Draft horse (Noriker / Rhenish-German)
calm, powerful, level-headed
Traits & strengths
- ✦enormous pulling and carrying power
- ✦great composure and steadiness
- ✦amenable and people-oriented
- ✦feed-efficient and frugal for its size
Breed-typical predispositions
PSSM1 (GYS1)
Disease →markedly elevated frequency in the alpine draft populations; managed through low-starch feed, fat and daily movement
CSNB in leopard-spotted horses (LP/LP)
Disease →only homozygous leopard-complex carriers are affected — the night blindness is congenital and stationary, not a progressive disease; predictable from the LP genotype
Pastern dermatitis (mud fever)
Disease →feathering holds moisture — dry bedding and regular checks of the pastern folds are the lever
Latest findings
PSSM1 frequency in alpine draft breeds
ongoingScreenings show a GYS1 carrier rate that is high compared with other breeds; the breed societies recommend testing before a stallion is used.
Source · Alpine draft horse GYS1 screening
Leopard complex and night blindness (TRPM1)
2008/2013The same TRPM1 variant that produces leopard spotting causes congenital stationary night blindness when homozygous — for preserving the colour pattern that is a matter of planning, not exclusion.
Source · Bellone et al. — TRPM1/CSNB