11 November 2009
TRAKEHNER BREEDERS TOUR & STALLION APPROVAL
by Tom Reed
Horse International Vol 9 2009
During the week of 18 – 25 October I was fully immersed in the Trakehner breed – and I liked much of what I saw. In the first part of the week a group of us from the USA, Canada, Poland, Finland, and Ireland were led on our own long trek throughout western and eastern Germany by a true expert on the breed, my good friend Dr. Maren Engelhardt. We drove over twelve hundred kilometers and visited large and well-known stud farms, including a state stud, and several smaller farms whose horses were equally impressive. Although I have been a member of the Trakehner Verband for several years, have used a Trakehner mare in my breeding program, and there is Trakehner blood in several of my stallions' pedigrees, the Trakehners Breeders Tour was an excellent reintroduction to the breed and helped to sharpen my understanding of the breed and the direction of the studbook. (In the next issue of Horse International I will offer an assessment of the breed and what the Verband and breeders need to do so the Trakehner remains a vital force in both sport and breeding.)
Following the tour our group attended the Trakehner Verband's stallion approval and auction, which was held in Neumuenster. A collection of 21 two-year-old colts were approved out of 63 invited to the show (several colts were withdrawn due to injury, etc.). For me the approval was a disappointment in that I simply did not see 21 stallions worthy of approval; I believe the number should have been closer to a dozen....
If you would like to read the rest of this article I invite you to join the Warmblood Studbook of Ireland for only euro 50 and enjoy a free subscription to Horse International magazine courtesy of WSI. Download the membership form here:
http://www.irish-warmblood.com/forms/MembershipApplication.doc
by Tom Reed
Horse International Vol 9 2009
During the week of 18 – 25 October I was fully immersed in the Trakehner breed – and I liked much of what I saw. In the first part of the week a group of us from the USA, Canada, Poland, Finland, and Ireland were led on our own long trek throughout western and eastern Germany by a true expert on the breed, my good friend Dr. Maren Engelhardt. We drove over twelve hundred kilometers and visited large and well-known stud farms, including a state stud, and several smaller farms whose horses were equally impressive. Although I have been a member of the Trakehner Verband for several years, have used a Trakehner mare in my breeding program, and there is Trakehner blood in several of my stallions' pedigrees, the Trakehners Breeders Tour was an excellent reintroduction to the breed and helped to sharpen my understanding of the breed and the direction of the studbook. (In the next issue of Horse International I will offer an assessment of the breed and what the Verband and breeders need to do so the Trakehner remains a vital force in both sport and breeding.)
Following the tour our group attended the Trakehner Verband's stallion approval and auction, which was held in Neumuenster. A collection of 21 two-year-old colts were approved out of 63 invited to the show (several colts were withdrawn due to injury, etc.). For me the approval was a disappointment in that I simply did not see 21 stallions worthy of approval; I believe the number should have been closer to a dozen....
If you would like to read the rest of this article I invite you to join the Warmblood Studbook of Ireland for only euro 50 and enjoy a free subscription to Horse International magazine courtesy of WSI. Download the membership form here:
http://www.irish-warmblood.com/forms/MembershipApplication.doc
