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The American Cream horse is a rare breed of the draft horse
classification. It has a medium to heavy build and a white coat, mane
and tail. The breed was first developed in the early 20th century,
starting with a cream colored mare named "Old Granny."
The ideal color for the breed is a medium cream with a light pink
skin. You will find the American Cream Horse in various degrees of
light, medium and dark cream colors.
Beyond the color of the hair and skin being cream they also have light
colored eyes. These horses are usually born with blue or completely
white eyes but as they grow their eyes change to shades of hazel or
green.
Mature mares stand about fifteen to sixteen hands tall and weigh from
fifteen hundred to eighteen hundred pounds. The stallions are a little
bigger, coming in at sixteen to seventeen hands tall and eighteen
hundred pounds and up. Like most draft horse breeds, American Cream
Horses are generally calm, willing mannered and have an easy going
attitude.
The American Cream Horse is the only draft horse that was created in
America and is still in existence today. The original American Cream
Horse was bred in Iowa.
In 1982 a group of breeders got together to save the breed and that is
when blood testing began. That blood testing proved that the American
Cream Horse was in fact a distinct breed of draft horse. This allowed
for standards to be set for the breed, which included letting in
darker color females that were proven to be American Cream Horses
through blood testing.
The hard times of the American Great Depression almost threatened the
breed's existence but committed breeders worked hard to make sure that
didn't happen. They were successful, although population numbers are
still considered critical.
The American Cream Horse is still a rare animal and there is currently
only one registered breeding pair in the United States, located in
Florida. The Equus Survival Trust, a conservation organization, lists
the American Cream Horse at critical as far as extinction. Although
more people have taken an interest in keeping this horse around the
breed is still not over the hump to survival.
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