10 July, 2022

Serj Al Rayyan: A Powerful Reminder

Serj Al Rayyan (Ansata Nile Echo x Naifah Al Rayyan) as photographed by Alessio Azzali

Serj Al Rayyan is a 2016 stallion and a paternal sibling to Egaab Al Rayyan. While Serj's dam, Naifah, is a daughter of Al Adeed Al Shaqab and RN Farida; Egaab's dam, Nadrah, is a daughter of Ashhal Al Rayyan and Ansata Nefer Isis. Maternally, Serj is related to Fahad Al Rayyan, as Fahad's dam, Noof, is a maternal sibling to Naifah, Serj's dam. I really like Serj's pedigree for a few reasons. 

  • Although bred by Al Rayyan Farm (as was his dam), Serj Al Rayyan's pedigree reflects 70% of the Ansata Arabian Stud breeding program and of that percentage, Ansata Halim Shah's influence is almost half that number! 
  • He only has one line to Prince Fa Moniet, which means that more of his Ansata ancestral elements are the foundational horses of the program. 
  • Prince Fa Moniet has a Babson line through his maternal granddam, Fada, which complements the 2nd Babson line through Ansata Nile Gift (Fa-Habba). Think outcross (non-Nazeer) blood which is distantly related (Bint Sabah).
  • Serj has one line to Hanan, through Salaa el Dine, which is important today, given the demand for horses from Dr. Nagel's breeding program. 
  • Through Noha, the dam of RN Farida, we find a solitary line to Hadban Enzahi, who introduces a different "Nazeer flavor" to the pedigree, as compared to the other sources of Nazeer blood in the pedigree. What makes Noha a little more interesting is that through her dam, she traces in her dam line to Farida, which complements the multiple sources of *Ansata Ibn Halima found in Serj Al Rayyan's pedigree. 
Serj appears to have a beautifully shaped neck, well-set and meeting at an angle which affords him a fine throatlatch (mitbah). He's willowy or maybe better said, stretchy. His jowls are prominent and of a larger size, spaced well enough apart to comfortably fit a man's fist between them. He has a shorter, broader head, which is clean and dry, plus, I am happy to discover a muzzle which has some substance and not fine and tapered.  I prefer the muzzle like Serj's muzzle, which becomes important when bitting the horse for under saddle training. Try and find a French link loose ring snaffle bit to comfortably fit a "teacup" muzzle and you will understand.

Finally, what impresses me the most in these post-Ansata years is the continuing influence of the breeding program that Judith Forbis, together with her late husband, Don, created. Along comes a horse like Serj Al Rayyan, who powerfully reminds us of the enduring relevancy of the Ansata program. 

No comments:

Post a Comment