The Kathiawari Horse is a breed available in the Horse Reality game that can be obtained from the Foundation.
| Kathiawari Horse | |
|---|---|
|
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| General Information | |
| Alternative name(s) | Kathiawadi, Kutchi or Kathi Horse |
| Origin | Gujarat, India |
| Horse Reality | |
| Colours | Black, Chestnut, Bay, Seal Brown, Wild Bay, Sooty, Grey, Flaxen, Dun, nd1, Cream |
| Whites | White Markings, Splashed White 1, hidden sabino |
| Not yet in-game | / |
| Extra gaits | Revaal (broken trot) |
| Height | 139–159 cm |
| Registry | Horse Society |
| Alternative name(s) | Kathis, Kathias |
| Origin | Foundation |
| Status | In-game (2025) |
| Artist(s) | |
| Lineart | D. Grochowska (2025) |
| Greyscale | D. Grochowska (2025) |
| Colours & patterns | D. Grochowska, M. Krale (2025) |
¶ History
The Kathiawari Horse is considered one of the oldest horse breeds of India. While the exact origin is uncertain, the Kathiawari is believed to have descended from the wild horses of the Kathiawar (Saurashtra) region in Gujarat, with influence from Arabian horses.[1,2] The breed was carefully developed and highly valued by the nomadic Kathi people of the region. They were primarily used as warhorses, capable of carrying their riders over long distances in rough desert terrain with minimal food and water. The Indian army even used them during the First World War. Nowadays, the Kathiawari is mainly used for sports, parades and transportation in remote areas[3-5]
Today, the main breeding region of the Kathiawari Horse is the Saurashtra province in Gujarat, which includes the districts of Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Surendranagar, Junagadh, and Amreli. The breed is also found in different parts of Rajasthan, adjacent to Gujarat.[1-3] They are bred in both government-controlled stud farms and private breeding farms.[4-6]
The official breed standard for the Kathiawari horse was established by the Indigenous Horse Society of India (IHSI), which also maintains a studbook for indigenous Indian horse breeds, together with the Stud Book Authority of India (SBAI) and the National Confederation of Indigenous Horse Societies (NCIHS). The registration system is based on that of Thoroughbreds, and includes microchipping and DNA typing[4-6]. The breed-specific organisation for the Kathiawari is the Kathiawari Horse Breeders’ Association (KHBA).[4]
¶ Characteristics
Kathiawaris are most famous for their distinct ears, which curve inwards and usually touch each other at the tips. The breed is very well adapted to the hot, dry and desert-like environment. The Kathiawari Horse has a concave head with a broad forehead and large, (“toad-like”) eyes and nostrils. Their back is relatively short, with prominent withers and sloping shoulders. Kathiawaris have an arched neck, and they carry their neck and tail high. Kathiawaris have well-muscled shoulders and hindquarters, but are often sickle-hocked. The breed has strong hooves, and soundness is one of their best traits.[1-6,8,9]
The Kathiawari is a hardy, healthy horse breed. They are very sure-footed and are capable of traversing rough, rocky, and desert terrains with ease. Kathiawari Horses have amazing stamina and can travel long distances at high speeds with little food or water. They are intelligent and alert, but kind in nature.[1,4,9]
Most horses of the breed are capable of performing an extra gait, called the "revaal". It is a broken trot (also called fox trot), a variation of the trot where the front hoof comes down just before the hind hoof, resulting in diagonal couplets and a four-beat gait. This gait appears to be well-suited for long travel on the uneven, desert-like terrain. There are periods where the horses have three or even four legs on the ground, helping them not to get stuck or slip, and the gait is very energy-efficient.[3,4,10]
¶ Colour Genetics
The most common base colour in the Kathiawari horse is chestnut. Black is not allowed by the registry, but the recessive a-allele can hide beneath other colours in the population. Bay can be seen in various shades. Both dun and grey can be regularly found in the breed. Cream is also present, but is more uncommon. Flaxen and sooty can modify the different colours.[1,3,4,5,9]
Most horses have small white markings, but splash and sabino-like patterns can also rarely be found. Horses with four leg markings and a face marking are referred to as “Panchkalyani”, meaning "Five auspicious characteristics from god", and are considered valuable and lucky.[1-5,9]
¶ In-game colours
All alleles available for the breed can be found below, highlighted in green. For better clarity, we bolded alleles that impact coat colours (eg. grey G vs non-grey g).
| Base Colours & Modifiers | ||
|---|---|---|
| Extension | Agouti | Grey |
| E, e | A, a | G, g |
| Dilutions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Cream-Pearl | Dun | Champagne | Silver |
| CR, n | D, nd1, nd2 | ch | z |
| White Patterns | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frame | Appaloosa | PATN1 | MITF | SW2 | KIT |
| n | lp | patn1 | SW1, n | sw2 | n |
Please note that the table includes hidden agouti alleles (A+, and At). Besides testable genes, untestable ones are also present: sooty, flaxen, hidden sabino, and white markings (head markings, socks, etc.).
¶ Uses
Originally a war and cavalry mount, the Kathiawari is now used as a riding horse, sometimes as a harness horse. The Indian police forces also use Kathiawari horses. The breed excels in tent pegging events and endurance or revaal races, but can also be used for jumping or dressage. Kathiawari horses are also featured in special parades and ceremonies.[3-5]
¶ Artwork changelog
The Kathiawari Horse was released in 2025.[11] This breed has a complete set of genes and alleles.[12] Ever since the current Horse Reality version has been online, the breed has received/will receive the following updates:
- On July 22nd 2025, the Kathiawari Horse was added to the game[11,13]
¶ References
- Gupta et al., Phenotypic characterization of Indian equine breeds: a comparative study, 2012
- Pat et al., Status and conservation of equine breeds in India, 2020
- Pundir et al., Characterisation of Indian Kathiawari horses, 2011
- Kathiawadi Horse Breeders Association, https://khba.in/Home/, accessed: July 2025
- Gupta SC et al., Horse Genetic Resources of India: Kathiawari, A fine Breed of Horse, 2007
- Studbook of Indigenous Horses, https://www.sbih.in/BreedInformation.php, accessed: July 2025
- https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/, accessed: July 2025
- Singh et al., Breed characteristics of Marwari and Kathiawari horses, 2002
- Prajapat et al., Studies on breed characteristics of Kahiawadi horses, 2017
- Vinclette, The Characteristics, Distribution, Function, and Origin of Alternative Lateral Horse Gaits, 2023
- https://v2.horsereality.com/news/236/announcement-kathiawari-horse-revaals-into-the-game-july-22
- https://deloryan.notion.site/Horse-Breeds-Artwork-Genetics-6d0a84be35284b12806976bbb8cc886c
- https://v2.horsereality.com/news/237/release-notes-the-kathiawari-horse-has-arrived