General: Refined, not coarse or heavy-boned. A horse of long lines and built "uphill".
Size: Approx. 14 to 14.3 hands.
Head: Profile more or less convex – a curved line from poll to nostrils without any indentations. Forehead usually somewhat domed and fairly narrow. Head narrow from front and side view. Face rather long. Small and refined muzzle. Ears of medium length or long, only slightly curved. Eyes set rather high – very large, protruding eyes are atypical.
Neck: Of good length, with a clean throatlatch. Slim in individuals of normal condition, crested in fat individuals, sometimes ewe-necked.
Withers: Prominent and long, reaching far into the back, typically higher than the rear end.
Back: Straight; of medium length; back bone visible in individuals of rather lean condition.
Chest: Narrow from a front view, deep from a side view.
Barrel: Narrow.
Hip/Rump: Rafter-shaped, looking melon-shaped in well-fed horses, protruding hip bones readily showing in lean horses. Hip of medium length, sloping but not dropping. Medium tail set.
Legs: Long, with round, fairly long cannon bones and long pasterns. Hooves are of medium size with tendency toward mule-footedness. Very little, if any, fetlock hair.
Muscling: Long and smooth.
Color
Always grulla or regular dun (no red dun), typically a light or medium shade. Face/muzzle dark, and dark around the eyes. A mealy mouth is not acceptable. Ears are outlined black in front and back, with whitish rim; tipped black on backside, sometimes also striped on backside. Fawn-colored tuft inside ear. Bi-colored mane and tail = the black middle part is fringed by light-colored hair that is often almost white. A dorsal stripe must be present; cobwebbing on forehead, zebra stripes on legs, neck stripes, shoulder stripes, and fishbone markings on the back are all desirable, although not always present. White markings are atypical and undesirable.
Note: Mares of different color, but showing all the other characteristics of the Sorraia, may still be eligible for Foundation or Tentative division.
Haircoat
Finer in texture than northern primitive horses. The forelock is often sparse, sometimes non-existent. The hair structure creates the appearance of stripes ("barring") on neck/chest. Newborn foals often have a zebra-like pattern all over, created by the lay of the hair.
Action
Free, ground-covering, long-strided movements, especially a flowing, lofty trot, noticeable knee action. Great flexibility in neck, spine, and legs. Even when excited, the tail is raised rarely more than level; these horses usually do not raise their tails up perpendicularly, let alone laying them over their rump when excited, like Arabians tend to do.
Size: Approx. 14 to 14.3 hands.
Head: Profile more or less convex – a curved line from poll to nostrils without any indentations. Forehead usually somewhat domed and fairly narrow. Head narrow from front and side view. Face rather long. Small and refined muzzle. Ears of medium length or long, only slightly curved. Eyes set rather high – very large, protruding eyes are atypical.
Neck: Of good length, with a clean throatlatch. Slim in individuals of normal condition, crested in fat individuals, sometimes ewe-necked.
Withers: Prominent and long, reaching far into the back, typically higher than the rear end.
Back: Straight; of medium length; back bone visible in individuals of rather lean condition.
Chest: Narrow from a front view, deep from a side view.
Barrel: Narrow.
Hip/Rump: Rafter-shaped, looking melon-shaped in well-fed horses, protruding hip bones readily showing in lean horses. Hip of medium length, sloping but not dropping. Medium tail set.
Legs: Long, with round, fairly long cannon bones and long pasterns. Hooves are of medium size with tendency toward mule-footedness. Very little, if any, fetlock hair.
Muscling: Long and smooth.
Color
Always grulla or regular dun (no red dun), typically a light or medium shade. Face/muzzle dark, and dark around the eyes. A mealy mouth is not acceptable. Ears are outlined black in front and back, with whitish rim; tipped black on backside, sometimes also striped on backside. Fawn-colored tuft inside ear. Bi-colored mane and tail = the black middle part is fringed by light-colored hair that is often almost white. A dorsal stripe must be present; cobwebbing on forehead, zebra stripes on legs, neck stripes, shoulder stripes, and fishbone markings on the back are all desirable, although not always present. White markings are atypical and undesirable.
Note: Mares of different color, but showing all the other characteristics of the Sorraia, may still be eligible for Foundation or Tentative division.
Haircoat
Finer in texture than northern primitive horses. The forelock is often sparse, sometimes non-existent. The hair structure creates the appearance of stripes ("barring") on neck/chest. Newborn foals often have a zebra-like pattern all over, created by the lay of the hair.
Action
Free, ground-covering, long-strided movements, especially a flowing, lofty trot, noticeable knee action. Great flexibility in neck, spine, and legs. Even when excited, the tail is raised rarely more than level; these horses usually do not raise their tails up perpendicularly, let alone laying them over their rump when excited, like Arabians tend to do.