Horse Buying in Spain

I have begun the search to find my four legged Spanish teammate. The best way I can describe this process is it is like going on blind dates. You might know a little about the person, (or in this case the horse), but until you meet them you have no idea if you will have a connection or if what you "know" about them is even true. Horse sellers can give you very appealing descriptions about a horse as well as produce attractive pictures and/or videos, but it is not smart to trust the sellers descriptions.  You need to see, meet, and ride the horse in person. It is very rare that you hear of equestrians finding a high level competition horse easily.  High level, well trained horses with excellent health and conformation with the right mind for competitions are hard to come by. When I went to France to find my eventing horse, I rode over 10 prospective horses and was lucky to find my Hipius the last day of the trip.

I am very fortunate to have been connected with an incredible Spanish dressage competitor and trainer Cristina Duran, who is helping me search for my Spanish horse. Cristina is very well connected and respected in the Spanish dressage community, and is able to find horses that are just coming on the market. Last week, Cristina and I ventured out on a 12 hour journey through the Andalusian region of Spain to view the first two prospects. As I rode each horse, she provided me with instruction and feedback so I could test the horse's training and abilities.

Prospect #1

12 year old PRE Stallion

The first horse we visited was located in a stunning facility. He was ridden by a top notch trainer who trained and studied at the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art. The trainer mounted the horse first to give Cristina and me a demonstration. The horse preformed the majority of the upper level movements, but had not mastered his flying lead changes which are critical for upper level competition. The horse is 12 years old and at this age he should have his tempi changes down.  If the horse were younger this would not necessarily be a concern, but at 12 years old he should already know tempi changes in order to be an elite competitor in the dressage arena.  The horse had incredible collection at the canter, but when I asked him to do a piaffe he was always looking for a way out and did not want to go straight.

He is a sweet horse and willing to please, but because he started his dressage training later in life he did not develop the flexibility and knowledge of the movements typically acquired during early years of training. Another concern was that he has never competed. I need a horse that has been in competitions and is comfortable being in a show environment. The horse was fun to ride and if I were looking for a mount to train in the lower levels of dressage and for pleasure riding, he would be ideal.  But, I am looking for a horse with higher level training, and with the training he has at his age he would not be suited to be a successful high level competitor.

Prospect #2

12 year old PRE Stallion

Cristina and I continued on to see the second prospect which I was very excited about as I saw videos of him and he looked like he had mastered all the upper level movements. After about a three hour drive, we arrived at a small family owned facility. The horse’s owner had a wrist injury and had not been able to ride his horse for three weeks.  Cristina got on the horse first to test him out before I rode him. Cristina is an incredible rider and got the horse to preform the majority of the upper level movements, yet she was surprised how heavy he was in the mouth. She gave me the heads up before I mounted that he pulls. The horse was very heavy in the contact and was constantly bracing on my hands. At one point I had to take a break, as my hands were cramping up from him pulling so hard. The horse had amazing collection and a piaffe that would receive high scores in competition. I was hoping maybe the horse pulling so hard on his mount was a result of him just being rusty from not being ridden in three weeks. The deal breaker for me was not necessarily the pulling, but when I dismounted I noticed a lump on his side. It turns out the horse has melanoma, a type of skin tumor associated with the color of the horses coat, a very common problem in grey Spanish horses. Although these tumors are usually benign, the tumors can keep growing and cause the horse discomfort and more tumors can pop up throughout the horse's life. There is treatment for horses that suffer from melanoma, but the treatment is not available in Spain. The last thing I want is to purchase a horse with preexisting health problems. Finding out the horse has melanoma was a deal breaker for me.

Although I was not successful on my first go around, it was good to get an idea of what is on the market and what questions to ask before going to view more horses. I look forward to round two and know that my future horse is out there waiting for me!

Off to Find My Iberian Horse

As I discussed in my last post, through a series of events I have made the leap from an Eventer to a solo Dressage Competitor. It was a tough decision as I have been competing at the upper levels in Eventing for 10 years. Having made the change to the solo discipline of Dressage, I need an appropriate horse with which to compete. For the reasons below, I have decided on an Iberian Horse.

The Iberian horses ancestry dates back to 30,000 BC. Cave paintings as old as 20,000 BC have been discovered showing a profile of a horse that looks like the Andalusian. The Andalusians were recognized as an individual Spanish breed in the 15th century calling them the Pure Spanish Horse or PRE (Pura Raza Española). They were used as war horses for the Spanish royalty and kings across Europe rode and owned Andalusians. The breed is known for their strong build and compact yet elegant grace. The Andalusians have an energetic gait and are extremely athletic. Even though the breed is known for its strength, they are not tall horses averaging at 15.5 hands (61.5 inches, 156 cm). One of their distinguishing physical characteristics is having very thick and long manes and tails. Andalusian's personalities tend to be submissive while remaining intelligent and sensitive. They are very quick to learn, responsive, and cooperative in training. In Spain the Andalusian has long been used for bull-fighting. Their courage, agility, intelligence, and ability to turn quickly on the haunches make them ideal for dealing with an angry bull.

An Andalusian, Bull Fighting in Spain

The breed has grown popular in the international competition of dressage, especially over the last 15 years. At the 2002 World Equestrian Games two Andalusians were on the bronze-medal winning Spanish dressage team; a team that went on to take the silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. These accomplishments earned the breed respect in the sport. For a long time Andalusians were controversial in the dressage arena. There was prejudice aimed at the breed by dressage judges creating a widespread lack of credibility.  The breed has a special talent for collection, which is needed in dressage and the ability to turn on their haunches which is required in upper level movements. Their natural collection and turning capabilities has worked against the Andalusian's Dressage image instead of enhancing it.  They have been viewed as an easy horse to ride and train, causing judges to have preconceived notions about the horses before they even begin to preform in the arena.

Spanish Olympic Dressage rider Rafael Soto, competing in the National Championship 2004

The Spanish horse is different from that of the Warmblood breeds (who have dominated the dressage sport) as they have the ability to attain more easily the highest collected movements. Even though the Andalusians could preform the high level movements, consistently they were not given as high scores as fellow Warmblood competitors.  Many judges felt that it came naturally for the breed to preform dressage movements and should therefore not be judged equivalently as dressage Warmbloods, who lacking this natural ability, had to be trained diligently to compete at the upper levels.  Today while prejudice towards the breed in dressage competitions still exists, thanks to the Spanish dressage success in the early 2000s it has greatly lessened.  Since the breed has become more popular and accepted as a top level dressage competitor, today breeders aim to develop their horses to have more of a dressage conformation. Breeders try to give their offspring longer gait extensions to increase their ability to extend their strides. The Andalusian's shortcoming in the sport is the suspension, where the Warmblood breeds excel.

Andalusians are shown and bred throughout the world, while the region of Andalusia in Spain is still the motherland of the breed producing the finest horses. Ancient bloodlines of the Andalusians have been preserved by the Spanish government to protect the breed using selective breeding. A very careful selection program and a very strict breeding code upheld by the Spanish Stud Book, has produced a top quality, sporty and safe dressage horse. The government has focused on breeding a strain of Carthusian Andalusian (also known as Cartujano), which is generally considered the purest Andalusian strain and has one of the oldest recorded pedigree lines in the world.

The Pure Cartujano stallion

I have had the opportunity to ride and train with some Andalusians in the United States, and have fallen in love with the breed. Soon, I will be going to Spain to find some of the best Andalusians, train, breed and compete. My goal is to find a horse that has the capability to compete at the Olympic Grand Prix Dressage level.  I am so excited to immerse myself in the Spanish equine community. I look forward to sharing my journeys as I look to find the hunt to find my Andalusians, and start my training and competing.