Donoso and Start got a canterjob on the snaffle and Halagador got a pessoa workout. I finally found a snaffle that D is happy with so now we will are now working out on that one, Halagador seems to like the same. At the moment I am very pleased with everything. The horses are doing well on their diets thanks to Jorge that keeps up with all the their individual needs and my many instructions.
Today a rainy foggy day in Madrid

Tina from last week is getting her horse vetchecked tomorrow. I have just started to search for a horse for Dagmar's friend Elisabeth, Dagmar is the lady that bought Nr 526 from us last year, we had a really nice time with her and her husband Androsch. 

Dagmar 
 

And Halagador, possibly one if not the most beautiful black PRE stallion in the world, now has two clients. First we have a very famous and official dressage authority, the other is a client from USA. Let's see how this will develop. I am stuck with the feeling it's a real pity having to sell this horse, he will be my last black PRE, it's this one or noone beacuase no other could ever live up to my expectations. He's a horse for a beautiful woman or an ugly man :) Unique.
Halagador

Found Start sleeping and Donoso did his usual sounds when he saw me yesterday. We had a glorious day with sunshine and D went into a swingy passage and did some happiness jumps, big smile on my face :) My beautiful stud stallion is simply the best! Yes Donoso is now my horse, aswell as the rest of the Vikinga gang; Start, Picara, Novedosa and half of Halagador.
And today Javier's new beautiful boy arrived! 
P & Javier
 
  

Viggo played with Start doing his diagonal races, like we needed more excitement.. Girls got a good cleanup with hairstyling, looking smashing and I think Nova has grown, she looks very tall now. I got a bit worried because Pica did not look very pregnant from the side - until I went over to her other side and from there was a bump. She is very deep and has good chest width so she carries the baby well. Also it's her first and belly muscles are tight. I have been calculating when she is due but there are so many modells, to me Nr 2 seems best but I'd be happy to hear your experiences. Pica's last covering date is 20tieth of April. 

1. Adding 11 months from last covering 

2. Subtracting 23 days from last covering

3. Subtracting 1 month and 3 days from last covering
Picara today
  

I have got new booking on Festivo, a spanish breeder covering one mare this year.. Excellent and go for it I say, keep breeding excellent horses because in three years there won't be many PREs available and you will be one of few offering quality horses on the PRE market. It is an understatement to say the spanish breeders has diminished their breeding programs radically :( 

Here's one of my favourite breeding stallions having fun today

        

Germany has decided for one of the two horses we viewed day before yesterday so now we wait for the vetcheck for this beautiful well trained luxury horse!

After medical visit today I decided to award myself with some swedish sweets that I have a constant have craving for. Arriving to the shop I did not see a sharp curb, hit it hard and exploded my tire.. But luck was on my side and polite police (local, not guardia civil) actually helped my changing my tyre after a 20 min search for tools that were hidden in strange places in my car. But what great good guys! So swedish sweets became a expensive story since I am having swedish version of tyres really great for all climates and for pulling the trailer in crappy weather conditions, of course impossible to find in Spain so needs to be imported from Sweden. It's crap I know, but better with a explosion on a curb than explosion with a horse in the trailer,..

The other day we went to visit Donoso and Halagador babies born in April this year, they were both incredibly tall and very beautiful. Halagador got a filly and her mum brown/black, around 165 cm with 3 white feet and a star. The filly is jet black no white markings, tall and very feminine. She did not get Halagador's beautiful head, her hook angle is alittle bit too wide and her movements are not very powerful but she is a elegant, adorable and a very pretty lady. This breeder sells all male offspring and keeps the females for breeding and riding :)

Maestranza

   
Donoso's boy is a copy of himself and even though his mum has white legs and star he came out totally bay no white markings. He has powerful movements and a beautiful totally correct conformation. He is closely related to Donita VIK as her mother and the mother to this colt are also halfsisters, both sired by Delegado MAC. This is a incredibly cool guy that rolled himself around in the grass next to our feet, lot's of personality and selfconfidence. A mini-Donoso, one of the two only male D-offsprings and most certainly a future campeón - FOR SALE :) 

Both are 6 months now and now weaned from their mums. 

Don Donoso

Neither are not yet registered, there are a few Donoso's offspring not yet registered;

- Yeguada Windy Hill in Sweden has 1 black filly from 2011

- Yeguada Zorro PRE in Sweden has 2, one grey 2010 filly and one bay 2012 filly 

- And this bay boy in Spain 

Makes a total of 8 PRE Donoso VII offspring. 

Halagador has 10 offspring.

Finally rain is pouring down in Madrid and today horses stay in their fluffy strawbeds. We have had intensive days viewing horses and many kilometres so today will be day of catching up with everything. I have met Halagador's son, a tall elegant 3 year old grey stallion. He looks very much like Halagador in his expression, correct conformation and classy shorthaired velvet coat. We measured him 166 cm. His movements are typical Cárdenas, limited power in hindlegs and not athletic but soft, balanced and nicely coordinated front and back. The trot is not as straight as his father's, campanea. Beautiful horse, same laid back personality as Hagge! For sale! 

And a picture of my beautiful queen on her first day out with the girls!

Pica

This is for you who have been asking about Hagges story. When we bought him 2 years ago he was very little ridden. So I had to start from the beginning with building up foundation strenght and working him over topline. His good conformation, healthy physique and a strong back was fundamental for taking on the Halagador-project. He could do a extended trot on the lounge but not ridden. If a horse is not through in his back you cannot extend the trot and they won't overpass in the walk. His quality was obvious to me but he was so unfit he could not even keep the canter ridden. Now his trot extention is as good as Donoso's. His walk is loose, through and overpasses. He can collect his canter. His spanish trot is turning into passage all by itself as he is getting fitter. He loves his spanish walk because he is really good at it. And now he has also started to do flying changes. 
Objectively Halagador is not a PRE with capacity for Grand Prix dressage. He has unique beauty that overrides his correct conformation. His beauty is inherited from his Cárdenas bloodline. Cárdenas blood does not bring down strong athletic movements but he is half Yeguada Militar and was lucky to get the functionality also. He has a good overpass in walk, excellent extended trot and a great canter. His movements are elastic rather than powerful. Yes he  can learn all high school movements but he is an artist rather than a full on athlete. As you all know there is a big difference from knowing all GP moves and performing them in a dressage test where great strenght and stamina is needed. H has never been in top condition because I have not had the time and strenght to ride him every day. 'Hagge' is a horse for absolute enjoyment. He gives you a beautiful feeling when you ride. Is intelligent and learns quickly always, if treated with respect and consequence. And he loves playing with people from the ground. Halagador is a gentleman with his girlfriends, stands tied up next to the working-girls and never says a word. Just looks politely. 

Yes he gives me great satisfaction, just looking at him makes me happy. I would love to keep him and I can confess that it is not easy for me because I care deeply for him, a dream, love and enthusiasm is invested in this horse. I believe in his qualities. Even though he is not Grand Prix. And just as he is is plenty and enough to make anyone a very happy person. 

We still have summer here in Madrid! Today working all day long with happy clients, what a pleasure. Slowly we get the understanding of each other, they how I work and me what they want. We have France, Sweden and Germany lining up for visits and Halagador is on the list for two of them. I will be happy to show him because he is very much enjoying his work right now. Yesterday he wanted to warm up in extended trot! The change of food has been very good for him. He has started to do clean flying changes and the spanish trot is turning into spectacular passage as he is getting stronger. Stallions get to blossom at different ages and Halagador is at his peak now, even his hair is peak performance.. You who follow here might remember how his romantic hair-image got cut off by a nosy and too affectionate neighbour. His forelock was eaten up just below his eyes and he looked like a pony, it was painful. That was when we'd just bought him, now 2 years ago.. Today when he puts his nose on the ground his forelock drags on the floor!

Here he is doing his favourite spanish walk. 

And here's a newly selected black mare. She is 167 cm, pregnant (as you can see) and with f l y i n g movements despite her heavy belly that makes her look like a hippo. But she is just beautiful. She is in foal with a very exclusive chestnut stallion and this mare is an oportunity for any serious breeder seeing black quality PRE mare for competition and breeding. Its the kind of mare I would buy for Halagador.. 

There are also two new colourful beauties to check out on homepage;

Nr 594 http://www.horsespre.com/product/product.asp?id=1438&fn=true&scid=1&cid=0

and 

Nr 593 http://www.horsespre.com/product/product.asp?id=1437&fn=true&scid=3&cid=

Here running on low-energy levels, various check-ups at the doctor, a sunday of rest, good homemade food with lots of vitality, nutritional supplements and massage. With groom served horses I can give all three boys a nice good work out, my beautiful super students! Donoso can go from full on, low round stretch out canter to 100% collected canter ready for a form in three steps, so powerful loving the challenges, the more difficult the better for Donut! I have to really make an effort to come up with new excercises to keep him stimulated. And today Halagador did a clean flying change, oh so proud of him! His canter work is good enough for it now, his gym is built up little by little, with emphasis on little as he's nr 3 in line and the one who gets a lounging or paddock when I run out of energy. 

But Halagador made his job and got black girl pregnant not once but 3 times! Unfortunately she reabsorbed all three. As she had a perfect cycle, no infection or no other visual problem the veteriarians recommended hormonal treatment to maintain pregnancy. The reason for estrus being reabsorbed after confirmed pregnancy in most cases depend on the mare's low hormonal levels. So when nature says no it is up to us to choose to trick it, go with it. In this case her owner choose not treat her mare with hormones. So unfortunately and sadly there will be no Halagador baby next year. 

I am still looking into how to get semen from Donoso to Australia, the tests from last freezing are not valid so we need to make the procedure all over again. I am looking into costs for client and as I am not able to train him much whilst there I need to see if I can fit in freezing with competition schedule. So still working on that. 

This is Halagador covering last year and the pretty little longlegged result you can see below, not for sale!

It has been very hot here now and temps will rise to 40 degrees in some parts. So I have been riding late in the evening, yesterday I was finished at 22.30 Donoso has got two new bookings, one for Holland and another norwegian PRE mare. I also got a inquiry from a PRE studfarm in Australia that wants to expand their genepool! The quarantene is different for Australia but hopefully we can work it out for them.

Halagador is not going to Mexico. Perhaps it has to do with that when the 68 year old lady was going to testride, he did not move. At all. He just stopped and looked at me asking 'what do you want me to do with this person?' I moved away so he would be able to concentrate on the rider and as she did not want any help. But he just kept stopping and I was very surprised. Lady got off angry and said he was a rude horse. But Halagador is a very kind and willing horse.  Not sure what that was all about. The day after she tried him again when I was out with english clients and she was then able to ride him perfectly.

Here a clip me riding before mex testrides day 1.

England decided for one of the three candidates and he passed vetcheck brilliantly. So big congratulations to Jo, Greg and Sam, look forward to seeing him move on British Dressage!

The chosen one!