Horses - Žemaitukai

  Žemaitukai is an ancient Lithuanian local breed of horses having unique genetic information. This breed was known already in VI-VII centuries, and became especially famous during the XIII-XIV century wars with the Crusaders, when they proved to be excellent fighting horses. Žemaitukai are supposed to have descended from eastern steppe horses that were brought to Lithuania by Indo-Europeans about 5 thousand years ago; they were evolving together with the Lithuanian nation. Since XIX c. Žemaitukai have been used for agriculture, transportation, and export. 
   Rapid decline of Žemaitukai horses after 1990 was caused by changes in the national economic life, and deranged activity of the stockbreeding system. In 1994 the total number of Žemaitukai horses reached its lowest point, only 30. In the beginning of the Žemaitukai preservation activity, horses of this breed only amounted to 0.03% of total number of horses raised in Lithuania. A preservation program started at the Lithuanian Institute of Animal Science in 1994 as well as formation of thoroughbred herds, monitoring, and analysis of farming-biological qualities stopped the decline of Žemaitukai horse breed, and today its effective population (Ne) is 55; however, the breed remains under the threat of extinction.