Any horse breed sees the rise and falls of fads and trends in the show ring. Every breed of horse evolves as the years roll by, as breeders continually seek to improve upon the breed. The American Miniature horse has a fairly loose breed standard, with the goal being an overall balanced small equine that closely resembles it's larger cousins. The original miniature horses were smaller Shetland ponies bred down for size, and size was the main goal in the early years with less regard to quality and type. As the breed progressed and size was an easier to attain goal (deeper genetics of small animals were built) breeders began to focus on a more consistently attractive animal with more ability. The show ring has seen a shift from a Quarter Horse type, to a more Arabian type appeal... and now at the turn of this century, it seems a new preference is for the "pony type." Now, this "pony type" is not the English Shetland pony type seen abroad, with a drafty body and build and an abundance of mane and tail. It is for the "American Shetland" type... very refined, long legs and trim barrel, a lot of action, and a hotter temperament. The popularity is being increased by the domination of the "pony type" at the AMHR Nationals, in which many of the Grand Champion horses not only resemble the American Shetland, they ARE an American Shetland.
Now, what IS a Miniature Shetland? There is no set "slang" for these horses quite yet, although I think one will be devised with time. They are referred to as a Miniature Shetland, an ASPC/AMHR horse, or a less descriptive "double registered" horse (because the majority of "double registered" minis are AMHA/AMHR by the numbers). It is a conundrum of sorts for these animals, as they are BOTH a "pony" AND a "horse"... and there has been a long history of stigmatism for the "pony" in the Miniature Horse breed as breeders tried to present their animals as unique, truly small "horses." Miniature horses ARE ponies, they are equines under 14.2 hands and therefore classified as a true pony. ALL miniature horses were bred down from Shetlands at one point, but most breeders threw away the Pony papers or never registered them as such. For a long time now, the word "Pony" was a four letter word to many miniature horse enthusiasts.
The Miniature Shetland has always been around though. There have always been Shetlands small enough to have AMHR papers, and many breeders keep both sets of papers on the animals that are able to. With the ASPC/AMHR registry, one is able to hardship a Shetland into AMHR, but only horses with two registered ASPC parents can be registered as a Pony. With AMHA, a horse that is small enough can be registered with that registry. Therefore, to get a small Shetland registered as a miniature horse, it must be under 38" to hardship as an AMHR horse, and then under 34" to register as an additional AMHA horse. There are very few ASPC/AMHR horses, and even fewer ASPC/AMHR/AMHA horses, but they have always been around, and as their popularity increases, more will be bred.
The Arenosa horses are a bloodline that was closely inbred for a certain type, and this ASPC/AMHR bloodline is sought after by many Miniature Shetland lovers.
There is much positive attention given to Shetland bloodlines in the miniature horse industry today, not only because of recent National Champion wins in both Halter and Performance. Breeders are considering the influx of new genes to the gene pool to add movement and refinement to their miniatures. Shetlands are known for their brilliant movement, which is a trait many miniatures lack. The Shetland also is not known for having dwarfism in their bloodlines like the miniatures are. Some breeders are strongly against the "Ponies" being bred and shown as a miniature horse. Some cling desperately to their less-modern style of horse and are reluctant to change their breeding program. Some breeders are wary of breeding Shetlands into their program for fear of the taller genetics producing foals that may "go over" in size and lose their papers.
The ASPC/AMHR horse may very well be the next big thing. And with time, perhaps even the ASPC/AMHR/AMHA registered animal will be the horse of choice. At this point it is still very difficult to find a horse already double registered, and even harder to find one of quality. As breeders it is important to remember to look at the horse and not the papers. Just because a horse is registered in both or all three registries does not mean that it is a valuable animal to the show ring or breed. Time will tell what is in store for the ASPC/AMHR horse, but it is coming to a show ring near you!
Andrea Rollins © 2005
