Western Sudan Pony is an
exonym for a Sudanese
breed or group of breeds or
ecotypes of small horse or
pony. These are distributed principally in southern
Darfur and south-western
Kordofan, extending into southern
Chad,[3]: 408 and are known generically as Gharbaui ("western")[a] or by a variety of regional names including Darfur Pony and Kordofani.[4]: 8 [2]
The Western Sudan Pony is one of four recognised horse breeds in Sudan, the others being the
Dongola or Dongolawi, the
Sudanese Country-Bred and the
Tawleed.[5]: 505 [2]
History
The Gharbaui is originally of
Barb type. In the twentieth century a government programme of "improvement" was instituted at the
stud farm of
Nyala in
South Darfur, and local mares were
put to stallions of
Arab and
Thoroughbred stock, with consequent degradation of the local types; what the
cross-bred animals gained in size they lost in hardiness and type.[3]: 408 [6]: 245 By the 1950s or 1960s few of the horses remained unaffected by this process.[3]: 408 [2]
In 1994 the total number of the horses was reported to be 8000–10000.[2] The
conservation status of the breed was listed as "not at risk" by the
FAO in 2007, and also by the
DAD-IS database in 2023.[1]: 111 [2]
Characteristics
The Gharbaui is a small horse, with an average height at the
withers of some 140 cm[2] or 145 cm.[6]: 245 It resembles the Barb and has many of its good qualities, particularly its hardiness and endurance.[3]: 408 [6]: 245 The neck and shoulders are strong and the back and
croup well formed; the legs tend to be poorly conformed.[6]: 245 The profile is convex.[3]: 408 The coat is most commonly
grey, but may also be
bay or
chestnut.[3]: 408 [6]: 245 [2]
Use
Sudanese vegetable cart drawn by a small horse or pony