Disappearing
How the breed of horses ridden by Marshal Zhukov is dying out
Kumir is the most famous horse of the Terek breed. Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov rode him during the Victory Parade in 1945.
At the end of this April the whole country learned about tragedia At the Stavropolsky stud farm, more than 20 Terek horses died as a result of appalling living conditions and starvation, and another 20 were barely able to stand due to exhaustion. Local residents suspected something was wrong back in February, when the smell of corpses spread through the area, but the regional veterinary inspection зaverilEverything is fine. The equestrian farm's owner, Syrian-born Hammoud Adel Majid, declined to comment.
There are no more than 300 Terek horses left in Russia. They are dying out, but the country has never had a "Red Book" of equines.
Experienced horse owners told NeMoskva what makes the breed unique and whether it can be saved.
"I'll trust you with my child without any problem"
11 Terek horses live on a private farm. Natalia Sorokina From the Kirov region. She loved horses since childhood—so much so that she begged her parents to homeschool her so she could spend as much time as possible at the stables. From childhood, she fell in love with Terek horses. A horse of this breed was her first training horse.
"When I got my own horses, schoolchildren would come to me on excursions, I'd give classes, but then it all gradually died out. We live in a village, and the mentality here is: how can you pay for a horse ride? A horse is a horse, so why pay for it? So we keep them purely for ourselves, you could say, to maintain the breed."
Tertsy horses are very honest and people-oriented. At our training camp in Sokolniki, we had a horse with a difficult life—beaten and scarred, but he carried the children calmly, was drawn to us, and we learned on him. My horses graze in an electric fence [a special device to prevent a horse from running away] on our land; I can saddle any horse and ride it. Horsemen know that even after three days of rest, a horse of another breed must first be lunged [a long rope used to lead horses in circles without a rider], otherwise it will run wild under the rider, expending energy. You can mount a Tertsy horse without any preparation—as long as its basic needs for freedom of movement, food, companionship, and safety are met.
My husband is an inexperienced rider; he only rides occasionally. And we've never had any problems: just mount and ride. I wouldn't hesitate to entrust my child to a Terts. My 13-year-old daughter had a back injury, and now the doctors have cleared her to ride, but only at a walk. Terts always have a way of "filtering" what's allowed and what's not. If you abuse or hit a Terts, they'll become withdrawn, but they won't become embittered toward you. They also adapt to the climate very quickly—I've brought "southern" horses to my place, and they acclimated easily.
For the average horse owner who doesn't make a living from horses, keeping them is an expensive hobby. I spend 15,000 rubles a month on straw and hay per horse alone. That's not counting supplements, vitamins, mandatory vaccinations, bloodwork, and hoof trimming—I learned to do that myself. Trimming a horse's hooves costs 2,000 rubles. I'm not very successful selling horses: I've sold three in six years. However, one of them later ended up as a representative of the Terek breed at the "Center for National Equestrian Traditions" at VDNKh, which I'm actually proud of.
There are very few Terek horses left in the country, which is why the equestrian world was so outraged when they learned of the situation at the Stavropol stud farm. That's precisely the place where breeding work should take place, breeding Terek horses, breaking them in, testing them for athletic ability, and so on. But almost a third of the herd was destroyed there. I don't know exactly what happened there. They say the owner needed the stud land—that's where he makes his profit—and the horses were just a side effect. A side effect.
What should I do? I personally signed it. пeticion With a request to save the Terek horses, I wrote and sent letters to the All-Russian Research Institute of Horse Breeding (VNIIK) and the Ministry of Agriculture, offering to collect semen from the sires of the Stavropol stud farm for freezing their genetic material. True, they are not in the best condition right now, but in the current situation, there is no choice. VNIIK already has experience producing foals from frozen semen. Interestingly, this year they produced foals born through artificial insemination with the biomaterial of the stallion Samotsvet, whose storage period was 51 years. Even earlier, Sobinka was born at a farm near Moscow, also through artificial insemination. Samotsvet's biomaterial is the oldest in Russia. This means that the conditions for reviving the breed are in place. I hope that attitudes toward Terek horses will change and they can be saved.
Terek horse breed Created on the initiative of Marshal of the USSR Semyon Budyonny for Soviet cavalrymen. He wanted the new breed to be refined, fast, enduring, and easy to maintain. The Terek breed was developed between the 1920s and 1940s at the Terek and Stavropol stud farms by crossing several surviving Strelets horses with Arabian, Don, Kabardian, and several other breeds. The most common Terek horse color is light gray with a silver sheen. Terek horses also come in chestnut and bay colors.
"To restore the popularity and accessibility of equestrian sports"
Anna Dorofeeva — the Terek breed registrar at the All-Russian Research Institute of Horse Breeding. It collects data from all stud farms on foal births and measurements of mares and stallions. It maintains a database on this breed, issues passports, and maintains the stud book.
The most common equestrian sport among children and young people is show jumping [over obstacles set in a specific pattern in an arena or outdoors]. Children jump obstacles up to a meter high, while for the junior category, they are set higher. It would seem that the Terek breed is the most suitable for children and young people: 160 centimeters at the withers, you can mount it immediately after a pony. But there are nuances that apply not only to Tereks. To prepare any horse for a child, you need to buy it at one and a half to two years old, break it in, jump it, and maintain it—this is a long, expensive, and painstaking process. It's much easier to buy a ready-made horse from abroad, broken in and able to jump 130-140 centimeters. If it can jump 140 centimeters, it will definitely jump 80 centimeters.
If our horses aren't in demand by athletes, it's more profitable to sell them to Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan, where they're used in national equestrian games. If they're not used in our sport, they're invisible and forgotten altogether, as jumping horses with impressive coats and trainable qualities.
There are currently only 150 queens left in Russia. This number can be considered critical; the breed is disappearing.
What should we do? The new Minister of Sport [Mikhail Degtyarev] just said he's interested in developing physical education and sports for the general population, making all sports accessible to children and young people.
A possible solution could be a separate classification and prize fund for horses of domestic breeds. In Germany, a horse bred in another country will never be allowed to compete in the National Championship. In Italy, riders riding Italian-bred horses do not pay entry fees.
If we introduce parallel classification, it will mean that the horse was bought in Russia, trained in Russia, and is being ridden by our rider. Then the entire chain will develop: trainer, groom, and the child who will eventually ride that horse. And while the results may not be immediate, they will come. It's also important in children's show jumping to emphasize not speed and cleanliness, but the quality of the horse's position and control, and to reward trainers for this. Hold trainer championships specifically for the quality of training in the horse's position. This will motivate both children to demonstrate their skills and trainers to avoid formalism. There can't be a slouched ballerina, so why should there be a child who doesn't sit correctly on a horse?
Overall, the level of training for children and young people should be equal across the country. Horse breeding depends on the development of equestrian sports, their mass participation, and their popularity. This requires books, films, broadcasts, advertising, brand books, and accessible classes for children. The development of equestrian sports will generate interest in domestic breeds, which should also evaluate jumping and movement skills, selecting the best for breeding based on conformation, character, and other qualities.
The Terek breed has produced a number of outstanding sport horses, renowned not only in the USSR but also beyond its borders. For example, the stallion Tsetsar, ridden by Nikolai Sitko, competed in the 1952 Olympics in Finland, and the stallion Tskheti, ridden by Valery Volkov, won gold in the team eventing event at the 1972 Munich Olympics. The Trakehner-Ter stallion Edinburgh, trained by Ivan Kizimov, was sold to Kira Kerklund in Finland, where he later took fifth place in the Grand Prix at the Barcelona Olympics and fourth at the World Dressage Championships. The stallion Erzen won the Kladruber Steeplechase in 1985. <…> Terek horses also found a place in the circus: the stallion Buyan worked in various genres, from dressage to trick riding, as part of the troupe of People's Artist of the RSFSR Alibek Kantemirov and became a true celebrity and a favorite of the public." Horse Breeding Magazine, article "The Revival of Russia's 'Silver'"
"These are horses with personalities."
EtcTerets Project On social media, this is an information platform created to promote the breed. The group features information about the horse farms that breed Terek horses, sales, shows, and achievements. Photos and videos are published, drawing attention to the beauty, grace, and uniqueness of Terek horses. The project's creators also organize live events. Love Ponkina — one of the group's organizers. Until a certain point, she knew nothing about Terts, but one day she became interested in what kind of breed they were.
"I once came across a photo of a horse, but I couldn't identify the breed. Then I saw the caption that it was a Terek, and I started looking for them. I couldn't find much, and I realized there was very little information about them. I realized things weren't exactly great with Tereks. I started collecting information about them, working on it for years, even before I'd seen one in person. And only then did I meet one."
Terts are, above all, charismatic, possessing a truly captivating intelligence, elegance and beauty, and possessing personalities that draw you into their hearts. One breeder once said that "you could play chess with them"—they're so intelligent. It's no wonder circuses often stock Terts.
Nowadays, they're rarely used in sport—one reason being that there aren't many of them. The main breeding farms are in the south, and those who can afford a good horse are concentrated in the center, so to speak. It's easier to go to another nearby farm and buy a Russian Saddlebred or a Don. Another point: after the collapse of the 1990s, some farms did experience a revival. And while other breeds were being developed, Terek horses somehow remained largely untouched; they were, so to speak, forgotten. Selection efforts were insufficient. Therefore, let's be honest, they're not currently suitable for high-performance sport. There are some exceptional ones, but we're talking about the masses. The Terek's current niche is children's and amateur equestrian sports, as well as endurance riding. They're a companion horse, a friend. Private horse owners who sought advice were satisfied with their choice of Terek horses.
To preserve and revive the breed, we need to ensure that people buy it from our farms. Farms will generate income and be motivated to develop it. This means preserving the breed initially while simultaneously pursuing targeted selection. The problem won't be solved overnight; it's a long, gradual process, but initially, breeders will need government support. Currently, there are strong farms that breed Terek horses alongside other profitable businesses, and they're making a living from that. There are also those that are barely surviving. Both breed Terek horses not for a reason, but in spite of everything, out of a great love for the breed.
"I've had a wide variety of horses, and they're all great in their own way. <…> Now I have Tereks and sometimes I play with a Friesian. Things are sad with Tereks right now—the breed is disappearing. If things continue like this, in about 10 years we'll only be looking at photos of them. They're a wonderful breed, easy to train, and have a good demeanor. They're a true warhorse. And their temperament is calmer than Arabians. Our country has much to be proud of. But it's getting sad now, somehow—the stud farms are kept going by the word of honor and the breed's enthusiasts. It's the same story with Tereks. There's no one to train the horses or the people; the masters are leaving, and there's no one to replace them. <…>" Elena Pavlovich, a professional animal trainer and performer at the Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard
"Both under water and under the governor"
Alexander Nesvat — the head of Avangard JSC in Stavropol Krai. His farm is well-known: everything is in perfect order here, the horses' flanks are round and shiny. Tertsev is here +they call Elite Russian Horse - that's right, with a capital H.
"The horse was bred for an officer's saddle. And what is an officer's horse? An annual test in dressage, eventing, and cross-country. These were athletes. Put a child on it—the horse will carry the child to 120 [120 cm is the barrier height in show jumping competitions for the second sport category] and carry them skillfully, teaching them a lot along the way. This horse is a professor, a real professor. Any child can handle him. Our elders used to say that the horse is "suitable for both water and the military commander."
During the Soviet era, Terek horses and Terek crosses performed in the circus and in elite sports—dressage, eventing, steeplechasing. We rode our own Soviet horses and won. Our horses were highly prized abroad. We also bought horses abroad, but very sparingly, specifically to improve the breed. The stud farms had all the feed they could get, and the wages were very good.
The nineties arrived. We sold all our top-quality horses abroad in pursuit of easy profit, or even sold them for slaughter. Only second- and third-rate horses remained, and everything was abandoned. There was no breeding, no one wanted to work on them, because horses are unprofitable, it always has been. Horses aren't about profit; they're about the soul, about something native, about true pride. They're about so much more. It's about health, too—every stud farm used to have free riding classes for children.
There are approximately 200 mares left in the entire country, while just one good stud farm should have at least 120 to properly maintain the breed. We have three more or less large farms left: us (20-25 mares), the "Grey Horse" stud farm in the Nizhny Novgorod region, and that same "Stavropolsky" farm. When only 2000 mares of the Hungarian breed remained in Hungary, everyone sounded the alarm: the breed is disappearing! And they focused all their efforts on restoring it. But we have ten times fewer, and—silence.
I can't say for sure about Stavropolsky. Currently, private owners are their own bosses. How can we win against them in our current reality? I've thought about this a lot. We don't even have a law on horse breeding. There is one on bees, one on fish farming, but nothing on horses. There should be some kind of law on preserving breeds, like nature reserves or something like that. This should reach the government. A person uses the land and gets something from it—grain, for example—and makes a profit. That means they should use part of the profits to maintain and develop the breed, since they didn't just get the land, but land with horses, and what horses they are. Why doesn't the state require them to allocate a percentage of the profits to this? Especially if they own their own land, their own hay, straw, and grain.
Perhaps a breed, or even several breeds, should be nationalized so that the state can take them under its wing. I don't know how to arrange this. Perhaps the head of state should slam his fist on the table and say: this is how it must be! Otherwise, what... The Tereks will disappear, everyone will forget the breed. No breed, no problem.
Photo: Natalya Sorokina, Anna Dorofeeva, Elena Pavlovich, Elena Dultseva, from the Terets project page, from the Avangard breeding farm page
