Nomads living in the traditional Mongol fashion still hold more than 3 million animals, which outnumber the country's human population.

In Mongolia, the horses live outdoors all year, dealing with temperatures from 30 °C (86 °F) in summer down to −40 °C (−40 °F) in winter, and they graze and search for food on their own.

The split between Przewalski's horse and E. ferus caballus is estimated to have occurred 120,000– 240,000 years ago, long before domestication.

[4] The thirteenth-century archbishop Giovanni da Pian del Carpine was one of the first Westerners to describe Mongol horses, observing, "...[they] are not very great in stature, but exceedingly strong, and maintained with little provender".

So, breeders have focused on created crossbreeds between foreign horses and native Mongolian stock.

Breeds such as the Misaki, Taishu, Tokara, Kiso, Yonaguni, Noma, Hokkaido, and Miyako are believed to be the descendants of distant Mongolian ancestors.

[10] Genetic analyses have revealed links between the Mongolian horse and breeds in Iceland, Scandinavia, Central Europe, and the British Isles.

Mongol horses are of a stocky build, with relatively short but strong legs and a large head.

Mongolian horses have great stamina; although they have small bodies, they can gallop for 10 km without a break.

When pulling a cart, a team of four Mongol horses can draw a load of 4400 lbs for 50–60 km a day.

Elizabeth Kendall, travelling through southern Mongolia in 1911, wrote, "I was struck by the number of white and grey ponies, and was told that horses are bred chiefly for the market in China, and this is the Chinese preference."

She also observed that the northern Mongolian herds near Tuerin seemed to consist mainly of black and chestnut horses.

[16] Herdsmen breed horses primarily for color and speed, but also for conformation, disposition, and lineage.

[15] Mongol horses are frugal, hardy, somewhat wily, and tread safely in rough terrain.

A nomad's herd of horses hangs out around the family's dwelling, typically grazing several kilometres away.

Herdsmen regard their horses as both a form of wealth and a source of the daily necessities: transportation, food, and drink.

The horses typically eat nothing but grass and require very little water, a trait useful for survival in environments like the Gobi desert.

During particularly hard winters ("zuds"), horses may starve to death en masse or die of exposure.

[13] The horse's hair can be used for a number of products, including rope, fiddle strings, and a variety of ornaments.

The Mongol soldier relied on his horses to provide him with food, drink, transportation, armor, shoes, ornamentation, bowstring, rope, fire, sport, music, hunting, entertainment, spiritual power, and in case of his death, a mount to ride in the afterlife.

Mongol horses made excellent warhorses because of their hardiness, stamina, self-sufficiency, and ability to forage on their own.

The main disadvantage of the Mongol horse as a war steed was that it was slower than some of the other breeds it faced on the battlefield.

In times of desperation, they would also slit a minor vein in their horse's neck and drain some blood into a cup.

Only the richest breeder can afford to buy and raise a Thoroughbred/Mongolian mix, and such horses tend to win races.

This has led to complaints that ordinary people no longer have a chance to win, and that racing has become the province of the elite.

The Khan instructed his general Subutai, "See to it that your men keep their crupper hanging loose on their mounts and the bit of their bridle out of the mouth, except when you allow them to hunt.

[18] The modern Mongolian riding saddle is tall, with a wooden frame and several decorated metal disks that stand out from the sides.

[28] The design of the stirrups makes it possible for the rider to control the horse with his legs, leaving his hands free for tasks like archery or holding a catch-pole.

The horse has long played a role as a sacred animal, and Mongols have a variety of spiritual beliefs regarding them.

Mongolians do not give their horses names; rather, they identify them by their color, markings, scars, and brands.