Registration of Curly Horses

Because we have recently been contacted with questions regarding the registration of Curly Horses, we thought we would help our customers and the general public by providing information regarding the various Curly Horse registries and their relationship to horses in Europe.

What about Curlies Austria?

Curlies Austria looks for the best quality Curly Horses available for our breeding program. What is most important to us is conformation, bloodlines and curly character, such as temperment, movement, and of course curl! We are extremely specific about the horses we chose as our breeding stock. We chose from the top breeders and will blend correctly to produce the top foals. This means that we selected horses from both the ABC and the ICHO because these horses are the best from these registries (See below for more explanation).

If one looks at our horses, one sees that our two stallions, ICHO registered, come from both "Foundation" ABC curly parents. This means that our stallions, if their breeder's had registered them with the ABC, are from ABC foundation stock. (Note: the (f) below by the ABC registration number stands for "Foundation"). Notice that some of the parents are double-registered with both the ABC and the ICHO.

Clooney:

Sire: Warrior's Big Sioux * ABC 1335(f)
Dam: Glory of Philea West* ICHO 507-D / ABC 750 (f)

Sire: Warrior's Black Velvet* ICHO 96-D / ABC 2323 (f)
Dam: Red Curly Sue* ABC 2322 (f)

We also have two outstanding mares that are ABC registered, and four outstanding mares ICHO registered (also mostly from ABC parents). One sees that ABC and ICHO horse are often one and the same and both registries work toward preserving and promoting the Curly Horse. We do not discriminate against either the ABC or the ICHO because we know what is important and that is the quality of the horse itself, and it's breeding. Curlies Austria focusses on two very different types, the stockhorse and the Sport/Damele type. In doing so, we embrace the different philosophies. All of our horses are OeZP registered and inspected in Austria. If you wish to have a foal bred by Curlies Austria registered by a particular registery we will help you register foals in your respective country or North America and we can provide news updates on registration developments.

We invite you to read on to learn about the differences between the Curly Horse registries, and what they are all about. We also explain what is important for Europe.

The Registries

There are several Curly Horse registries in the United States, Canada and now coming in Europe. Some have specific focus and some are general registries. Presently, the main registries for keeping track of Curly Horses and their pedigrees are the American Bashkir Curly Registry (ABCR) and the International Curly Horse Organization (ICHO). There is also the Curly Sport Horse registry, Curly Sport Horse International (CSI) which is working toward developing Curly Horses for Hunting, Dressage, and Endurance racing.

- American Bashkir Curly Registry (ABCR)

Historically, the ABC was the first registry developed for the Curly Horse. Due to philosophical reasons, the ABC chose the "Damele" bred horse (see History) as their ideal, although the ABC in its initial years allowed nearly all Curly Horses to be registered. There were some restrictions, although the Curly Horse mixed with Arabian an Morgan blood was acceptable, the Curly Horse mixed with Quarter Horse was discouraged, however all of the horses are decendents of various breeds (Morgan, Arabian, Saddlebred, Quarter Horse, Foxtrotter, Draft, Appaloosa, Mustang). The ABCR was a grass roots development in order to track the growing population of Curly Horses as breeders were going off in many directions. They assemble and have gathered numberous data on pedigrees and recorded these in registry books. Several years ago, the ABCR decided to close it's books.

Horses not already in the ABC were no longer allowed into the book because it was closed and only horses that had already made it in were then fixed in the reigstry. The closing off the population has caused a blending of all the various horse types together to form a more uniform, unique and somewhat primative Curly with old-style Morgan conformation.

The closing of the books, however, caused a political rift and split the Curly Horse breeders into two groups. Those that supported the closing, and those that said the population was too small and that for a healthy gene-pool out-crossing should still be allowed until a later time. This, combined with other political events eventually resulted in the forming a split-off group which formed another registry, the International Curly Horse Organization.

To be clear, the ABCR is not a studbook, it is a registry. Pedigrees of horses bred within the ABC are recorded. Any breeder can breed any two horses together so long as they are ABC registred and the offspring can be ABC registered.

Please note, we ourselves have two horses from ABC breeders that are ABC registered. Top quality ABC horses are available.

- International Curly Horse Organization (ICHO)

The ICHO is a volunteer run organization. As an organization it coordinates several projects and also has a registry, the North American Curly Horse Registry (NACHR). All Curly horses are allowed to be registered with the ICHO that can prove they have a Curly coat. Horses are catagorized based on the type of inheritance the particular horse demonstrates: dominant transmission, recessive transmission. Dominant horses are generally used for breeding purposes, and out-crossing to other breeds is also tracked and recorded. There are several Associations within the ICHO which breed for particular types of Curly Horses based on the original breeders beginning back in the 1930's. This includes the Classic Curly ("Damele" type), the Sport Horse Curly (Dressage/Hunter type), the Stockhorse Curly (Quarter Horse type), Draft and Gaited (Foxtrotter, as an example) types. The Associations jobs are to promote the melding of philosophies from both the early breeders and modern concepts in breeding for a functional horse.

In addition to the registry and associations, the ICHO also has research projects ongoing which are working on trying to solve the mystery of the origin of the Curly Horse and also scientific projects which are attempting to solve why the Curly Horses coat are hypoallergenic.

The year 2003 marked also the beginning of a new project to monitor the quality of Curly Horses. Wishing to produce horses with good conformation and promote the Curly Horse to breed status, the International Curly Approved Mare and Studbook (ICAMS) project was begun. Presently, ICAMS is just before it's launch and will provide inspections for stallions and mares and an official studbook based on quality control.

- Curly Sporthorse International (CSI)

In recent years, the CSI was formed to fill in a niche for breeders interested in developing Sport Horse (Dressage/Hunter/Endurance) horses for modern competition. The CSI also has a registry, runs inspections based on the American Warmblood Registry, using judges to determine quality. The CSI is also promoting education of breeders who wish to become more involved in competitions and develop their breeding programs in this direction.

All three of the above registries are valid and acceptable registries in Europe.

Understanding Curly Horse Registration

Many Curly Horses are double- or triple- registered, this means they have both ABC and ICHO and sometimes CSI registration numbers. Horses which are also Foxtrotters may also have a Missiouri Foxtrotter registration showing that they are gaited. Each of these registries provides a home for breeders with specific goals. Not every breeder shares the same idealogy, although all of them want to track and monitor their Curly populations and also use their registry as a marketing tool.

Many breeders which were with the ABC, chose to step out of the ABC and join the ICHO at one point. This means that their horses are both ABC and ICHO registered. However, all the foals that were born after this time from the ABC registered horses where only registered with the ICHO and not the ABC. This means that most ICHO horses (not all) are coming from the same population as the ABC horses.

With the population of Curly Horses, especially in Europe, being so small most breeders recognize that the need for keeping the population open for healthy breeding means enjoying the benefits of what all three of these (and other) registries have to offer.

Curly Horse Registation in Europe

Presently in Europe, there are different Breeding Associations which register Curly Horses. In Austria, the OeZP (Austrian Breeding Association for Special Breeds), an nationwide association, founded a registry and studbook for the Curly Horse which accepts both ICHO and ABC registered Curlies imported from North America. Horses bred within Austria must follow the rules of the OeZP and be inspected for quality. The OeZP is both a registry for horses in Austria and a studbook for horses that pass approval and are allowed to breed.

In Germany, each state within Germany (Saxony, Bavaria, etc.) has their own breeding associtions. A curly horse bred or born in Germany can be registered with the ABC or ICHO in North America based on the North American rules of these two registries. A German breeder can register a horse with the ICHO or the ABC as they wish, so long as the requirements are met. No one can hinder this. The rules for Curly Horse registry with local German associations differs from German state to state. There is no uniform regulated national association at this time. This means that anyone in Germany may breed a Curly Horse from any horse they choose at this time (ICHO or ABC). Presentation and inspection to participate in a German registry and studbook may differ. However, the development of the International Curly Approved Mare and Studbook by the ICHO will mean that both ABC and ICHO registered horses will be considered for an EU wide studbook working with local registries.

Other countries vary with respect to registration and stubook inspection of Curly Horses. In Sweden, they have developed their own studbook for the Curly Horse which was introduced there over 10 years ago. In France, the Curly Horse is not yet a recognized breed, and thus there is no French registration or inspection support available at this time. Populations in other countries are growing slowly and thus development will continues to grow. In these countries breeders use either the ICHO or the ABC in North America as suits their needs.