POINT OF VIEW
battle) or chronic abuse (everyday pain, eventual unsound- ness and poor performance, leading to early retirement of one form or another), in spite of the rider’s good intentions.
THE SOLUTION LIES IN THE BREEDING What is the solution? Try to breed horses who are versa- tile, rather than specialists (horses endowed with just the
biggest trot or the slowest lope or the biggest jump), be- cause versatility implies balance of movement and harmo- ny of forms, resulting in ease of training. Western trainers call them “good using horses,” meaning that they can do a job every day, stay sound and be at peace with their rider. Find a versatile stallion to breed to, coming from versatile parents for even more genetic guarantees. Choose a horse that walks and trots and canters with equal quality. A long walk that can be shortened = flexibility, a big trot and a small trot = strength, flexibility and energy, a slow canter = balance and adjustability. I am speaking of a horse that could—at a minimum—participate decently in equestrian sports (such as dressage, jumping, endurance and com- bined driving) at the entry level. In the last twenty years, we have seen specific selec-
Catherine Henriquet, piaffing on the Lusitano Spartacus. To- gether they qualified for the Atlanta Olympics for France.
tion for dressage or jumping exclusively, resulting in horses with huge, spectacular gaits: very long walks with a lot of overtrack that become lateral as soon as they are shortened; trots nobody can sit and that are not condu- cive to collection and eventual piaffe; canters so enor- mous that they require a million half-halts before they can be slowed down; jumps so big only a professional can stay in the tack, etc. Fortunately, there is a reaction nowadays against those excesses. We now see some Hol- steiner jumping blood in dressage pedigrees in search of more adjustable canters; the great success of the Hanove- rian stallion Breitling (Bismarck x Maat x Gralsritteras) for example, who earned Hanoverian Stallion of the Year in 2014, due to the fact that his offspring are very trainable and successful in the show ring, even though he is not the most extravagant mover; the rideability factor becoming very important in stallion classes; and so on. Over the past 40 years, my experience covered thou- sands of horses of most breeds, used in most disciplines. I like all good horses, whatever their color or their “accent,” as long as they like the job they have been chosen for and they are physically and mentally capable of it. I know these horses will not have to be subjected to uncomfort- able (and pointless) training. But if they are not suited, I suggest to the owner that they need another job. As the British say, “horses for courses.” That said, unsound, unwill- ing, incapable (or simply inadequate) horses do not be- long in the gene pool. Even if they are the greatest pets, deserving to be loved for the rest of their days, they must not end up in the breeding shed.
Catherine Henriquet, canter in place on the Warmblood Para- dieszauber, French dressage champion 2013.
68 January/February 2017
VERSATILITY AND STANDARDS I breed Portuguese Lusitanos and Luso-Spanish horses (belonging with Andalusians to the Iberian Breeds and defined by the ‘Baroque type’), because most of them are
Courtesy Catherine Henriquet
Courtesy Catherine Henriquet
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100