TeWarlander
What’s Old is New with this Developing Breed
By Mary Daniels L
overs of classical equitation and the baroque horses so highly suited to it have a new candidate for knock- your-socks-off presence in the little-known and newly
developed Warlander. Originating in Australia—where the international studbook for the breed is maintained—and still rare in the U.S., the goal for this new breed is to com- bine the best characteristics of two ancient breeds, the purebred Friesian and the Iberian horse. Warlander breed- ers hope to create new stars on the dressage horizon, with even foals showing roundness and exacting movement, but thanks to a kind temperament, Warlanders can also be cher- ished family horses. Despite its rarity, the Warlander horse is better known than most people realize. One particular Warlander, blessed with remarkable beauty and rock star charisma, makes a fre- quent appearance in print media, commercial work and film.
Behind the Name The Warlander was developed in 1990 by Karen-Maree’ Kaye
Above: IF Michealangelo, aka Mick, a 2007 second-generation Warlander geld- ing. Sired by Saphiro (Lusitano), out of a Warlander mare (Andalusian x Friesian). His training includes Reining, Dressage & Working Equitation. Top of page: Califor- nia’s poster child Hummer, a Warlander popular in commercials and movies.
72 March/April 2014
of the Classical Sporthorse Stud in Western Australia. She started a dedicated breeding program and penned the first breed standard, naming the breed after veterinarian Warwick Vale, who helped her with her breeding program. As his- torically both breeds were horses of war, the name seemed appropriate. “My love lies in classical dressage and baroque horses and the goal was to breed a horse within the baroque type that had the best attributes of both base breeds, namely the collectability and flexibility of the PRE (Pura Raza Español) and the docile tem- perament and glori-
ous front end and bone of the Friesian,” Karen says. “I bred for a future haute école horse for myself. But after the first one, I was amazed by how this hybrid developed and how com- plementary both base breeds were to each other, with the resultant progeny gaining the best attributes of both.” The first Warlander she bred was, she says, “extremely functional, collected very easily, was really comfortable to ride and had inherited the Friesian’s placid nature with the sensibility and bravery of the Iberian.” The Warlander horse has historic precedents. When the
Spaniards invaded the Netherlands in the 1600s, their war horses were pure Iberian stallions. These were crossed with the native Friesian horse, refining it into a higher-stepping carriage type. That genetic background may be why the two breeds today “nick” so well, Karen says.
Breeding Program Up Close “Our Warlander program is unique in the world, as we are us-
ing Age/Ritske line dressage Friesians (two of the three base lines in the breed) in our first three generations, in order to outcross them with the Tetman (the third base line), which accounts for more than 80 percent of Friesians worldwide,” Karen continues. Her breeding program uses only horses with proven
dressage pedigrees. “Their genealogy is based entirely on performance, with one of the mares in our program being a full sister to current FEI Intermediate II horse Rangemore Mikardo. Our Friesian stallion is trained to the high school level and each mare is trained before breeding, so we can really evaluate her strengths and weaknesses in trainability and rideability before we breed her. It is a slow process, but better to breed fewer horses of the highest quality. Our hopes are pinned on a young stud colt, CS Invictus, soon to be approved by the Warlander Studbook Society (WSS) in Asia Pacific. He is of the same mold as the U.S. Warlander Hummer, who is the horse I imagined when I first developed this breed,” she explains.
Breed Requirements In Australia, the original genetic cross used by breeders was
Friesian stallion on Iberian mares. However, more crossings
April Visel
Wright Horse Photography
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