THE BLOODLINE FACTOR WHEN ASSESSING A JUMPER
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jumper prospect’s parentage can help market him— or raise a red flag about his family’s known traits. We talked with expert trainers, riders and owners, some
European, to ask how much they weigh bloodlines when buying and selling horses. For simplicity, horses are referred to as “he” or masculine in gender in this article. But as the 2018 World Equestrian Games demonstrated, we recognize mares have both the will and talent to be at the top of this sport.
Why Consider Bloodlines “I believe in good families. I think at the end of the day, if it
comes down to your horse needing to step up on course, breeding will tell,” German rider and trainer Wilhelm Genn says. He uses the KWPN stallion Heartbreaker, sire of his top jumper Bugatti (damsire Pilot), as an example. “Heartbreaker is a very good stallion. When Eduardo Leon imported Bugatti as a five-year-old, Heartbreaker was not so popular then. I saw Bugatti’s pedigree, and said, ‘Send me that horse.’ That was seven years ago.”
“Bloodlines are very important. It’s the foundation, like a house. And you can’t put a
roof on something if you don’t have a foundation,” Max Dolger, a rider who represents Great Britain, adds. Bruno Diniz Das Neves of Portugal now trains in Del Mar, California. He also cares
very much about a horse’s bloodlines. “When you are looking for horses, or you want to know about a horse’s breeding, you start to get educated about bloodlines. You see the resemblances of some horses that come from the same breeding line, the same stallion. You start to see similarities. Not just physical, but their mind, the way they jump, the way they put the front legs and the hind legs.” The impact of even an excellent pedigree can vary, however. Many riders repeat the
caveat, “It depends.” “If I see a really good sound horse, even if the breeding is not what I am looking for,
I would still consider him,” Wilhelm says. Susan Artes, partner with Max at their Los Angeles barn, agrees bloodlines are
important. “But they are not the end all. Certainly there have been some great blood- lines that thrive at having good careers.” she says, but also notes that horses of less popular lines can jump consistently (while well-bred horses may not). “I find in show jumping that you could have the best bred horse in the world—it
could have the best bloodlines—but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be the best horse in the world. Look at the horses that aren’t bred well and can still jump at the top level of the sport,” says Canadian team rider Jaclyn Duff of Edmonton, Alberta.
All photos by Charlene Strickland
Top: Wilhelm Genn on the 2008 KWPN Dirocco Blue (Zirocco Blue VDL Keur x Quat’Sous) in the Open Prix at HITS Desert Horse Park in Thermal, California. Bottom: Max Dolger competing the five-year-old Oldenburg Satoki (Satisfaction I x Catoki) at HITS in Thermal, California, in November 2018.
Warmbloods Today 25
How important is pedigree when choosing a jumper? Do bloodlines forecast how and why a jumper jumps with a certain style? What about the gallop he requires to navigate the course at speed? And let’s not forget the horse’s desire to please and his work ethic.
By Charlene Strickland
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