Blog - Spotlight On...Favourite Horse Breeds

Canada’s Heritage Horse: Meet “Texel,” Mr. Versatility!

canadian horse breed, canada's national breed, chhaps, canadian horse heritage & preservation society, canada's national horse, canadian horse western dressage

Posted:

September 26, 2025

The Canadian Horse is part of Canada’s heritage and history, but today our National Horse is in trouble. To save the breed, we need both dedicated breeders and owners to move them into the public eye. One of the strengths of the Canadian Horse is its versatility. Here’s the story of one supremely versatile Canadian Horse, 18-year-old El Passo Nobell Texel, owned and shown by Patricia and Mike Carley of Red Deer County, Alberta. In 2024, they won a Performance Award in Combined Driving and Working Equitation from the Canadian Horse Breeders Association.

Canada’s Heritage Horse: Meet “Toque,” a Dressage Champion

canadian horse breed, canada's national breed, chhaps, canadian horse heritage & preservation society, canadream farm, canada's national horse, trinity dressage

Posted:

September 5, 2025

The Canadian Horse is part of Canada’s heritage and history, but today our National Horse is in trouble. To save the breed, we need both dedicated breeders and experienced trainers who will put them in the public eye. Here’s the story of one of these trainers, Eliza Puttkamer Banks of Trinity Dressage in New Jersey, USA, who has taken her 14-year-old gelding Canadream Kelbeck You-And-Me, or “Toque,” to the highest levels of equestrian sport.

Canada’s Heritage Horse: Every New Birth Counts!

The Canadian Horse, Canada's National Horse, CHHAPS, Canadian Horse Heritage and Preservation Society, horse breeds

Posted:

July 25, 2025

The Canadian Horse is our country’s oldest distinct breed. It was once vital to agriculture, transportation, and even military but now is in serious decline. Where there were once tens of thousands of Canadian Horses living on farms across Canada, there are now 6,300 according to the 2024 Annual Report by the Canadian Horse Breeders Association, and only 82 foals were born in 2024, of which 38 were fillies. The Livestock Conservancy, a US-based organization dedicated to conserving heritage breeds, cites the Canadian Horse as “Critical,” indicating the breed is in danger of becoming extinct.