Jilin Horse

Jilin Horse

　　【Main Production Areas and Distribution】 Primarily produced in the three regions of Baicheng, Changchun, and Siping in Jilin Province. Distributed in Qian Gorlos Mongolian Autonomous County as well as counties such as Nong’an, Shuangliao, and Huaidi.

　　【Formation History】

　　The Mongolian horses in the Jilin Horse production area, due to their smaller stature, could not meet the needs of local industrial and agricultural production. Starting in 1950, using local horses (mainly Mongolian horses, with a very small number of Sanhe horses and other crossbred horses) as the foundation, Ardennes and Don breed stallions were primarily crossed with local mares to produce a large number of first-generation light and heavy horses. On this basis, rotational and graded crossbreeding were carried out, resulting in a significant number of second-generation light and heavy crossbred and heavy-bred upgraded horses, which had increased body size and markedly improved working performance, laying the foundation for the development of the Jilin Horse. On this basis, with technical guidance from the Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Jilin Agricultural University, and primarily based in state-owned and township ranches in Baicheng, the Jilin Horse Breeding Collaboration Group was formed, and a unified breeding program was established. Starting in 1962, within the second-generation population, stallions and mares that met the breeding criteria and ideal type in terms of body measurements were selected. A breeding method mainly using homogeneous mating supplemented by heterogeneous mating was employed for crossbreeding. At the same time, strict selection and culling were carried out to expand the ideal-type group. During this stage, in order to rapidly improve the quality and uniformity of the horse herd, genetically stable ideal-type stallions were used as a focus, which played a significant role in advancing the Jilin Horse breeding process. For example, the Qian’an County Livestock Farm in Jilin Province began using the stallion “Su Yi” No. 1 for crossbreeding with various types of mares starting in 1962, and continued its widespread use for several consecutive years. This led to a more consistent set of characteristics within the horse herd, giving them the traits of a draft-riding dual-purpose horse, with very notable results. After 1966, in addition to strict selection and culling, the breeding method of primarily using homogeneous mating supplemented by heterogeneous mating continued to be employed to consolidate and enhance their strengths and correct weaknesses (such as drooping ears and excessive fetlock hair). The Shuangliao Sheep Farm, Qian’an, and Hongxing Livestock Farms were the main breeding grounds for the Jilin Horse. Line breeding was carried out in these well-equipped breeding farms. Through crossbreeding fixation and inbreeding, the Jilin Horse was developed. This new breed essentially retains 25% local horse blood, 25% light horse blood, and 50% heavy horse blood (or 25% Mongolian horse and 75% heavy horse), and has become a fusion of several parent breeds. It has stable heredity and largely consistent group characteristics.