After this has been established, one must find a stallion who is at least a match to her pedigree (he cannot be inferior). If possible, the stallion must be superior to the mare, since the majority of our Arabian horses need improvement by returning their offspring to the original strain of their dam.

In the last issue were shown photos of first crosses between unrelated strains (also on page 16 in the January-February, 1942 issue). The results, as the pictures prove, are not very pleasant. The angular, long lines of Muniqi type and the rounded (classic) Kuhaylan (or Saqlawi) had been mixed and produced unsymmetrical, unproportioned, unharmonious animals, far from the ideal picture one has in mind of the authentic "Steed of the Desert."

If bred pure in the stain, also the angular Muniqi (or their related strains) are ideal types and individuals in their own way, but not when they become mingled with the opposite (rounded, curved) types. Some ar top-heavy, high-legged with rounded, muscular hindquarters, and angular, thin, long necks (opposites in anatomical compositions). Others have thick, curved necks, drooping hind quarters and drawn-up bellies. There are dozens of such disgusting, ugly "compositions" possible. (It is claimed that stallions may not only emphasize the good qualities, but the faults of two opposite types.) We still see "poor" Arabian horses all over the country (and in Europe), wondering that such animals are registered Arabians. Most people blame feed, water, environment, climate or something else for these "throw-backs" (or whatever they are called), while the only cause for the creation of such "misfits" lies in the faulty breeding of two diametrically different types.

If the "poor grade" Arabian horse in question is not a stallion, but a mare, our view will have to be a different one:

Many Arabian mares of "poor grade" (upward of three generations removed from an unrelated strain) can produce a better foal than herself if bred to an Arabian stallion that is at least four generations removed from an unrelated strain.

This axiom may sound very complicated at first, but let me show an example to prove how simple it is and how anyone can follow this instruction and lay out his own breeding plans.

Here is the pedigree and photo of Nueyra, <see Photo 1> a registered Arabian mare of the Kuhaylan strain. She is TWO generations removed from Muniqi blood, as the following chart shows:

Being only two generations removed from the unrelated strain (in Nueyra's case it is the angular, somewhat coarser or plain Muniqi), she still shows a decidedly plain, long head with small eyes (and probably narrow between the jowls); also a long back, but otherwise proves to be four eighths Saqlawi (fine bone) and three-eighths Kuhaylan (strength). If she was only ONE generation removed from Muniqi she would show more unsymmetrical lines.

Almost the same type (also TWO generations removed from Muniqi) is Rejeb (see photo 2). Neither Rejeb nor Nueyra can be called distinctive types. This will not be possible before an Arabian horse of mixed strains is four generations removed from unrelated blood.

It is obvious that no serious breeder would expect to produce an improved foal by mating Rejeb and Nueyra when he can have a stallion of higher quality than Nueyra (the mare).

The kind of stallion which one would select to do this improvement will be shown later when we regard horses that are four or more generations removed from unrelated blood.

Hazzam is our example (photo 3). He is a great improvement over any previous one. Here (at THREE generations removed from unrelated blood) we are approaching a distinctive type and a much better head.

Undoubtedly this must be said, too (at least for the Arabians), that shape and outlines and conformation in general are related to the shape of its head; or, shall we say, the finest heads betray the best physical shape of the body.

The most amazing improvements occur when Arabians are at least FOUR generations removed from any unrelated blood. At that stage their heads become truly representative of the classic type (see photo of Ras-el-Fidawi's head in July-August, 1941 issue, page 9). Arabian characteristics are written all over them from their fine nostrils (and huge eyes) to the gracefully carried tails and from their proudly arched necks to their dainty but strong feet. Here (at FOUR generations removal from unrelated blood) we find almost perfect symmetry, proportion and balance of the whole body.

This type of stallion can indeed be mated to inferior mares and produce better foals.

Raseyn (photo 4) belongs in this category, too; also Rifnas and other famous stallions.

When we come to FIVE generations (or more) removed from unrelated strains, we enter the domain of the perfect Arabian horses. They are practically (and for many reasons) as good as those who never carried a drop of unrelated blood.

Here are some which I include for the reader to contemplate:

Irex (photo 5). Irex is five generations removed from Muniqi blood.

Raffles (photos 7 and 8) six generations removed from Muniqi blood.

Mahrousa (photo 9) a pure Kuhaylah, with never a trace of unrelated blood.

The photos of above Arabian horses prove that it is practically impossible to improve qualities (or add Arabian characteristics) beyond the FIFTH generation removed from Muniqi (or other unrelated) blood.

As examples I give Arousa (photo 10) and Mirage (photo 11). They are both registered Saqlawiyat (hence fine bones and great beauty), but they both have enough Kuhaylan blood, too, so that they carry plenty of muscles upon their fine frame(bone).

Arousa is three generations removed from Muniqi blood, but on her dam's side (Serra) she never had a trace of unrelated blood and thus her good qualities were intensified by Serra's purity.

Mirage was a pure Saqlawi and Kuhaylan (that is, he never had a trace of Muniqi or other unrelated blood). <his strain did>

I used the Muniqi to illustrate the influence of the UNrelated blood, because UNrelated blood among Arabians in America is overwhelmingly of the Muniqi strain.

Intensified (good) qualities appear (and "speeded up" improvements are noticeable) when at least one of the two parents of an Arabian horse trace to pure or related ancestors only. If one of the parents shows absolutely no trace to any unrelated blood one may consider the foal of such a parent ot have gained an additional generation (further away from the unrelated blood).

The mare Arousa, whose photo appears in this article (photo 10) is a striking example. Her mother Serra (see her photo in May-June, 1943, issue, page 15) never had a drop of unrelated blood (Muniqi or otherwise) among any of her ancestors

(1) Muniqi (which makes Arousa three generations removed from this muniqi influence). At the same time Arousa gained good qualities because she is intensified by the purity (no Muniqi ever) of her dam's (Serra's) blood.

Arousa, as can be seen from above pedigree, is actually three generations removed from Muniqi (in her case the Muniqi is the unrelated blood), but as (Bint) Serra never had a drop of unrelated blood we should consider her daughter Arousa FOUR generations removed from Muniqi blood. I believe that Arousa's photo proves that she belongs in that class of Arabians which I call "FOUR generations removed from unrelated blood." When analyzing the pedigree of an Arabian, another advantage (considering the good qualities of a horse) may be looked for, a certain feature which may be called "Purity in one generation (or more)."

"Fanatics" aim at purity of a stain not only by breeding (at least) FIVE generations away from Muniqi (or any other unrelated) blood, but in addition by faithful adherence to the same stain. When that one particular strain has been used throughout FIVE generations, an Arabian horse of the original type of the desert has been recreated.

There are many striking examples of this "fanatic" kind of pure-strain-breeding in England, Egypt and America. Sometimes this kind of mating happened unintentionally for one, two or even three generations because accidentally stallions of the same strain as the mares (and equally "advanced" in the purity of the same strain) were available. For example, Raktha <Skowronek>, Naseem, Rasim, Kamia, Naziri <Skowronek>, Nax, Curfa<Basilisk>, Nasik, Raffles<Skowronek, Basilisk>, Raffieh<Skowronek>, Indra<Nurredin II>, Saraf, Selfra<Skowronek>, Raseyn<Skowronek>, Rifna, Rifnetta, Rishra, Risletta, Nabih, Nadirat, Rizvan, Selkara, Indraff<Raffles/Nurreddin II>, and thus our most outstanding sires and brood mares were produced in the history of Arabian horse breeding in America, England and Egypt.

Even if not repeated throughout fully five generations, a single or double "feature" of pure strain breeding will help towards intensifying the particular type (strain) and its Arabian characteristics.

Photos and pedigrees will help to explain it, too. Let us take Raseyn, Raffles, Ahmar and Ibn Mahruss:

Raseyn and Raffles are pronounced masculine types, because they were already bred for two generations within the same strain (Kuhaylan).

Daoud and Ibn Mahruss are pronounced feminine (elegant, refined) types, because they were already bred for two generations within the same stain (or related strains). Ibn Mahruss' grandparents on the sire's side were Saqlawi and Wadnah.

Another question I have often been asked is this: "How shall we breed our Muniqi mares in America?" Since we have only a handful of Muniqiyat left who trace to the Muniqi strain on dam's and sire's side, we have to analyze the pedigrees of our mixed Muniqiyat mares. In each case we have to find out if there is one particular strain (other than Muniqi) overwhelmingly present (predominant).

Once this is established, one should breed this particular Muniqi mare to a stallion of this particular strain that is overwhelmingly present (in almost every case it will prove to be a Kuhaylan or a Saqlawi, but the Kuhaylan are in the majority).

In the last issue we had photos and pedigree of Farana, a registered Muniqi (the dam gives the strain name to her foal), but by blood "points" Farana leans definitely to the classic strains (five-eights Kuhaylan and two-eighths Saqlawi). It must be remembered again that size and frame are transmitted through the dam. In Farana's case the dam was a Muniqiyah mare. The mother of the tallest Arabian in this country (Barek, 16:1 hands; see his photo in January-February, 1942, issue, page 31) is a Muniqiyah, though of mixed strains, but the bloodlines from her mother's Muniqi descent still are prepotent enough to retain size and frame (and bone circumference).

Stallions like Farana and Barek are most important when we can match their pedigrees with similar pedigrees of Arabian mares.

In the January-February, 1943, issue on pages 10 and 11 were brought the photos of Fasiha and Ferhan. Both are registered Muniqiyat, but neither looks it. The answer to this lies in their pedigrees--each one is only one-eighth Muniqi and the rest Kuhaylan (overwhelmingly) and Saqlawi (and related strains). These two horses should be bred to animals which match their bloodlines irrespective of their registration as Muniqiyat.

The fault lies not in the registration (we are lucky to have these records of strains in our stud books), but the mistakes were made by mixing the individuals as to their strains, and to let our pure-in-the-strain or related-strain stallions and mares be exported, or die, without leaving us pure-in-the-strain offspring. I only mention a few. Nobody can deny that these following classic-stain Arabian horses never had any Muniqi blood. They were the best we ever had in this country and of their pure blood none is left to draw from today: Rizvan, Warys, Nafia, Abu Zeyd, Ibn Mahruss, Nasik, Nawfal, Rabz, Najiz, Risalda, Afifeh, Numera, Rose of Sharon, Rijma, Shahwan, Rodan and of the following pure-in-the-strain Muniqi, not one pure Muniqi descendent is left, either: Naomi, Nimr, Kismet, Khaled, Kusof, Noura (best Muniqi left; see my article January-February, 1942, page 14).

This is "part and parcel" of our Arabian horse breeding history in America (and I have written another one, equally tragic about England and continental Europe).

Only by studying for decades these pedigrees of our Arabian horses and the records of stud books in the U.S.A., England and Egypt, can we arrive at such findings, though some of these "discoveries" are heart-breaking.

(In the next article I will show the various crosses of pure and related strains--and unrelated, too.)

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