Sorraia Mustang 13915 from 2021 :-D

WILD, WILD HORSES  

It was Roger, who made me aware of a small miracle : This year Schleich made a model of an extremely rare and extremely interesting breed of feral horse horse ...FROM PORTUGAL !!!!

You can read about them at Wikipedia , but long story short, they have many traits in common with more "primitive" ( IN BRACKETS) horses.
They almost came extinct, but i locally as well as thoug imports to USA, they now seem to be save.
In 2008 there were even 5 in Denmark, but I have not been able to find out what happened to them.
If they are more wild than feral, they may not be suited for children and amateurs.

For instance most are blue dun ( E-, aa, D-) , called grullo in American :
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This colour seems to be prevalent in the lines bred in USA.

There are also bay duns ( E-, A-, D- ). Here one with beautyful striped legs :
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Not-duns are seen, but it seems that the ones trying to save the breed prefer the dun ones.

Another interesting trait is the roman nose :
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This is a trait seen in several Iberian breeds , and in breds derived from them, such as Lipizzans and Frederiksborgers.

Now, let's take a look at the Schleich model , - mine was immediately named "MIRACLE "  

He is clearly different from most other Schleich horses
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Perfect chest !!!
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His ears alert, one ear listening the side, one forward
The rather thin legs are made for sprinting, not for working .
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Unfortunately his body is a bit tii short.
Living in the wild, a short body is not good for ballance, - that is why race cars are so low
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Clear dorsal line
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Good, strong hooves without shoes. They are a bit wide which may be an advantage in the wild.
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The dorsal line has been painted a little too fast, it seems.
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And now to the beautyful face with the typical "roman" nose
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What a nice neck  
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Perfect, alert pose of the ears  
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Good rather large muzzle, - this horse is not made for show and bling
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Large, wide open nostrils ! I can almost hear him go "Snorrrt !!! "  
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Shoulders and chest are made for all kinds of terrain.
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This must go for winter-fur in Iberia  
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The mane is nicely sculpted, but the paintwork is wrong !!!  
A 2-coloured mane is light at the sides and dark in the middle !!!!!!
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Strong and powerful !
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I am imressed : This tail actually swings a bit to the left as the horse pushes off in a left canter !!!!
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Rear motor fully tuned  
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Going quite close we see that there is a slip in the sculpt of the right nostril  
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A last picture of his face, just because...
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I hope you like him also :)

I like it, there are flaws, but I like it. It's on a higher level than the latest schleich horses, if only his body was a little bit longer.. Still a good looking model.
Thanks Susanne, amazing detailed photos as usual!

This is beautiful- it must be one of the best of all the modern Schleich horses!
And what a wonderful choice of breed, let's hope that through this model more people will become aware of how rare they are, see how beautiful they look, and hopefully make an effort to save them!
And it is stunning, the lovely strong legs, the perfect face, the muscles, the fur, the pose- I love him!
Thank you very much for showing him so well, with such detailed photos!

Sorraia is believed to be the remnant of the South European wild horse.
Sorraia whole genotype is that of the Tarpan, the European wild horse.
The Sorraia has no history as a domestic breed..
They are also not exactly feral as Mustangs are in America. Why, because they were never domesticated.
Artifitial selection was more intensively used to recover the Przewalski's horse than it was with Sorraias.
So, it is almost as legitimate to call a Sorraia a wild horse as it is to the famous mongolian cousin.
If it is too much, it is at least the closest possible to the wild horses that roamed in the South of Portugal.
I also don't know if people is aware that these wild horses from my region were called zebro.
Strips were abundant in these horses but that's not the reason of their name once zebras were not known in Europe.
It was the other way, when Portuguese navigators started exploring the South African coasts, as soon as they found those wild striped equines we all know, they started called them zebras because they were like zebros, the horses with strips they knew from Portugal.
How do you tell zebra in your language? If it sounds similar, it is a Portuguese word.
Sorry for my long comment, it is natural that I am excited with this releases. Especially when it is from the most popular brand, available everywhere and I am so glad they avoided their Barbie style of the last years and they made a very decent rendition as Susanne reviewed in a splendid way. Maybe the winter fur is an evidence that this model was based in a population located in Germany.
How lucky we are of having Susanne with us and this presentation couldn't be better. Thanks!!!

This is the one horse in years from Schleich that caught my eye! A few imperfections but I adore him anyway, gotta get one! Great walkaround and photos Susanne, congrats on such a handsome rare horse!

Thankyou, friends, from Miracle and me

Roger, tanks for writing more about the breed, - it is my impression that wikipedia got their text from an American breeder, where they ought to get it from a Portuguese expert !

Ohh, the more I look at this model, the more I long to see a repaint of one !!!
One with the correct colour mane/tail, and where the eyes are beautyfully dark brown and not painted so they look enormous etc etc...

For sure Miracle deserves this wonderful walkaround by Susanne !
The best Schleich horse model I see from many years.
Sculpted with very nice details.
Like Kostas said, if only the body was longer and also the mane painted correctly, this could be almost perfect model :)
But now, thank`s to your great photos Susanne and also the very interesting info by Roger, I really like the breed and also this model.
So, I think to get one for me
Thank you dear friend

SUSANNE wrote:

Thankyou, friends, from Miracle and me

Roger, tanks for writing more about the breed, - it is my impression that wikipedia got their text from an American breeder, where they ought to get it from a Portuguese expert !

In this website you will find some interesting information about the legacy of Rui de Andrade, the real expert and where I've found most of the information.

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What to say that has not already been said? A body a little too short, eyes a little too big ... It is still very nice. Indeed, a little makeup by Anna or Kosta and we would have eyes that shine!
Thank you Susanne for this excellent walkaround and Rogério for the additional information.
I don't collect horses I don't collect horses I don't collect horses I don't collect horses

The horse's face looks good! Interesting to read about the origin of the Sorraia.

Very nice walkaround by Susanne, and very nice update about the breed by Rogerio Thank you so much to the both of you

very informative data and marvellous photos to show the details.

I just ordered this beauty, I can't wait for him to come in, this is a stunning model

Gwaine wrote:

I just ordered this beauty, I can't wait for him to come in, this is a stunning model

Thank`s to your wonderful walkaround I also went to one Schleich shop and got this mustang
I didn`t think that there is any chance for me to want a Schleich horse from a long time... but.. surprise, surpriiiise
Now one Miracle in Bulgaria greets yours

costicuba wrote:

...
Now one Miracle in Bulgaria greets yours

That is so great !!! I hope many will get this model, so Schleich sees that they should make models of interesting breeds

Probably the best one from another Schleich`s horses of the 2021