Breed: "mestiza".
Age: between 07 and 17 years
Average height (to the cross): between 145cm. and 160cm. approximately
Maximum Limit of weight for our clients: 120 kg
Rhythm pace: slow and moderate
Hours they walk per day: between 4 and 8 hours. Around 20 kilometres.

"Mestizos" horses (Mongrel Horses)
It is said that horses have an Euro-Asian origin and that they were introduced in America by the Spanish, but there is a historical conviction that points out that it was exactly the other way round: horses were born in the plains of the USA and Canada, and then they emigrated to Asia and Europe through the Strait of Bering. In fact what Spanish and other Europeans did in 1492 was to give back horses to their origin. That is why, the Indians, once the first fright had passed, got quickly acquainted with horses.

Surviving horses underwent a series of processes and structural changes in order to adapt themselves to the new conditions, so different from the ones they were used to.
Because of the shining sun, the strong winds, the frequent storms and aridity of the lands, they had to migrate long distances looking for water and pastures, that is how they acquired that incomparable resistance. They got their instinct for danger because of the persecution of the Indians and the pumas.
All these factors, the constant crossbreeding and the isolation constitute the basis for the features of Argentinean horses.

Andean horses are docile and comfortable to ride. They can work many consecutive hours under unfavorable conditions, they are calm and strong.

Their character, independence and rusticity contrast with an endless generosity. Their ability to adapt themselves to the hardest conditions make the "mestizos" the ideal horse for a horseback riding full of pleasure and adventure.

The horses we use for rides are tame and they adapt to the rider either he is an expert or not. Their behavior depends on who is riding them, according to the orders they receive. They are very sensory, after a while they know if will be them who are in charge (with a slow, calm and safe pace) or the domineering rider.

Coats:
More than 100 shades and sub-shades describe the colours of the "Mestizos" horses, and each colour is designated by a different term.
As regards the coats of the horses, we can stand out the most well-known, that are:
Alazán, Blanco, Cebruno, Colorado, Doradillo, Bayo, Gateado, Lobuno, Moro, Oscuro, Overo, Picaso, Rosillo, Tordillo, Tostado, Zaino, etc. These coats subdivide themselves into 100 colors and shades.

PACKMULES

About mules:

Horses and donkeys have mated since ancient times, from these crosses mules and hinnies were born, which are hybrids.
A mule is a cross between a donkey and a mare; and a hinny is a cross between a horse and a female donkey, both look more than their mother than their father.

Mules are a little smaller than horses, their bodies are similar. They are different as regards their head and the length of their ears. The mule's tale is covered with short hairs, their hindquarters are stronger and their hooves are narrower, more similar to the donkeys. As regards the color of their coat they are similar to the mare and they bray as the donkey.

Hinnies are rougher, smaller, and their ears are longer as their mothers. The only similarity to the horse is the head, which is long and thin, the big hindquarters, the hairy tail and the height. Hinnies are lazy as female donkeys. Horses and female donkeys never mate of their own free will that is why hinny's breeding needs the action of man. Besides free horses and donkeys are hostile to each other; on the other hand donkeys and mares mate voluntarily.

Mule's work period goes from the age of 4 to 20 years, sometimes to 30. At the moment the mule is born it weighs between 35 and 40 kg, it suckles for 240 days, its physical development is completed after sixty months. Its period of life stretches up to 20 years, sometimes 30.

Mules are more useful than hinnies that are why mule's breeding is more common. Actually, these animals meet the advantages of both parents: sobriety, perseverance, the calm and safe pace from the donkey; strength and courage from their mother. This hybrid is still very useful in mountainous countries. A good mule can carry a load of 150 kg and can cover from 20 to 98 km per day.

The donkey and mule's breeding is generally carried out in pasture fields with primitive shelters. Contrary to what happens with horses, despite the progresses of agricultural mechanization, the breeding of these animals is not backing down. Nowadays they still represent an irreplaceable means of work and transport in small family farms of backward areas because of the configuration of the agronomy or adverse weather conditions.

Donkeys and mules are utilized to ride, to carry loads and to perform agricultural works, they are especially agile in rough landscapes. Mules and hinnies are generally infertile except for some females.
Mules are known from ancient times, as sculpted figures in Assyrian bas-relieves show.

The substitution of llamas for mules as pack animals in the Andes between 1600 and 1630, turns the controversial hybrid of the 16th century into the "brilliant animal of the 17th century".
Mules were introduced into the New World for the Spanish, revolutionizing the transport system which was known up to that moment.
Unlike wild horses which reproduced freely in America at that time, mules needed a special dedication for its production and breeding. Somebody said "The mule is merchandise which transports itself", and he was right. For a long time in the 17th and 18th century, the breeding of mules represented the most important trade between Peru Republic and some provinces of Argentina.

"About mules": these paragraphs have been chosen from an article written by Juan Andres Carrozzoni and complemented by the authors of the CD-ROM "San Martin, the liberator".