Editing Akhal-Teke (section)

==History==
[[File:RaceChevalineTurque.jpg|thumb|1848 French image of a "Turkmene" horse]]
The ancestors of the breed may date back to animals living 3,000 years ago, known by a number of names.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.maakcenter.org/ENG/BREED/history.html |title=History of Akhal-Teke horse breed. Official website of International Association of Akhal-Teke Breeding (MAAK) |publisher=Maakcenter.org |date=May 30, 2001 |access-date=November 19, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130519040332/http://www.maakcenter.org/ENG/BREED/history.html |archive-date=May 19, 2013 }}</ref> The precise ancestry is difficult to trace, however, because prior to about 1600&nbsp;AD, [[horse breed]]s in the modern sense did not exist; rather, horses were identified by local strain or type.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.akhalteke.info/turkmenian-1-36-en.html |title=Akhalteke.info |publisher=Akhalteke.info |access-date=November 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302024955/http://www.akhalteke.info/turkmenian-1-36-en.html |archive-date=March 2, 2012 }}</ref>

The breed is very similar to, and possibly the direct descendant of the [[Turkoman horse]], a breed believed to be extinct, though a related strain may be bred today in [[Iran]]. Other breeds or strains with Turkoman roots also include the [[Iomud|Yomud]], the Goklan, and the Nokhorli.<ref>[http://www.museumofthehorse.org/journal/a-look-at-the-turkoman-horse-in-iran/ A Look at the Turkoman Horse in Iran] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110183232/http://www.museumofthehorse.org/journal/a-look-at-the-turkoman-horse-in-iran/ |date=January 10, 2014 }}</ref> Some historians believe that these are different strains of the same breed. Other ancient strains that may have contributed to the breed included those named the Massaget and Parthian.<ref>[http://www.imh.org/exhibits/online/breeds-of-the-world/asia/akhal-teke/ International Museum of the Horse]- Retrieved 2018-02-23</ref> There's also claims that Akhal-Teke horse is the descendant of the original [[Fergana horse]] which was breed in [[Fergana valley]] in 104 BC.<ref name="diplomat">{{cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/04/how-ancient-exchanges-in-central-asia-shaped-the-modern-world/ |title=How Ancient Exchanges in Central Asia Shaped the Modern World |date=11 April 2018|website=The Diplomat |first=William |last=Taylor}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.petmd.com/horse/breeds/c_hr_akhal_teke |title=Akhal-Teke |website=PET MD| date=12 January 2010}}</ref>

It remains a disputed "chicken or egg" question whether the influential [[Arabian horse|Arabian]] was the ancestor of the Turkoman or was developed out of that breed, but current DNA evidence points to a possible common ancestor for both.<ref name="Wallner">{{cite journal|last1=Wallner|first1=Barbara|last2=Vogl|first2=Claus|last3=Shukla|first3=Priyank|last4=Burgstaller|first4=Joerg P.|last5=Druml|first5=Thomas|last6=Brem|first6=Gottfried|last7=Ellegren|first7=Hans|title=Identification of Genetic Variation on the Horse Y Chromosome and the Tracing of Male Founder Lineages in Modern Breeds|journal=PLOS ONE|date=3 April 2013|volume=8|issue=4|pages=e60015|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0060015|pmid=23573227|pmc=3616054|bibcode=2013PLoSO...860015W|doi-access=free}}</ref>  A substantial number of Arabian mares were reportedly used to improve the breed in the 14th and 19th century.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Moser | first=Henri | title=À travers l'Asie Centrale| language=fr | location= Paris | publisher=E. Plon, Nourrit | year=1886 | version=463 p. incl. front. : ill., plates, ports., fold. map | page=320 | url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/cul/texts/ldpd_6345164_000/pages/ldpd_6345164_000_00000360.html | trans-title=Across Central Asia}}</ref>  It is also possible that the so-called "hot blooded" breeds, the [[Arabian horse|Arabian]], Turkoman, Akhal-Teke, and the [[Barb (horse)|Barb]] all developed from a single "[[oriental horse]]" predecessor.<ref>{{Cite web | last=Firouz | first= Louise L. | title=The original ancestors of the Turkoman, Caspian horses | publisher=Proc. 1st Int. Conference on Turkoman Horse | location=Ashgabad, Turkmenistan | date=May 1998 | url=http://www.endangeredequines.com/archivesdocuments/1998.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113132146/http://www.endangeredequines.com/archivesdocuments/1998.pdf |archive-date=2016-01-13 | website=www.endangeredequines.com}}</ref>

Tribal people in what today is [[Turkmenistan]] first used the Akhal-Teke for raiding. The horses were their most treasured possession since they were crucial for income and survival. They [[selective breeding|selectively bred]] their horses, keeping records of the [[pedigree chart|pedigrees]] via an [[oral tradition]]. Horses were managed and trained in very specific ways. Stallions were tethered next to the tent while mares and foals were free to seek forage. The stallions were covered from head to tail with up to seven layers of felt, which kept their coat short and shiny. Before raids they were put on a sparse diet to prepare them for the long ride through the desert with no water and hardly any feed.<ref>À travers l'Asie Centrale: la Steppe kirghize, le Turkestan russe, Boukhara, Khiva, le pays des Turcomans et la Perse, impressions de voyage; Author: Henri Moser; Publisher: Plon, 1885; pp. 321-322 in Original from Princeton University; Digitized June 2, 2009; Length 463 pages</ref> The horses were called ''Argamaks'' (divine or Sacred Horses) by the [[Russia]]ns and [[Ferghana horse|heavenly horses]] by ancient China,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chinesehoroscop-e.com/astrology/ferghana-horses.php|title=heavenly horse|website=chinesehoroscop}}</ref> and were cherished by those who valued their speed and stamina in the desert and loyalty to their owner.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=v3cEAAAAYAAJ&q=argamaks Khiva and Turkestan], translated from Russian by Captain Henry Spalding FRGS, London, Chapman and Hall, 1874, p. 216</ref> Han emperors from China waged [[War of the Heavenly Horses|two expeditions]] to secure the "heavenly horses".<ref>{{cite book|author=Jason Elliot|title=Mirrors of the Unseen: Journeys in Iran|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vnnxV3SHHx4C&pg=PA114|date=2 October 2007|publisher=St. Martin's Press|isbn=978-1-4668-3782-9|page=114}} & ''The Wars for Blood-Sweat Horses'': {{cite web|url=http://www.ourorient.com/the-wars-for-blood-sweat-horses |title=The Wars for Blood-Sweat Horses |access-date=2013-08-11 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130811185722/http://www.ourorient.com/the-wars-for-blood-sweat-horses |archive-date=2013-08-11 |df=mdy }}</ref> And the access to these horse breeds fueled the success in China's future campaign against their [[eurasian nomads|nomadic neighbors]].<ref name="diplomat" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://theculturetrip.com/asia/china/articles/natures-incredible-creature-the-sweats-blood-horse/ |title=Nature's Incredible Creature, the 'Sweats Blood' Horse |website=theculturetrip |date=8 March 2017 |first=Cecilia |last=Pidgeon}}</ref>

[[File:Akhal-Teke Mele Koush born 1909.jpg|thumb|upright|Akhal-Teke stallion Mele Koush, foaled 1909]]
In 1881, Turkmenistan became part of the [[Russian Empire]].
The tribes fought with the [[tsar]], eventually losing.  In the process, however, the Russian general [[Kuropatkin]] developed a fondness for horses he had seen while fighting the tribesmen, founded a breeding farm after the war and renamed the horses, ''"Akhal-Tekes"'', after the Teke Turkmen tribe that lived around the Akhal oasis (near [[Geok Tepe]]). The Russians closed the [[breed registry|studbook]] in 1932 which included 287 stallions and 468 mares. Stallions are not [[gelding|gelded]] in Central Asia. The studbook was printed in 1941.

The ancestral Akhal-Teke has had influence on many breeds, possibly including the [[Thoroughbred]]; the [[Byerly Turk]], which may have been an [[Arabian horse|Arabian]], or a [[Turkoman Horse]], was one of the three major foundation stallions of the breed. Three other stallions thought to be of Turkoman origin, known as the "Lister Turk", the "White Turk", and the "Yellow Turk" were among a number of minor stallions from the orient who contributed to the [[foundation bloodstock]] of the Thoroughbred breed.<ref name="H&P">Summerhayes, RS, ''Horses and Ponies'', Warne & Co, London & New York, 1948</ref> The [[Trakehner]] has also been influenced by the Akhal-Teke, most notably by the [[Stallion (horse)|stallion]], Turkmen-Atti, as have the Russian breeds [[Russian Don|Don]], [[Budyonny (horse)|Budyonny]], [[Karabair]], and [[Karabakh horse|Karabakh]].

The breed suffered greatly when the [[Soviet Union]] required horses to be slaughtered for meat, even though local Turkmen refused to eat them.<ref>{{cite news|author=Filipov, David|title=A Long Way to Go.|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=April 5, 1998|access-date=June 12, 2007|url= http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/1998/04/05/a_long_way_to_go/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021045203/http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/1998/04/05/a_long_way_to_go/|archive-date=October 21, 2012}}</ref> At one point only 1,250 horses remained and export from the Soviet Union was banned. The government of [[Turkmenistan]] now uses the horses as diplomatic presents as well as auctioning a few to raise money for improved horse breeding programs.<ref>[http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67086 Turkmenistan: Arkadag Rides Again!] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004170135/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67086 |date=October 4, 2013 }}</ref>

In the early 20th century, crossbreeding between the [[Thoroughbred]] and the Akhal-Teke took place, aiming to create a faster long-distance racehorse.<ref>{{cite web|author=Shimbo, Fara|title="The Akhal-Teke under Soviet Rule." Friends of the Turanian Horse|year=1998|access-date=June 12, 2007|url=http://www.turanianhorse.org/soviet.html|publisher=Turanianhorse.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216023855/http://www.turanianhorse.org/soviet.html|archive-date=February 16, 2012}}</ref>  The Anglo Akhal-Tekes were not so resilient however, as their Akhal-Teke ancestors, and many died due to the harsh conditions of Central Asia. After the {{convert|2600|mi|km|order=flip|adj=on}} endurance race from Ashkabad to Moscow in 1935, when the purebreds finished in much better condition than the part-breds, the studbook management decided to consider all crossbred horses born after 1936, as not purebred. Horses with English Thoroughbred ancestors born prior to that date were allowed to remain inside the studbook (e.g. 044 Tillyakush, grandson of Thoroughbred Burlak; 831 Makh, granddaughter of Thoroughbred Blondelli of the [[St. Simon (horse)|St. Simon]] line and great-great-granddaughter of Thoroughbred Junak; and line founder 9 Ak Belek, a direct descendant in the male line of the Thoroughbred stallion Fortingbrass, by Fogabal of the [[Sir Hercules]] line). Due to this fact, there does not exist any Akhal-Teke today whose ancestry does not contain a Thoroughbred.<ref>[http://www.base.ruhorses.ru/horses/horses.php The Akhalteke Studbook Online] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130918010246/http://www.base.ruhorses.ru/horses/horses.php |date=September 18, 2013 }}</ref> Since 1973, all [[foal]]s must be blood typed to be accepted in the stud book in order to protect the integrity of the breed. From 2014 on, a [[DNA test]] based on hair follicles is sufficient if the DNA of the parents is on file.<ref>{{Cite web | title= Bloodtyping is becoming obsolete | url=http://www.akhal-teke.org/registration.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131215015512/http://www.akhal-teke.org/registration.html |archive-date=2013-12-15 | publisher=Akhal-Teke Association of America (ATAA)}}</ref>  A stallion not producing the right type of horse may be removed. Nowadays, [[artificial insemination]] is allowed as well as [[embryo transfer]]. The surrogate mother, however, needs to be a pureblood Akhal-Teke mare for the foal to be registered in the General Studbook as a pureblood Akhal-Teke.
Akhal-Teke horses are bred all over the world. In addition to Turkmenistan there are breeders in Russia and Central Asia, Europe, the US, Uruguay, and Australia.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Akhal-Teke related Links | url=http://www.akhaltekehorse.org/links.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424042717/http://www.akhaltekehorse.org/links.htm |archive-date=2013-04-24}}</ref>

=== Turkmenistan ===
[[File:Akhal-Teke-Racing.JPG|thumb|From a race at the national horse-racing stadium in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. Normally all horses competing here are Akhal-Teke horses.]]
[[Turkmenistan]] has a separate agency, Turkmen Atlary, responsible for the breeding, training and maintenance of Akhal-Teke horses.<ref>[http://www.turkmenatlary.gov.tm official website of Turkmen Atlary, the State Department for horses in Turkmenistan]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140516233109/http://www.turkmenatlary.gov.tm/ |date=May 16, 2014 }}</ref> However, the agency's work has been the focus of criticism from the President of the country, who holds the agency responsible for decreasing numbers of horses and inadequate facilities for their breeding, training and management.<ref>[http://www.eurasianet.org/node/66574 Turkmenistan's President Rages at Poor Horse Industry] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114105544/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/66574 |date=November 14, 2013 }}</ref>  At present Akhal-Teke horses in Turkmenistan are not registered with any other studbook. The main reason for this are allegations of a heavy infusion of Thoroughbred blood into the breed to create faster horses for racing in Turkmenistan.<ref name=Purity>[https://web.archive.org/web/20100811060949/http://www.akhaltekeuk.com/Purity.html Purity – fact or fiction? Archived from the original Aug 11, 2010. Retrieved on Feb 21, 2014]</ref>  There are estimates that as many as 30% of the horses in the Ashgabat hippodrome were not purebred.<ref>[http://www.turanianhorse.org/yesterday.html The History of the Akhal-Teke Horses, Yesterday And Today, Retrieved on Feb 21, 2014] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120822141335/http://www.turanianhorse.org/yesterday.html |date=August 22, 2012 }}</ref>

When the first horse minister of newly independent Turkmenistan, Geldy Kyarizov, a lifelong advocate for the Akhal-Teke and former chair of the International Association of Akhal-Teke Breeders, began utilizing DNA to establish an Akhal-Teke studbook, he uncovered the pattern of adding in Thoroughbred blood. His decision to go public with this information was viewed as a threat to the profits of the horse-breeding establishment and he fell out of favor with the Turkmenistan government,<ref name="Putz">{{cite web|last1=Putz|first1=Catherine|title=Turkmenistan Holds 14-Year Old Hostage|url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/09/turkmenistan-holds-14-year-old-hostage/|website=The Diplomat|access-date=30 August 2016|date=September 22, 2015}}</ref> and in particular, then-President [[Saparmurat Niyazov]].<ref name="Sharipzhan">{{cite web|last1=Sharipzhan|first1=Merhat|title='Torture By Hunger': Horse Breeder Describes Desperate Days In Turkmen Prison|url=http://www.rferl.org/content/turkmenistan-tortured-by-hunger-prison-kyarizov/27408793.html|website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty|access-date=30 August 2016|language=en|date=5 December 2015}}</ref>
He was charged with abuse of office and negligence in 2002, convicted and sentenced to six years in prison.  He was ultimately pardoned in October 2007,<ref name="Amnesty">{{cite web|title=Urgent Action |url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa03512.pdf |website=Amnesty International |access-date=30 August 2016|date=3 February 2012}}</ref> when Niyazov died and his successor, [[Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov]], took control of the country.<ref name="Sharipzhan"/>  By 2012, Kyarizov's health, which had been poor since his arrest and subsequent imprisonment, had deteriorated to the point he needed to go abroad for medical care, but was initially prevented from leaving the country.<ref name="Amnesty"/> By 2015, he was allowed to travel to [[Moscow]] for medical care, but family members, including his 14-year-old daughter, were forced to remain behind to "guarantee" his return. In September 2015, the entire family was allowed to leave.<ref name="Putz"/>

Turkmen Atlary, in its capacity as the administrative arm of the International Akhal-Teke Horse Association, hosts a meeting of the association once or twice a year upon invitation in Ashgabat. Most of the bigger breeding farms and national Akhal Teke associations as well as Akhal Teke owners and representatives of the horse industry from around the world attend.<ref>[http://www.eurasianet.org/node/66992 Turkmenistan: Arkadag's Day at the Races Redux] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408182149/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/66992 |date=April 8, 2014 }}</ref>  There is a horse racing organization called "Galkinysh" <!--hiding this until it is explained:  with a unique equestrian program-->.<ref>[http://www.sb.by/files/MT/12/N46/10.pdf Heavenly horses canter around ring]</ref> In [[Ashgabat]], the Ahalteke equestrian complex,<ref>[https://archive.today/20130706130817/http://tdh.gov.tm/?id=4586 Президент Туркменистана посетил Ахалтекинский конный комплекс]</ref> one of the largest in [[Central Asia]], is a horse-breeding center. The former Akhal-Teke horse Holiday, celebrated on the last Sunday in April, has been renamed 'Turkmen Horse Day'.<ref>[http://www.turkmenistan.ru/en/articles/17162.html Turkmenistan marks Fair and Conference marking Turkmen Horse Day opened in Ashgabat] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131108115847/http://www.turkmenistan.ru/en/articles/17162.html |date=November 8, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.chronofhorse.com/turkmenistan-akhal-teke?page=3 |title=Turkmenistan: Land Of The Akhal Teke |access-date=August 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140529062504/http://www.chronofhorse.com/turkmenistan-akhal-teke?page=3 |archive-date=May 29, 2014 |url-status = dead|df=mdy-all }}</ref>