organization)

        The Pyramid Society puts on an annual horse show for eligible horses and has published several Reference Handbooks with editorial material and a beautiful full color advertising section, along with a directory of the horses owned by the advertisers. There are currently over 6,000 horses which could be eligible for the Pyramid Society if their owners joined that organization. Most, but not all, Pyramid Society eligible horses are also eligible for Al Khamsa. The bloodlines of most Pyramid Society horses would probably be considered Blue List or "Sub-list". About 60% of the Al Khamsa horses are considered "straight Egyptian" by the Pyramid Society . Address: Pyramid Society, 4067 Iron Works Rd., Lexington, KY 40511

        The Sheykh Obeyd Foundation is a membership organization, formed in 1989 to encourage the preservation and production of Arabians which trace in all lines to the Abbas Pasha /Ali Pasha Sherif /Blunt and /RAS bloodlines, including the desert breds used in the studs of Ahmed Bey Sennari (a neighbor of the Blunts in Egypt), Khedive Abbas II, and Prince Ahmed Pasha Kemal, the latter two being members of the Egypt's governing family. Basically these bloodlines correspond to Al Khamsa's Ancestral Element designations of EGYPT I, (foundation stock in Egypt utilized by members of the governing family and/or Ali Pasha Sherif and/or Ahmed Bey Sennari between C. 1850 and 1905), EGYPT II (foundation stock acquired by, or certified by, the Royal Agricultural Society during the 1920s.) and BLUNT (foundation stock acquired by Lady Anne and Wilfrid Blunt between 1877 and 1913 for either their Crabbet Stud in England or their Sheykh Obeyd Stud in Egypt).

        During the early 1990s there were approximately 650 Arabians which qualified as Sheykh Obeyd. These horses are all eligible for Al Khamsa, and the Asil Club, most are eligible for the Pyramid Society. Their bloodlines have qualified as either Blue List or sub-list. Sheykh Obeyd Foundation: Box 272 Hwy 83, Sonoita, AZ 85637

        The bloodline requirements for CMK are not as restrictive as are those of the other Preservation groups. Their definition reads as follows:

"A CMK Arabian traces in at least 75% of its pedigree to traditional Blunt/Davenport breeding of the 1950s; any or all of the horses of the Reese (Old California) and Dean (Midwest) coordinator circles; other Maynesboro, Crabbet/Old English horses; and unique North American desert lines. It traces to a CMK sire line and a dam line established in North America by 1950."

Although there is no formal national organization, the highly educational CMK Record, is published quarterly. Three volumes of the CMK Heritage Catalog have also been published. Some of the CMK horses are also eligible for Al Khamsa. Contact (Michael Bowling) CMK Record: 24920 Road 96, Davis, CA 95616

        This material has been provided by AL KHAMSA, Inc., a not-for-profit organization whose business office is located at: 7275 Manchester Road, Capron, IL 61012. Phone: 815-737-8102