So why is it that there are no world class colored warmblood dressage stallions out there? Or are there?
Errr…I don’t really come on here much anymore and almost afraid to comment here but with some pinto horses in my yard I guess I will, lol! This may surprise some of you but I don’t care what color horses I get…I don’t care for greys much at all yet I have a grey mare because she is truly incredible. Quality, jump, athleticism, temperament and correctness are what I am looking for…not color…don’t care if it is there but not my primary focus. I’m great with folks that hate the pintos…no problem, I have solids too…and, lol, I don’t like their greys, hahahah!! But I truly have tried to bust my a$$ and limited checkbook to show that our horses are about their performance and temperament. And if they are pinto that the is the color they came in and has no bearing on how they will perform.
Here is a little history…years ago I went looking for a stallion with super jumping lines, great technique and hoped to find ammy friendly temperament. Those were my requirements and I was calling on all solid horses as that is what was around. Someone called me from Holland with a son of Caletto I out of a highly predicated KWPN mare who happened to be a pinto…he asked if the pinto color was a problem…I said no, send me video. When I saw the jump I wanted the horse…period. That was Palladio.
He completed his 100-Day Stallion Testing with great marks(6th overall), went on to do well with very limited showing and eventually won several International Hunter Derby classes. His offspring have many wins in the show rings, often with kids and ammies riding them and he does have his first offspring now showing in the International Hunter Derby ring. Additionally our foals, both solid and pinto, routinely score higher at inspections than other nicely bred babies. I never find their color has any bearing on the scores they receive…they score pretty much where I would expect them to based on their quality.
Last year we had our first stallion son of Palladio’s approved. Painted CF is out of our premium Gonzo I mare. I loved him so much from day one that I could never bring myself to geld him. That would have been the case regardless of his color…there was just something about him. Like Palladio, he also scored very well at his 70 Day Stallion Testing (6th overall) and we are hoping to be able to start showing him next season.
This week we had another stallion son, Pallido Blu CF, complete the 70 Day Stallion Testing with good marks (5th overall). His dam was a premium mare that had done well on the line and was a super type…she was pinto but that wasn’t why she came here…we thought she would be a good type for Palladio…she was fabulous and produced several great foals (some solid some pinto but all nice). As he is homozygous there will be folks that pick him because of his color but we hope that his test scores suggest to folks that there is more to him than JUST spots.
So, my point? Not everyone with an unusual colored horse in their program is breeding just FOR color. Some are, some aren’t…just like not everyone with a black dressage foal bred for black…I’d wager some bred for movement first, lol. At our house there are pintos around because of Palladio…and I wouldn’t trade him for anything…he was the ultimate proof for me that a good horse is always a good color. 
*ack…edited to say “WOW…sorry that got so long” hahhaha!!
I have always LOVED Palladio Andrea! His jump is consistently jaw dropping and nice to hear that he’s Ammy friendly and produces user friendly kids as well as them being talented (and spotted!)
Glitter Please WAS well on his way to being an UL dressage horse. Was long (or short?) listed for the dressage team until he had that tragic occurence that led to the end of his performance career. One of those “What if?!” situations for sure … AND he was a TB stallion and a palomino to boot … 
I think the pintos are more popular in the UK. Flax Lion Stud has Sambertino, an elite stallion who did the 100 day testing and his offspring (both solid and pinto) are doing well competing, some even PSG and the para olympics.
In 2007 Sambertino was Ranked 2nd Dressage Sire by BEF with 100% 1st Premium foals.
http://www.flaxlion.com/uploads/studcard/sambertino_2010_english.pdf
http://www.flaxlion.com/uploads/Tamberonie_h&H_oct10021.pdf
Samaii by Sambertino http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvEwa0VkwCk
The Irish Sport Horse Glenhill Gold has a good show record and his offspring and doing well. https://www.facebook.com/pages/GLENHILL-GOLD/314954333282
Mike Osinski also competed his pinto Pablo to grand prix level. All I could find on a quick video search was a sale video from years ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6I_p2349_Oo#t=17
For some people working with certain registries, they are limited even if they do like a horse of color or even if the colored horse is competing internationally. The Hanoverian Verband does not accept a horse of color, no matter how brilliant they perform internationally.
However, plenty of other registries do, including SWANA/ASVH, GOV, KWPN, RPSI, etc.
[QUOTE=Ysabel;7299118]
To answer honestly - yes I avoid colours such as pinto and dilutes. Do I feel colour is important? Not at all. But horses are expensive both to buy and to keep, so I have no shame in wanting a colour I like when I shop for a horse. My preferences are grey, black and chestnut. I would consider a bay if I really liked everything else about it. I have seen a few horses that seemed to carry their flashy colours very well - for example there have been a few well built horses who were leopard spotted who I would have jumped at the chance of owning - but they were the exception rather than the rule.
I also like lots of chrome, but as a bonus, definitely not a deal breaker if they don’t have a lot of white markings.
I should add that although I am not a fan of dilutes I do go a bit gaga over silver dappled horses and ponies.[/QUOTE]
I wanted to add that my first post was referring to me as a buyer of a horse for myself. As a breeder/seller I don’t think it matters what colour horses you have because, as the posts on this thread show, every colour is somebody’s favourite colour.
Of course there are some colours that always seem to be in more demand than others - i.e. black always seems to sell really fast, and I also noticed that solid coloured horses with lots of white markings move pretty quickly, but if you have a really nice animal there is no colour that is going to prevent it from selling, maybe just not as easily/quickly as a more popular colour.
A lot of people are saying that some breeders may be sacrificing quality to get a flashy colour, and that is definitely true in some cases, but I have seen a lot of really nice pinto and dilute sport horses that I liked (even if I am not a fan of their colour). Were they at the top of their sport? Mostly no … but is the “top of the sport” a huge client base for most breeders?
If there is a demand for a certain colour of horse why would you not try to breed for it? I am not saying a breeder should produce train wrecks just to get a colour, but so what if the resulting offspring are not Olympic bound. When your clientele are amateur riders who most likely will never jump a fence over 3’6", ride a dressage test above 4th level, or event past training level - then what is wrong with just producing a really nice, sound, sane horse for them in a colour they demand that can compete at those levels?
I also think that once you have a great horse of a certain color it soon becomes a favorite. I never thought much of roans then I bought a great pony that was roan, all 3 of her babies are roan and each one is nicer than the last, so now I’m totally in love with roanie ponies!
Personally I like some color (and chrome) other than the dilutes. I also would not want a wildly colored pinto/ paint for dressage as I do think it can make them look uneven or distracting. I LOVE a deep palomino, a buckskin or a conservative pinto.
However, I would not breed for one (unless a pony) as I have never found one I like as a dressage sire, either in performance or pedigree. I wish that were different. I can tell you when I bred my mare (a chestnut) to a Welsh pony to get a sport pony it just so happened that the stallion I loved was palomino. I did the “hope it is a palomino filly” dance which did not work. Instead I got a gorgeous flaxen chestnut with lots of chrome gelding:( Other than plumbing and lack of palomino coloring though he is perfect!!
Hence, I have had to fill my desire for color by getting a little saint of a paint mare that I use as a baby sitter for the foals and periodic trail horses/ buddy horse. Frankly I am happy she is not a show horse because keeping all that white clean is a real PITA:)
The only “accepted” color I would never breed for is grey. Horses have enough health issues to add on the whole melanoma thing. I’ll take any shade of chestnut, bay, black, black bay, etc.
I’m attracted to diluted ponies. Palomino, blue roan… I only like the pintos if they have he perfect pattern. Shield on the chest, dark head, and evenly spotted.
Knapstruppers… I love the wild leopard pattern and the snowflake pattern on the rump.
[QUOTE=Donella;7301891]
So why is it that there are no world class colored warmblood dressage stallions out there? Or are there?[/QUOTE]
Samber sired some GP dressage horses, as have 2 of his sons (Art Deco and Sambertino).
Considering that the current trend in dressage breeding has been a lot of black horses with no bling, it’s not surprising there are isn’t a loud pinto at the top of the dressage rankings.
The Hanoverian Verband does not accept a horse of color, no matter how brilliant they perform internationally.
Hanoverian is my registery of choice. Dominant White is the exception to the no-colour rule in that it can occur spontaneously. A nice DW TB mare can be classified into the studbook and then pass her colour on. My pure white DW mare is in the Hanoverian studbook, and her DW offspring (by Han approved stallions) will be too.
My DW mare has allowed me to have my cake and eat it too!
But I agree that all other forms of ‘colour’ most often come with some sort of compromise.
I thought I’d read somewhere that Samber had 11 approved sons…the GP jumpers sons of Samber that didn’t sacrifice any quality for color are Utah van Erkburn (sp? with John whitaker) and visage van de olmenhoeve.
I do have a Samber great granddaughter but she’s black not bont/pinto, so there’s my predilection showing.
I won’t say what color makes me gag cuz it will make others feel bad.
A good horse is a good horse, regardless of color.
Like everyone else, I have color preferences. I am very attracted to ‘sooty’ factored horses and prefer white on the head, dark eyes and matching socks or none.
But if a rarer colored horse can do the job well, stay sound and is pleasant tempered, it will do just fine. In some circles it will cost more than the plain brown wrapper counterpart, in some it will be preferred and up goes the price.
I think European-bred vs NA bred in a plain brown wrapper can be a tougher sell than the unusual color in NA, simply because it isn’t found ‘over there’.
Color only amplifies the quality +/-.
Pinto with an average jump, just another man’s junk. Pinto with fantastic jump, now we’re talking a rare pearl. Color gets your qualities noticed, whether good or bad.
Would I own an exceptional horse of unusual color? Absolutely, and enjoy the unique aspect . A less than exceptional horse but gorgeous unusual color, not in a million years.
I just can’t stomach breeding for color myself, because I’m not that risky a gambler to risk losing the basics. Would not buy for color alone either.
One of my very most favorite horses of all time is Crocodile, the unconventional puissance jumping Appaloosa in the 80’s that was just exceptional in any color. No beauty, but his spots made him a beautiful horse in a world class talented somewhat funky package that made you love him.
And I will be watching what is produced by new stallion Pallado Blu, very interesting if he performs/produces like his more common colored competitors. Beautiful stallion so far, and the strong pedigree delivers.
In case you have a Rox Dene or Strapless in an unusual color, please p.m. me…I have no prejudice…
I love spots. I admit it. I having spot envy. I have two plain bays and black now. I was trying to make spots by breeding a Swedestrupper, but it didn’t work.
I have to say, that video of Samaii is NICE. Without the spots, he’s a lot more correct mover than a lot of the big young stallions everyone is ooohing and aaahhing over. I would pick him over just about any of the other’s I’ve seen just based on that movement. It’s correct and through the body, not the leg.
I won’t have a gray. Otherwise I don’t care. I have preferences (black, chestnut, bay) but it would never make or break a purchase.
I have a flashy pinto (Samber great granddaughter), so I am bias with regards to color. That said some of the dominant white offspring look more like freaky science experiments gone wrong than “flashy”, and I can’t see the market for them in the show ring.
I really don’t like the look of those pale horses with the pink or blue eyes … but happily I’ve never found a horse with the qualities I seek (grace, athleticism, etc) that was so unfortunately coloured, so I did not have to forego one based on colour.
Nice looking horse! But he is missing a chunk of his pedigree!!! Isn’t he an example of why “horses of colour” have a reputation for not having the performance pedigree required for the FEI levels? Sure, this palomino had a good sire line, but what was his mother?! The mare line is so important, it floors me that anyone would breed to a stallion with “unknown” listed there when there are so many incredible stallions available AI. Which leads me to believe his being intact has a lot to do with his colour…
Re: my own preferences, my all-time favourite horse colour is buckskin, followed by black. Am also partial to greys although they are a PITA to keep clean.
Color is not an issue for me. I don’t prefer chestnut and I own two. I have a strong dislike for grays (because of melanomas) and I’m looking at Riverman for one of my chestnut mares. I’ll take the color risk if the quality is there. As much as I love a color, I won’t use it if the quality is not there. Even as an amateur, I want to produce athletic horses that can go on to riders who are way better than me.
