What does «caballos de silla» mean in Spanish?
- Horses used for riding. The breeding of the light horse aims at speed, style, endurance and comfort in riding. To this end the shoulders and pastern of the light horse are long and wavy to give elasticity to the legs and facilitate riding; the back is strong enough to carry the rider; the muscles are long and flexible for rapid contraction and lively action of the limbs. Among the better known breeds of light horses is the thoroughbred, a name often incorrectly applied to thoroughbred horses, that is, horses entitled to be registered on the books of a given breed. The thoroughbred breed was formed from three eastern shearlings, the "Byerly Turk", the Arabian "Darley" and the "Godolphin Barb", which were imported by Charles II of England and crossed with native mares and two Barb mares, known as "royal mares". The thoroughbred record is based directly on three stallions bred in England around 1750; "Herod", direct descendant of the Turkish "Byerly"; "Matchem", grandson of "Godolphin Barb"; and "Eclipse", descendant of the Arabian "Darley". Thus, the breed has its origin in the fusion of Arab, Berber and Turkish blood with native English blood, a combination that gives these horses symmetry, endurance and speed. Thoroughbreds are saddle horses, bred exclusively for the speed of the gallop. They have a height of 1.50 m, weigh 400 to 475 kg and can be bay, chestnut, black, sorrel, gray or roan in color.