The Schleswig (also known as 'Schleswig Heavy Draft' and 'Schleswiger') is an endangered German heavy draft horse breed, named after the Schleswig-Holstein where it originated.

Oppenheim, Jutland, and the Schleswig:
The development of the Schleswig took place in the 19th and early 20th centuries, in Schleswig-Holstein state, Germany. The aim was to develop a medium-sized draft horse.

Jutland horses from the area of the border between Germany and Denmark were used as foundation stock and were crossed with different heavy breeds. However, the most important influence over the Schleswig came from an imported Suffolk Punch stallion called Oppenheim (the same stallion who also influenced the Jutland breed. See 'Jutland'), which greatly affected the Schleswig's conformation.

The Schleswig today:
Originally, the Schleswig was primarily used for farm work as well as for pulling omnibuses and trams (horsecars). The invention of motored buses and tractors rendered the Schleswig redundant, and its numbers dwindled from several thousands to a couple of hundreds.

In 1991, in order to protect the breed from extinction, the Association of Schleswig Horse Breeders was established. Today, the Schleswig is an endangered breed and is bred in Germany in small numbers.

Conformation:
Schleswig horses have a short head with small eyes and long ears, a short and thick neck connecting to smooth withers, a short back, and a sloping croup. The body is wide, the legs are short and the hooves are large.

The mane and tail are short-to-medium in length, and the legs have medium feathering.

In general, the Schleswig looks similar to Jutland and the Suffolk Punch, which makes sense given the heavy influence both breeds had on the Schleswig. However, while the Schleswig is very muscular, it is actually lighter than most other heavy draft breeds due to its relatively smaller size.

Performance metrics:
The following are the: range, average, (SD), and MOE of performance metrics of ordered Schleswigs in Horse Isle (not bred ones). In rare cases, horses might have metrics outside of the range. Breeders can produce horses that are beyond this range.

Speed: 14.6-15.9, 15.2 (0.3), 0.06.
Sprint: 45-58, 51 (3), 0.56.

Accel: 0.82-0.97, 0.90 (0.04), 0.01.
Decel: 0.96-1.12, 1.05 (0.03), 0.01.

Jump: 4.70-5.08, 4.90 (0.07), 0.01.
Pull: 3.26-4.06, 3.72 (0.15), 0.03.

Turning: 45.13-58.54, 53.23 (2.77), 0.54.
Reverse: 2.3-2.8, 2.6 (0.1), 0.02.

Stamina: 55.19-59.12, 57.02 (0.93), 0.18.
Reaction: 0.82-0.90, 0.86 (0.02), 0.00.

Coats & Height:
Colors: almost always have a flaxen chestnut coat, though bay, grey, and silver-dapple occur from time to time.

Additionals: flaxen, mealy, sooty, dark mane & tail, grey mane & tail.

Height: 15.2hh to 16hh.