Purebreds also called purebreeds are cultivated varieties or cultivars of an animal species achieved through the process of selective breeding. When the lineage of a purebred animal is recorded that animal is said to be pedigreed. The term purebred is occasionally confused with the proper noun Thoroughbred which refers exclusively to a specific breed of horse one of the first breeds for which a written national stud book was created since the 18th century.