Russian Don
Breed of horse
title: "Russian Don" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["horse-breeds", "horse-breeds-originating-in-russia", "horse-breeds-originating-in-ukraine"] description: "Breed of horse" topic_path: "geography/russia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Don" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Breed of horse ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox horse breed"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Russian Don |
| image | Бруч.jpg |
| image2 | Донской жеребец Зачин.jpg |
| altname | Don horse |
| country | Russia |
| :: |
|name= Russian Don |image= Бруч.jpg |image2=Донской жеребец Зачин.jpg |features = |altname= Don horse |country= Russia |group1= |std1=
The Russian Don is a breed of horse developed in and named after the steppes region of Russia where the Don River flows. Utilized originally as cavalry horses for the Cossacks, they are currently used for under-saddle work and driving.
Characteristics
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Donchak_1.jpg" caption="Head of a Don"] ::
The Don usually stands , and may be bay, black, gray or chestnut.{{cite book | last = Bongianni | first = Maurizio | title = Simon & Schuster's Guide to Horses and Ponies | publisher = Simon & Schuster, Inc. | year = 1988 | isbn = 0-671-66068-3 | page = 51 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/lish00maur/page/51
Breed history
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Граф_Платов..jpg" caption="Count Platov]] on a Don horse"] ::
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Les_races_chevalines_-avec_une_étude_spéciale_sur_les_chevaux_russes(1894)_(14753447536).jpg" caption="Russian Don (1890s)"] ::
The first type of Don horse, generally called the "Old Don," evolved from semi-feral Russian steppe horses and Oriental horse breeds such as the Karabakh horse, Turkmenian, and Arabian that were brought to Russia as a product of Cossack raids. The Old Don was a medium-sized, agile horse with immense endurance; a result of the survival-of-the-fittest selection methods that guided the development of many Russian breeds. This hardy horse was used as the foundation for the current Russian Don, and was also used to improve the Orlov, Orlov-Rostopchin, and Thoroughbred breeds. Cossack cavalry mounted on the Old Don horses were instrumental in the destruction of Napoleon's Russian campaign, and the horses were important in proving the supremacy of Cossack cavalry over their European counterparts.{{cite web | title = Don | url = http://www.equiworld.net/horses/horsecare/Breeds/don/index.htm | work = Equiworld | accessdate=November 29, 2010}}
During the early 19th century, the breed was improved into the newer type through the addition of Orlov Trotter, Arabian, Thoroughbred, and Karabakh blood.{{cite web | title = Russian Don | url = http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/horses/russiandon/ | work = Oklahoma State University | accessdate=December 31, 2007}} During the second half of the 19th century, the Don breed was in high demand as cavalry horses. Private breeders began to focus on the Dons, and bred for conformation, endurance, height, and the characteristic color of chestnut with a gold sheen. Dons were also gaining popularity outside of Russia, and many were exported. During the 1920s, after much of the Don stock had been wiped out in World War I and the Russian Revolution, the remaining horses were reassembled at several military studs, as well as within the Cossack population, and with concentrated breeding the stock was fairly quickly restored.
Uses
The main use of the Russian Don breed in past times was as the mount of the Cossack cavalry. Known for their endurance and stamina, these horses could cover long distances in short amounts of time, with reserves of energy left for battle. Today, the Don is widely used as a saddle horse, and is also used in harness, often in the traditional Russian tachanka, where four horses are hitched side-by-side.
The Don played an important role in the development of many other USSR-developed breeds, including the Budyonny.
References
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::