17 March, 2024

Storm Clouds on the Horizon

Over the weekend, I discovered a fascinating interview that Gudrun Waiditschka had with Andreas Perner, who is head of the Research Institute for Organic Animal Breeding and Land Use, since 2018. The interview is titled, Are We Still Breeding or Are We Just Multiplying? The article appears within the online version of Arabische Pferde In-the-Focus magazine, published on Valentines Day (02/14/24). It's a deeply provocative article and while I try to stay away from anything which invites criticism of our horses, breed community and  current practices (there are other places online where you can engage in these discussions) and yet, I feel compelled to encourage you to read the interview, which identifies problematic issues facing the cattle industry, which run parallel to challenges we face in the  equine industry and specifically, with our beloved Arabian horses. 

11 March, 2024

Seeds of Inspiration


A long time ago, I kept my mare in a field with a couple Thoroughbred racehorses. There was one mare in particular, Rocky, who took my breath away whenever I saw her run. The other horses tried to keep up with her and pretty soon, Rocky would lap them once, twice and then, three times. Adrenaline coursing through my body, I felt the sheer power of Rocky's massive body. In her joy and freedom, she wasn't holding anything back. She was invincible. Run, Rocky, run! 

I had blogged about Pepita a few years ago, in 2019. Bred by Janow Podlaski stud, Pepita is a 2005 Ekstern daughter out of Pepesza (*Eukaliptus x Pestka), which includes a matriline that runs all the way back to the 1810 mare, Szamrajówka, bred by one of the oldest of the Polish studfarms, Count Branicki's Biala Cerkiew Stud. Pepesza's maternal granddam is the *Bandos daughter, Pentoda, out of Piewica, a Priboj (Piolun x Rissalma) daughter out of Wlodarka, by Ofir. Piewica was bred by the Tersk Stud and exported to Albigowa Stud in the fifties. At Janow Podlaski, Piewica was credited as the root or source mare of the highly esteemed "P" line of horses.

Pepita is the mare that generated such a "buzz" in and out of the Arabian horse community when she was sold in the 2015 Pride of Poland sale for a record price of $1.4 million Euros. A mature mare, already 10-years old, she was in foal to the stallion, Pogrom, at the time of her sale. The year prior, 2014, Pepita was named the Polish National Champion mare. However, back in 2019, when I watched Pepita, turned loose and running in her paddock, none of this was so important. These "factoids" are like static on the radio, preventing the beautiful music from being heard! All I could think of as I watched the video, was that day long ago, standing by the fence, ground shaking and watching Rocky morph into the Queen of the Thoroughbreds! Today, it's a new Pepita video, this time by Arabian Insider, and Pepita, is still so breathtakingly beautiful. Her beauty and her spirit inspire me. What must it be like to be a horse? To be brave, joyful and free to show the world just who you are, without worry. Congratulations to Akmal Stud and thank you; Pepita reminds me that I knew a Queen once. 

****I am so grateful to Arabian Insider for these videos. You make my world so much better!***

09 March, 2024

TRULY NOBLE

NK Nadeer (NK Hafid Jamil x NK Nadirah), as photographed by Joanna Jonientz

This past week, Tutto Arabi released their April-May Edition, which includes an article written by Dr. Hans J. Nagel. His stallion, NK Nadeer (NK Hafid Jamil x NK Nadirah) recently died. I was touched by Dr. Nagel's use of the word "noble" to describe his beloved horse.

"This was NK Nadeer; a truly noble horse, trusting, with a kind character, without falseness, full of temperament and fiery when given the opportunity." 

Given that we all understand the straight Egyptian ancestral elements that are at the core of the Katharinenhof breeding program; what does it mean, when a horse is called noble? Is "noble" a descriptive term for an intangible quality of character like courage, kindness or generosity of spirit?  Is "noble" more appropriately used to describe an impressive outwardly appearance? Dr. Nagel, not only within the article but also, in his newest book, The Arabian Horse, Nature's Creation and the Art of Breeding, has written, "He is the most beautiful stallion ever born or used at Katharinenhof." A few sentences later in the same book, Dr. Nagel also writes, "NK Nadeer is also gifted with an outstanding docile and pleasant temperament." Can the word "noble" describe both spiritual and physical qualities?  Within the article, Dr. Nagel, in describing the chain of sires having had the most impact within his program, compares NK Nadeer with the 4 grey stallions who preceded him (*Jamil, Ansata Halim Shah, Salaa el Dine & NK Hafid Jamil): "It is certainly permissible to say he was the gentleman among them, truly a distinguished horse and the one with the most refined and benign demeanor; calm in breeding, neither wild or impetuous, and when presented to visitors, he seemed to enjoy such a presentation and always kept himself under control." Perhaps, "noble" is a term we use, when we are overwhelmed by the entire being who stands before us and engages our senses?  In this joyful "paralysis" of mind and mouth, when all words become elusive and "noble" is the only word that remains on our tongue, maybe, "noble" is the only word that can successfully capture the feeling of awe and wonder we experience, when we are with such a horse we admire? And what about the horses whom we cherish, to the point of loving? Is the use of "noble" then, like a term of endearment?  Maybe "noble" is the word that crosses all language barriers to convey the myriad of feelings we experience, when we are present with such a horse. In further describing NK Nadeer within the article, we can observe first hand how Dr. Nagel feels about his horse, "NK Nadeer impressed with his typical Arabian head shape; a slightly curved, noble profile, classic and elegant...He had small ears and a strikingly small mouth with large wide nostrils; this stallion could have drunk sweet tea from a cup, as the Bedouins once claimed of their horses." 
I am not certain that I have offered a proper definition of the word for you, dear reader, as it appears that the word can describe both spiritual and physical qualities. Also keep in mind that "noble" can also mean an individual who belongs to an esteemed or distinguished family, for example, his dam, NK Nadirah, is a full sister to NK Nada, bred by Dr. Nagel, owned by the late Usamah Alkazemi of Ezzain in Kuwait and purchased by Al Waab.  NK Nada was one of the most beautiful mares I have ever seen. There is an old British poem, Ode to the Horse, written by Ronald Duncan in 1954,  which is relevant to this discussion and, I feel, will help you to better understand the use of the word to describe the long-lasting memory of a particular horse and how, through this word "noble", we  can connect our mind, heart and even, our souls, all for the love of a horse.

"Where in this wide world can 
man find nobility without pride, 
friendship without envy 
or beauty without vanity?  
Here, where grace is laced with muscle, 
and strength by gentleness confined. 
He serves without servility; 
he has fought without enmity. 
There is nothing so powerful, 
nothing less violent, 
there is nothing so quick, 
nothing more patient.  

England’s past has been borne on his back. 
All our history is his industry 
we are his heirs; he our inheritance."

***With many thanks to Alim Editrice and Tutto Arabi for making this wonderful magazine available. It is always a highlight for me when I see your email in my inbox. Without you, this blog is not possible.***

***It is hard to believe that Dr. Nagel's breeding  program has been extant for 53 years and of that time, 38 years as a closed breeding program, without the edition of outside blood. NK Nadeer ushered a new era at Katharinenhof, exemplified by his son, NK Nabhan, whom I wrote about previously. If you don't own a copy of The Arabian Horse, Nature's Creation and the Art of Breeding, published by Nawal Media, I encourage you to purchase it. In the meantime, the Tutto Arabi article is a great place to start, to get a sense of NK Nadeer and the breeding program he is part of.****

03 March, 2024

BELIEVE IN MAGIC

D Khair (BS Raeed x Magic Mon Amour)

I was looking through the Jadem Arabians Stallions Guide, which is a beautiful publication by the way, as published by Tutto Arabi this past week. The Jadem facility is impressive, as are the many services offered to the prospective breeder. There are 17 stallions presented in the Guide, including the spectacular Emerald J (QR Marc x Emandoria). However, it was the 13th stallion in the book that was an unexpected but joyful surprise for me: D Khair (BS Raeed x Magic Mon Amour), owned by Alhmoud Stud. Do you know that he's a maternal sibling of the black beauty, Magic Magnifique?

D Khair's dam, Magic Mon Amour (Windsprees Mirage x Al Amyra) is a double granddaughter of Thee Desperado, through Windsprees Mirage (her sire) and BJ Thee Mustafa (the sire of Al Amrya, her dam). In addition to Thee Desperado,  she has several lines to other Egyptian horses like *Ansata Ibn Halima & *Ibn Moniet el Nefous (via Raisuli El Pharo), the Pritzlaff-bred stallion, Rasmoniet RSI (*Rashad Ibn Nazeer x *Bint Moniet el Nefous), as well as three lines to Aswan, through the Russian horses: Nega, Kilimandscharo and Nevada. She also has an additional line to TheEgyptianPrince (through HH El Amir, the sire of Miraabbi), a line to Gulastra (*Astraled x Gulnare) plus a total of 5 lines to the Babson import, *Maaroufa, in addition to *Maaroufa's full sibling, *Fadl, plus the other Babson imports like *Bint Bint Sabbah (FaSaab) and *Bint Serra I, through her sons, Fay-El-Dine and Fa-Serr. The percentage of her pedigree which traces to Egyptian breeding is high, almost 60%!

Bred by Fontanella Magic Arabians in Italy, Magic Mon Amour, foaled in 2004, has been crossed with a wide variety of stallions, producing extraordinary results, consistently.  Think of the stallions, Magic Mon Ami by FS Bengali and the full siblings, Magic Magnifique and Magic Suleiman, both sired by True Colours. Eventually, this amazing mare went to Dubai Stud, where the outcross opportunities were even larger, enabling her to produce horses like the Menton champion, D Shireen by Kahil Al Shaqab, D Gezaila by Gazal Al Shaqab, D Shahira by Frasera Mashar, in addition to D Khair, whose sire is by the Monogramm son, Debowiec and out of the Magnum Psyche daughter, JJ Mona Lisa. What I also found interesting is the dominance of the bay color in her progeny. I found very few horses that are not bay, maybe one or two. However, that should not be a surprise, as the first 3 generations of Magic Mon Amour's pedigree is populated by horses of color, mostly bay and a few black horses and chestnuts. You will find a few greys in the fifth generation, namely Ruminaja Ali and TheEgyptianPrince. If you believe that coat color indicates genetic influence, this is the only reason that I mention this observation, as to why a mare without a concentrated or predictable concentration of genetic influence would prove to be a dominating influence, when mated with stallions who have equally dominated our world of Arabian Horse breeding with their unique influences. I have no doubt in my mind that one day, in the very near future, we will recognize her as one of the elite broodmares of our breed, if we don't feel like that already. I am overwhelmed with wonder and respect for this beautiful mare and her outstanding production record. Truly, there is some truth to the Magic prefix in her name.

01 March, 2024

THE STALLION FROM THE LAND OF MANU

Born to Reign, written by Judith Forbis, came at a time in my life when I was more open to the writings of Carl Raswan. Actually, it was something that Judith Forbis wrote about Ansata Delilah in the book that caught my attention and then held it, long enough for me to connect a dotted line between what she wrote in the book and 2 Carl Raswan articles published by Western Horseman magazine. I was fascinated with the subject, however, life and all that comes with it, soon pushes such things out of my "headspace" and soon, I forget. That is, until this week and  an email I received from Anthony Pontrello. Do you know Anthony? He is an accomplished artist, having studied in Boston and apprenticing in Italy. Arabian horses are featured in his work, many of which are in private collections, all over the world. Me, I know Anthony as the owner of the late stallion, *Nigmh, an Ansata Halim Shah son, out of the Muqatamm daughter, Nasbah. His new work is titled " The Stallion from the Land of Manu". In the Egyptian Book of the Dead, Anthony explains, the sun God, Ra, retires every evening in the west or "Manu".

There is something really special about the stallion's expression, captured on canvas for all time. The horse is alert, ears pricked forward, tuned into every sound, while the direction of his focus remains straight ahead, eyeball-to-eyeball on us. He's not sure of us, yet he is overwhelmed by a child-like curiosity to find out who we are, despite the vulnerability which he feels in doing so. 

And that's where Judith Forbis' Born to Reign book, fits in  with the artwork because I found the same expression in many of the photos of the Bukra horses.  At the time, I had wondered about the unique expression I found in horse-after-horse and whether this look could be unique to the Muluq or the timing and skill of an expert equine photographer. I so wanted to believe in the romance of the Muluq, as explained by Raswan. I was thrilled to find mention of "angel horses" written by other people, within other books, not necessarily about horses. It was not just a Raswan thing. And now, strangely enough, along comes a painting inspired by Egyptian mythology. It's like Born to Reign, in this instance, unbeknownst to Judith Forbis, functions as a transcript, to bring closure to what we may not understand through the silence of a painting. 

Anthony Pontrello is currently inviting inquiries from anyone interested in The Stallion from the Land of Manu. You may want to reach out to him, before someone else does and purchases the painting.

28 February, 2024

1-2-3


The Abu Dhabi edition of the GCAT series of shows was held this past weekend, in the Etihad Arena at Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The time difference between countries makes watching some of these shows a little more challenging. Many thanks to Arabian Essence TV, who makes the videos from all the shows available on their YouTube channel, thereby providing the opportunity to watch the Senior Mare Championship (SMC) class at a more convenient time.  I have to confess to you that really, the compelling reason to watch this class was all about the charm of the thumbnail photo (taken from the video) which shows  Basmah Al Bidayer with her handler, Raphael Curti, as she exited the ring, after her initial presentation. And that's where this story begins, as Basmah Al Bidayer, led me to Estonia, the mare who preceded her in the ring and also,  Wildona, who immediately followed her. And so, just like that, 1-2-3, the strongest mares (in my opinion), out of a total 15 mares in the class and the last mares to enter the ring Sunday night, one right after the other. And the craziest thing is, if it were not for Basmah Al Bidayer's charismatic expression, I would have missed seeing all 3 mares. 

These 3 mares are more similar than they are different. Not only do they share common ground in their Polish heritage but phenotypically, all 3 mares are closer-coupled, with strong, smooth toplines,  well-sprung rib cages and broad, across the chest and hind end. Outside of these 3 mares, the quality of all the mares in this class was consistently high. I did not envy the judges for the job they must do. How to pick one horse each for gold, silver and bronze, when really, any of these 15 mares could be chosen and no one would disagree.

I have blogged about Estonia (#133) previously and today, I feel the same way about her, as I did 2 years ago, in March of 2022. Of the 3 mares (despite that Basmah Al Bidayer was the driving force to watch the video), Estonia is my favorite, my number 1 choice. I appreciate strong bodied horses, of rounded lines, with overall smoothness and breed type. Estonia is all that, plus, she is a powerful mover, forward, straight and supple, conveying a quiet confidence, no matter where she is. I wish I was more like her. Although she is primarily Polish in breeding (75%); she is a Laheeb granddaughter and when combined with additional Egyptian blood (Aswan and Nil) her total percentage of Egyptian breeding grows to 25%. 

Basmah Al Bidayer (#135) is by Fadi Al Shaqab (Besson Carol x ABHA Myra) and out of Bidayer (Emigrant x Eskalopka).  While the percentage of Polish breeding is a little less than that of Estonia, her dam Bidayer traces to Milordka in both matrilines, that of her dam, the Monogramm daughter, Eskalopka and her sire, Emigrant. You will remember that Milordka was classified by Dr. Edward Skorkowski as Saqlawi, only because he felt that physically, she resembled a Saqlawi horse more than any other strain. Her expression is like witchcraft; she will captivate your imagination and melt your heart. She remains the single reason why I watched this class, all because of a photo.

Wildona (#136) was consigned to the Pride of Poland sale, this past summer. She was one of the high selling lots and sold for $650,000 Euros. Wildona is a Shanghai EA daughter, out of Wilda, by Gazal Al Shaqab, out of Wilga, an Ekstern daughter. While the percentage of Polish breeding is less than the other 2 mares, Wildona traces to the beloved mare, Wizja, an *El Paso daughter and a United States National Champion mare. If you continue to follow the matriline beyond Wizja, eventually you will reach Szweykowska, a Slawuta bred mare and the foundress of Polish family 7. Dr. Skorkowski measured her skull and from her measurements, determined her to be Saqlawi by strain.

As we continue to move forward into what appears to be a more urban future, sometimes the things we treasure of our past need to evolve, as we do. Yes, change is scary, people fear change more than death! But what is even scarier, is extinction and the loss of the one true thing we love most, because we fail to change, to make an effort to remain current and therefore, of interest to others all over the world. Think about it. These mares are a celebration, of many various dreams and ideals of the past, brought forward in a slightly different form, as compared to the  horse the visionaries bred. Today, we speak of the breeders, their programs and their horses, only because the very thing you feared, change, reminded us of who and what they were, once.
***thank you Arabian Essence for making these videos available on YouTube. You make it possible for people like me, thousands of miles away, to still experience the feeling of seeing these extraordinary horses, thereby, making the world a smaller place, uniting all people, as different as we can be from one another, through this common bond of the Arabian horse.***

24 February, 2024

Shafan Ibn Sinan


Early Saturday mornings, while the coffee is still hot, I scroll through my favorite social media pages, like the Facebook group Melissa Huprich created, Fans of Ansata Arabian Stud. This particular Saturday, bitterly cold, gray and surprisingly snowy, was even more quiet than it normally is. When the weather is bad, it's easy to get lost in all the new photos and posted comments. What feels like only minutes, becomes an hour or more. As I made my way through the news feed, my eyes blinked once, then twice. Did I just read what I think I read? An Ansata Sinan son? Out of an Ansata Selman daughter bred by Sabine Von Elm, with a matriline that runs through the El Thayeba breeding program to The Babolna Stud to the Albadeia program and all the way back to Prince Mohamed Aly Tewfik's breeding program? All of these great horses, combined in one pedigree? How is it possible? Did I slip in the snow, hit my head on the ground and knock myself out, to find myself in Arabian Horse heaven?  Usually, when I find a stallion that I really like, he will create a desire for a mare, just so I can breed to him. However, this time, it's way different because I had 2 mares that given the opportunity, I would have bred to this stallion. So, the delight in finding this stallion is somewhat bittersweet, as it hits me hard, in a tender spot that still, needs more time to heal. 

At first glance, one realizes the high percentage of Ansata breeding, over 80%. No surprise there, of course, given the position of the Ansata-bred stallions. Of this number, 50% represents the old time Ansata breeding program, comprised only of its foundational horses (without Prince Fa Moniet). Roughly half of it or 25%,  is Ansata Halim Shah.  We find Ansata Halim Shah through his get: Ansata Nefara (the dam of Sinan), Ansata Hejazi (the sire of Ansata Selman) and El Thay Ibn Halim Shah ( the sire of Bint Galia). Ansata Sudarra, the dam of Ansata Hejazi, is also the dam of Ansata Nefara. Her sire, Ansata Abu Sudan, although a beautiful, correct horse, was not used as much at stud. His daughter, Ansata Sudarra was a testament to his genetic power and one of the few ways we can tap his genetic influence. In this pedigree, she weighs in at almost 20%! However, the ancestor we find most frequently in the pedigree is Moniet el Nefous, almost twenty times! Keep in mind that Moniet was foaled in 1946, so genetically, she is further back in the pedigree, which is reflected in her percentage of influence of less than 10%.

What I found interesting is the relationship shared between the grandparents of Bint Galia, the maternal granddam of Shafan Ibn Sinan. Her sire, El Thay Ibn Halim Shah, is out of the mare, Mahameh (Ibrahim x Mona III), while her dam, Galia, is sired by El Thay Masoud (Ibrahim x Mona III). These 2 horses are full siblings, which means that everything is doubled: Mahomed, Moheba, Hadban Enzahi, Ghazal, Alaa el Din, Moniet el Nefous. Not to mention that the full sibling mating occurs on the maternal side of the pedigree, the side in which we have learned, through Bedouin tradition, to hold in high esteem. 

Dr. Hans Nagel, in both The Arabian Horse: Nature's Creation and the Art of Breeding, and Hanan: The Story of an Arabian Mare and of the Arabian Breed, tells us that Ibn Galal I became a chief sire at Babolna for a period of 5 years, once it was determined that Farag and Ghalion were not working out. Ibn Galal I's consistency as a sire reflected the strong group of females that Babolna had collected. Yet, despite the opportunities afforded to him, his record as a sire was still impressive, having sired several daughters who matured into important broodmares for the program. Think of the Ibn Galal I daughter out of Lotfeia, Ibn Galal I-7, affectionately known as "Gala", who came to America and was named a Reserve National Champion mare in 1986! The dam of Galia, Ibn Galal I-25 (Ibn Galal I x Bint Ghalion) is another of the  influential daughters sired by this stallion.

The maternal side of the pedigree holds additional surprises and if you follow the matriline, eventually you reach a mare named El Aziza, a Gassir daughter out of Zabeia. Philippe Paraskevas, in his book, The Egyptian Alternative, Volume II, explained, "Gassirs are routinely deep of girth; they sport wide and powerful chests, and their tail carriage is evocative of nothing but raised flags." Why is Gassir and Zabeia  important? Outcross blood. The 2 generations that preceded Zabeia were horses bred by the Inshass Stud: Ghazala I and El Zahraa. The dam of El Zahraa was Zahra (Gamil Manial x Negma), bred by Prince Mohamed Aly Tewfik. And for me personally, this is where I find the golden treasure, buried within the pedigree.  The significance for any straight Egyptian breeder to have the Prince's program in a form that is so different, as compared to the Babson horses or say, the Egyptian horses with Hallany Mistanny blood is reason enough to celebrate. 

More than a few years ago, my friend Tzviah Idan, wrote an impressive article about the role the desert horses played within The Babolna Stud breeding program.  In this article, Tzviah wrote,  "A Babolna Egyptian prototype was created, known for its great refinement, long flowing lines, extravagant movement, and overall elegance." Studying the Scott Trees' photos within the  advertisement, I noticed much of what Tzviah shared. For example, notice the size of Shafan Ibn Sinan's jowl, the roominess in the throatlatch, the fine muzzle, the finely shaped, larger nostrils, the prominence of the bone in his face, including the width of his facial crest bone and the width in his back. Foaled in 2018, he is a six year old, fully mature and in person, will be the breathtaking stallion that his pedigree promises him to be. I encourage anyone reading, who may be looking for that unique stallion for their mare, to contact Dara Fritz, of Shailyx Arabian Stud, for more information.