in my experience, yes!
Given the Spanish overwhelming preference for grey horses, finding another colour can be difficult in PRE. Chestnuts, for example, could not be entered into the stud book for decades as the colour was considered to be evidence of foreign blood (Chestnut Breton horses were used in the 19th century to ‘improve’ the Spanish horses). Modern colour in PRE tends to trace to Lusitanos, which have always retained a wider range of coat colours. Just a side note, as I have observed a slight dislike of greys in reading COTH comments.
OP, this weeks Horse & Hound (04 Feb) is featuring Iberian horses and it is useful reading if you can obtain a copy somehow.
I think the dislike of greys is broader than just the Iberian horses, lol. I owned a LARGE grey trakehner mare when I lived in NE Ohio and it was a significant challenge about 8 months a year. Swore I would never own another. Guess what…I have a “white” older Lusitano and a dapple grey Lusitano X ( he’s only 7…). But in Florida it is ever so much easier as our dirt is basically sand, and there are very few days when you cant just hose them off. I do what I call the “pressure wash” setting on the nozzle.
The dapple grey is new in the last 90 days or so…I still find myself trying to clean spots that aren’t dirty
Mentioned in a post here is an article about the Iberians. Whether PRE or Lusitano, they are all the things you want. They are a bit of a different ride as they have very quick brains and can get tense and choppy if they dont quite understand. Some need to learn how to stretch over their back to move bigger without being quick - Its not unusual to see them piaffe and passage but not be able to work through the back. There are very very few people I know who own one that aren’t hooked once they’ve had the first one…
This is very true. IMHO, they have just as many training challenges as WBs - they’re just different. They learn the movements easily, but it’s not uncommon to spend 2-3 years getting first level right if you want to produce correct work. They take time to learn to swing through the back and honestly push into the hand.
With a rising 3-year old, I got time, and no one’s cock-ups but my own to untangle. There’s an older PRE gelding at the yard, a Spanish import, and he’s curled into a ball up front and tight through his back and pretty nervy. He’ll piaffe at the drop of a hat, but he’s stiff as a 2x4. I would prefer to not have that. I think if I bring the horse along carefully and choose trainers intelligently, I can avoid it. I’ve unwound nervous Welsh Sec Ds and someone’s Friesian in my time.
I’m looking at the horses tomorrow. Really hoping one feels like the right horse, which I know is asking a lot of a baby who will be filling the very large shoes of my Shire-X. But buying a locally bred one would make life very easy.
I had an equitation horse named “Another Grey,” so named because when we went to try him (well before the days of online video) the first words out of the trainers mouth were “not ANOTHER gray horse!”
Does a Lipizzaner qualify? Spanish ancestry, fabulous character and usually longevity/soundness.
I imported a (now coming 8 year old) Lipizzaner gelding almost a year ago from Vienna (one of the last planes out prior to the COVID shut down). He was bred at the Spanish Riding School’s stud at Piber, so he had an idyllic youth running in the mountains for 4 years, was gelded, and then in training with an SRS Bereiter. The training, breeding history, and running in the Alps with other young Lipizzaners were the reasons I wanted to import rather than find a horse in the US., and which I’d have a hard time putting a price tag on, so for me it was well worth the cost. This is the horse of my dreams, and I hope 20 years from now we are still a strong and healthy partnership.
Just an opinion of a different type of Spanish horse.
When I was shopping 4 years ago, and when I browse now, I have no problem finding a lot of PRE’s that aren’t gray. I refuse to have a gray due to so many having melanomas. I think I’ve just had really bad experiences personally. Others, perhaps not.
Not keen on greys either, for that reason. Known too many who got melanomas. Luckily, the two babies I’m looking at this afternoon are both bay!
I used to love greys. Then I found out about melanomas, which I hate. And it really seems true that greys get dirtier even than mostly white pintos.
i have two grays. The older arab mare is 20 and white. She is still doing well though she is beginning to develop small sarcoids. I’ve committed to her not having more than one bad day. Younger gray is a fine mustang and still pretty gray, he’s 7.
The bay two-year old PRE mare chose me. So I’m going ahead with a vet check and hopefully end up with a very pretty bay Andalusian.
How exciting!
Congratulations!!! I’d love to see pics!
Lippizzaner qualify in my book! I’m just a Baroque horse fan in general. Lippizzaner are a rarity in my general area, though. Probably more so than PRE.
These are lousy photos. The filly is running with her dad, mom, other broodmares, and siblings, who were all behind me when I took this. She was being affectionate and cuddly with me until one of the older broodmares wanted in on the attention. OH was meant to be taking photos, but all the younger foals in the herd decided they liked him, so he was playing with foals instead.
I’m imagining the whole horse “fam” behind you going “Hey, hey! Human! Take MY picture!”
She’s gorgeous!
Yeah, saw the whole fam damnly. When dad is running with his mares and foals, and doesn’t mind random humans chilling with the herd, that’s a good sign. Dad hung out with non-horsey (quickly becoming horsey) OH a bit, but he mostly watched things. The broodmares and youngsters were keen on fuss. Dad is drop dead gorgeous, in that Shadowfax way, as one would expect of a PRE stallion, and Mom is also stunning.