solid minds on a horse, more amateur-friendly, with more heart, more scope,” he adds. Some particular lines—not named here—have been
labeled for having bad mouths, being spooky at water jumps, having uncooperative attitudes or being prone to soundness issues. Susan commends Max’s experiences at German barns, and says, “He’s good at knowing which horses tend to have tougher mouths, and which horses tend to be forgiving.” Also, a horse’s ancestry can
affect its treatment in training. A horse from a prominent line could be expected to be a star from the start. Could the opposite benefit the less fancy prospect? “Just
“…a horse’s first few months make a big difference feed-wise, exercise-wise, if they can run on grass or not, if they find their balance early or not and if they are confined or not.”
like any sort of system, there are always going to be the outliers and the anomalies,” Ray admits. “In some ways the horses that are outliers and anomalies are often free from restrictions and expectations. That could be through the training and the development of the young horse, when there’s very little expectation or preconceived notions in place, which is why we see the anomalies who really rise up to the top.” “You have your genetics, and you have your environmen- tal influences,” he continues. “Those environmental influences carry a lot of weight in the horse’s early experiences, his train- ing and what makes an athlete what they are.”
The Mare’s Influence When selecting jumper prospects, buyers should closely
consider the dam. It’s generally accepted that the mare influ- ences more than half the parentage. Patrick Seaton, originally from England, now trains in
San Anselmo, California. He sees many of the same stallions being used whether the horse is born in Holstein or Hanover or France. “I think they cross differently with different moth- ers. People forget that 60 percent comes from the mother. It’s got to be the right bloodlines. It’s also the education and the atmosphere of where the horse grows up.” At his Rheinland Farm in Lebanon, Ohio, Wilhelm breeds
proven mares. “They were Grand Prix horses. I breed a mare that jumped 1.60 meter, and have a few other mares. I think it’s 65 percent the mare, 35 percent the stallion.” Wilhelm grew up on his family’s farm in Rheinland Pfalz,
Germany, where he says they bred about 400 mares a year by live cover with as many as five stallions. “Coming from the breeding [background], I’ve seen a lot
of mares who produce good horses, where it didn’t matter how good or bad the stallion was. If I have a choice between a good mare and mediocre stallion, or a foal out of a medio- cre mare and good stallion, I would pick the former, the one from a good mare,” he says. “The important part is to match your mare up with the
stallion to complement the mare, without trying to overcor- rect anything,” Wilhelm also advises, noting there are many
Top: Ray Texel trains Katie Harris who competed the 2008 Zangersheide Lafino 4 (Lawito x Baloubet du Rouet) in the 1.40 meter in March 2017 at HITS Thermal, California. Bottom: Jaclyn Duff on Venus du Gue, a 2009 Selle Français mare (Cap Kennedy 2 x Quaprice Bois Margot) in the 1.40 meter class at National Sunshine Series Week II, November 2018.
Warmbloods Today 27
good stallions available. “My best mare, who is small and has a lot of French blood, won 60 Grands Prix.” That mare, Happy Z (High Valley Z x Almé), is one of the horses who helped Wilhelm to be the first rider to reach the $1 Million Club (a USHJA rider recognition program, ranked by money earned). Herself 52 percent Thoroughbred, Happy Z is the dam of yearling Happy Go Lucky Z, by Kannan. Bruno rates the mare’s impor-
tance as 70 percent, a higher influence than what most people think. “A lot of people do not follow mare lines because they think only about the stallion, the
sire. The mare is very important—in many cases, more impor- tant than the sire. She can bring those extras that the sire may not be able to pass on.” Max believes it’s very important that the mother line
have a certain proven success themselves. “Bloodlines are one thing, but the mother gives a lot of charac- ter. If you have a scared mother, you will have a foal who is scared of things. If you have a brave mother or an intelligent mother, hopefully she’ll teach the kids the same thing. So the upbringing is as important as the actual bloodlines.”
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