I spent much time in Germany watching, riding and learning as much as I could about the bloodlines and figuring out which ones showed good genetic soundness, both mentally and physically. The Verden Verband vet Dr. Gerd Brunken, would simply open the filing cabinet for the Xrays and vet reports and invite me to go ahead. He knew me so well and knew I was very particular about soundness. I confess the incidence of OCD in the horses was of great concern. It was not dietary after arriving in the U.S.A. because Dr. Brunken explained to me that 65% of the one and two year olds the Verband reviewed for acceptance to the Elite Auctions and Studbook showed OCD. The ability to remove those defects (the ones seen on X-rays anyway) via arthroscopic surgery was all the rage. My U.K. vet, also a German by birth, told me to look keenly now for X-rays that were too clean.
Some time around 2000 my travels took me again to Spain and Portugal and well before the Iberian horses had been properly marketed in the U.S. dressage market I was fortunate to have made a super friend in Jerez who welcomed us into his large and loud family and introduced me to the Andalusian and Lusitano breeds. His wife is from Portugal otherwise I don't think the proud Spaniard would have entertained keeping both breeds in his rather lovely stables. It gave me a great opportunity to see the differences and similarities in these breeds. Needless to say, I was smitten.
Our friends gave us the opportunity to purchase mares and to breed to the stallions of our choice from either their own or from their wealth of friends who had stallions available. Generously they offered their advice on well thought out matches and before long we had foals arriving in Spain. Of the several we bred I imported just one, the others being quickly snapped up by Spanish and Portuguese breeders and competitors.
In our home breeding program it was inevitable that we would switch from the 100% warmbloods and start to incorporate some other breeds. I wanted well moving 'mutt' ~ horses that had good movement and minds but that would begin and stay sound. Our market to international level riders was now saturated and the trend had moved to shall we say, horses with lots of high knee action and very refined bodies with longer necks. It was not a trend I liked or horses that I found pleasurable to ride so we sold off our Foundation mares and breeding stock and set about working with cross bred horses.
There are an amazing number of breeds that can and do work well in dressage circles when you look at it. The leading Grand Prix amateur horse in the U.S.A. Fynn, ridden and trained by my long time friend Candace Platz D.V.M., is an example. Belgian blood and a PMU rescue, he found himself with Michelle Gibson before Candace purchased him and took him to the top level.
Our home stables in Stamford, NY ( a lovely area of the Catskills by the way), was now full of mostly cross breds. One Hanoverian gelding was the lone ranger of the old days. The others were mixed Andalusian/Percherons/Dutch Warmbloods/Thoroughbreds/Belgians/Lusitanos.
The breeding market was soft for many years and after a three round filly foaling seasons in 2010/11 we decided to pause from the breeding for a bit until the market picked up. The lack of a decent AI vet in the area also factored in at that time.
Then last year, 2016 we were talking with our friend in Jerez and he suggested we breed one of his private stallions, a lovely cross bred Andalusian/Lusitano from the Brio lines, Bailerin Bruiso that I had ridden in Sanlucar years before to one or more of our mares and do a complete outbreeding. As he had exchanged frozen semen from this stallion in part payment for the last foal we had bred on his farm (that he kept), I thought long and hard about it.
The fillies we had were a good age for first breeding, 5 and 6 years old. I confess that we had not done much with them training for dressage wise. One of the three had been started in longe work. We had always planned to breed them as part of the program and had not foreseen how long the market would stay soft. They are all sired by the world class and Canadian Team horse Gambol. A super black beauty that competed successfully under Ashley Holzer on the Big Tour. His conformation was immaculate. I do not say that lightly. His head was sometimes in the clouds but he was a lovely sort.
Two of the fillies dam lines were the same, a sweet Belgian mare that was a love bug, Amore WVH. She is a tough horse, well put together and a delight to be around. As the two mares were full sisters we elected to breed the youngest one, who showed slightly better balance in the trot and canter and has the wildest dark brown chocolate coat with cream mare and tail. The other mare was out of a high class NY bred Thoroughbred, Ms. Montana aka Versailles WVH. This dam has a huge floaty trot and lots of buzz and also had good conformation. Her daughter is a beautiful dark bay, who has darkened just in the last year to be even darker and continues to grow into her father's phenotype.
I am glad we waited so long to breed them. The mares are all still growing taller and they are all continually changing color. Every season they seem to shed closer to black. Weirdly, even the chestnut one.
So with the aid of a good friend and a retired breeding expert vet, we bred the mares with frozen and crossed our fingers, toes and eyes. We did not anticipate they would take on first try though my Spanish friend had warned me the semen quality stats were not just impressive to read, which I could see for myself, but that they translated into good pregnancy numbers. Naturally, they took on first try so the first baby was here before the snow had left!
There is nothing quite like knowing the granddam, having bred the mare and now seeing the 3rd generation in front of your eyes. Carefully constructed by your input from choice of mates to handling and upbringing of the mare. You see the mare's nature and level of trust clearly imparted positively to the every day moments in life that the colt collects as he grows.
The other mare we are waiting on! Day 347 as we speak and little signs of making her maiden delivery debut except for some mild bagging and ventral swelling.
While these horses can be registered AWS we are in no need of paperwork to tell us how lovely they are and how worthwhile this cross breeding has been. Our two Grand Prix horses aged 17 -22 are still going strong with not a day of unsoundness or issue. The new baby we wait to see of course - you never know how things develop.
After years in the horse sales business from our programs it is no longer important to me to have paperwork from breeding registries ( which is expensive to garner ) even if the horses are for resale. The horse will clearly demonstrate his own talents and nature and the owners we cater to are serious amateur riders who want a good sound horse that can excel through the national levels and FEI, but that is not likely to make the Olympic team ( although never say never), and the price point reflects this.
I have I suppose come full circle in my dressage world.
Here's looking forward to the next foal and seeing what life holds in store for Extravagancia WVH and the gals!
