Is A Miniature Horse.... Really A Horse?

Once the decision was made that minis would soon be introduced into our lives rose the question
"is a miniature horse really a horse?"
Although, I had never owned my own horse before I had been exposed enough to them to have a general understanding on a horse's personality, diet, and the different types that there were. After hours of research the conclusion I came to was "yes" they are the same with a twist.

 Miniature horses or "American Miniature Horses" possess the same personality, stubbornness, trainability, and basic diet (of course in much smaller quantities) as a regular sized horse. Registered minis are divided into an A and B class.  The classes are divided simply by size alone. The A class size ranging 34" and under.  The B class consists of minis ranging in size 34" to 38" and according to my readings anything above the B class would be considered a pony. The world recoded holder for the "smallest horse" is a tiny mini horse named Einstein, who at birth weighed a mere 6lb  and stood a just 14-inches tall and more closely resembled a wind up toy according to him owners! The average weight for a mini horse at birth tips the scale at 18lbs, a whooping 12lb difference! The tiny pinto stallion resides happily in New Hampshire with his family. 
Miniature horse can also be rode by small children but are not bred to bare the weight of a rider like their larger cousins. Because these horses are not known for their ridability people have found new ways to make these small horses worthy.  Miniature horses given their small size are easily trained to pull small carts under harness, compete in obstacle, conformation, jumping (without and rider), liberty and are always a show stopper! They are also very useful as a companion horse for other farmyard animals and have even more recently been trained as guide and therapy animals.
Although these horses maybe pint-sized compared to traditonal horses they make a big impression!