[QUOTE=Brutust;6159873]
I came across this video of Sir Wanabi today. I am amazed that a stallion could have such a sweet temperament.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwYYBUtqjFU&list=UU3cKt_noiPUmsCOQRJkAt7g&index=1&feature=plcp
We should start a list of stallions that are known to have a good disposition for amateur riders.[/QUOTE]
what an awesome video!
I think those who breed for the sport disciplines have to keep in mind that most of those who will eventually ride the produce are female ammies – so good temperment is a must in the stallions AND the mares! As for Thoroughbreds, I always feel compelled to defend them for some reason, but having had and handled a number of Thoroughbred stallions, I have to say they are still my heart. I rode Murray through a dressage test with only a halter and lead line for a mare owner at one time. I also rode him in the mare field regularly around mares and foals. Huntsman was an absolute gentleman – took him to another farm for a friend to try out dressage saddles once. She had never ridden him or any stallion and he was super about the whole process. I have ridden him bareback as well. His sire hunted regularly without incident. I also handled both for live cover by myself and I’m 4’10". I worried more about a mare misbehaving than I did them. So, let’s not group “Thoroughbreds” in a bad light, please! I know from going on 40 years with them they are stellar!
PennyG
The video of Sir Wanabi and the young lady brought tears to my eyes. What a wonderful stallion and a special little girl.
I don’t have any offspring by Sir Wanabi - but both he and his sire, Santorini, are well known for easy temperaments. When Santorini was at the RCMP, the “help” said his foals were consistently smarter and easier than foals from other
sires. They loved dealing with them (and from that group, Sir Wanabi was a superstar).
[QUOTE=TKR;6160476]
I think those who breed for the sport disciplines have to keep in mind that most of those who will eventually ride the produce are female ammies – so good temperment is a must in the stallions AND the mares! As for Thoroughbreds, I always feel compelled to defend them for some reason, but having had and handled a number of Thoroughbred stallions, I have to say they are still my heart. I rode Murray through a dressage test with only a halter and lead line for a mare owner at one time. I also rode him in the mare field regularly around mares and foals. Huntsman was an absolute gentleman – took him to another farm for a friend to try out dressage saddles once. She had never ridden him or any stallion and he was super about the whole process. I have ridden him bareback as well. His sire hunted regularly without incident. I also handled both for live cover by myself and I’m 4’10". I worried more about a mare misbehaving than I did them. So, let’s not group “Thoroughbreds” in a bad light, please! I know from going on 40 years with them they are stellar!
PennyG[/QUOTE]
I concur! I have been around many TB stallions - most old school and pasture bred but even then they had manners and could be handled easily.
[QUOTE=wanabi;6160347]
I am the owner of Sir Wanabi and, I just want to say that Brutus is not doing advertising for my stallion, she just wanted to share the video, like a lot of people did on facebook when I post it there. I can do my advertising myself. And yes, she does own a very nice filly by my stallion. 
Also, the reason for Sara to ride Sir Wanabi is, Sara had cancer last year and her dream was to ride him, I made her dream come true :yes:
Sandra
www.laprisestable.com[/QUOTE]
what a sweet story! Hoping little Sara is cancer free now 
My trainer put her baby on my young stallion for pony rides. He is such a mellow, easy going guy. We took Cadence (my senior stallion) to HorseExpo one year - he was wonderful with all the kids, so carefully extracting horse cookies from their fingers. I agree with the early post - many stallions are NOT fire breathing dragons. I have seen a few - some are very talented riding horses, but for pro-rider and handler ONLY, but their are plenty out there that are just nice horses.
I do think testosterone (aka libido) can overtake a horse’s brain, and some “fire breathing dragons” may not pass on that “temperment”, it is really just hormones taking over. And that may be one reason some stallions aren’t competing…
Ironman. He is the most gentle stallion I have ever worked with. He can stand cross tied in the isle of our busy commercial barn looking at the backsides of several horses. When he was working you could ride right next to a mare, he trailered with mares. He has been ridden by a 6 year old loose in the ring, to this day he still gives pony rides. When he was showing, he could come out of the jumper ring and a kid or amateur could cool him out. One time at the ingate I was telling my rider the course and turned around to look at him when I saw two tiny girls wrapped around each of his front legs, he stood like a rock while I pried them off of his legs.
Nancy
[QUOTE=nsm;6160851]
Ironman. He is the most gentle stallion I have ever worked with. He can stand cross tied in the isle of our busy commercial barn looking at the backsides of several horses. When he was working you could ride right next to a mare, he trailered with mares. He has been ridden by a 6 year old loose in the ring, to this day he still gives pony rides. When he was showing, he could come out of the jumper ring and a kid or amateur could cool him out. One time at the ingate I was telling my rider the course and turned around to look at him when I saw two tiny girls wrapped around each of his front legs, he stood like a rock while I pried them off of his legs.
Nancy[/QUOTE]
What a wonderful boy… love Ironman…
[QUOTE=Sunnydays;6160566]
I don’t have any offspring by Sir Wanabi - but both he and his sire, Santorini, are well known for easy temperaments. When Santorini was at the RCMP, the “help” said his foals were consistently smarter and easier than foals from other
sires. They loved dealing with them (and from that group, Sir Wanabi was a superstar).[/QUOTE]
Yes. It was a huge loss when Santorini died. And just last year, his other son, (Souvenir) in Europe died, also known for his spectacular easy-going temperament, nice movements, and well above-average dressage abilities. The Santorini bloodline is an important one to keep going.
As great a temperament as a stallion himself may have, I think what the OP must mean is what kind of temperament a stallion gives to his offspring. All young stallions go thru a raucous period and then the good ones settle down and behave well. Balt’Amour is a puppy dog now, got all 9.5 and above for all temperament related character traits at the testing, etc. He is quiet and takes absolutely no prep other than a warm-up at a show. That being said, what kind of personality his offspring has is whats important, I would think. So far all of Balt’Amour’s offspring are easy and willing to do their job. We are just beginning to start his 3 year olds and so far they are a piece of cake. This line, starting with Alla’Czar is known for this, so it is no surprise.
Maggie
Oh my god, I didn’t even watch the video when I originally posted. HOW ADORABLE! What a nice horse!
Over the years Meisterwind gave many rides to people, from kids to oldsters and everyone in between. Without fail he always “adjusted” his gaits to the rider. In fact with tiny kids he wouldn’t move unless an adult walked along.
But there was this one time with a very pompous person who wanted to see just what was so “special” about the highfalutin warmblood. Person got on, started kicking and rode like a sack of potatoes. Meister gave about 6 or 8 strides of his big trot, just to the point where the riders eyes were as big as saucers and another 2 or 3 strides would have had them on the ground. He then “shut down” to a jog that would have rivaled the best pleasure horse and stopped right in front of me, with, I swear a smirk on his face. Rider got off stuttering something about how they had never felt nuthin like that, EVER!
More importantly though is whether a stallion sires good dispositions. And many people seem to forget that horses have mothers too :lol:
[QUOTE=TKR;6160476]
I think those who breed for the sport disciplines have to keep in mind that most of those who will eventually ride the produce are female ammies – so good temperment is a must in the stallions AND the mares! As for Thoroughbreds, I always feel compelled to defend them for some reason, but having had and handled a number of Thoroughbred stallions, I have to say they are still my heart. I rode Murray through a dressage test with only a halter and lead line for a mare owner at one time. I also rode him in the mare field regularly around mares and foals. Huntsman was an absolute gentleman – took him to another farm for a friend to try out dressage saddles once. She had never ridden him or any stallion and he was super about the whole process. I have ridden him bareback as well. His sire hunted regularly without incident. I also handled both for live cover by myself and I’m 4’10". I worried more about a mare misbehaving than I did them. So, let’s not group “Thoroughbreds” in a bad light, please! I know from going on 40 years with them they are stellar!
PennyG[/QUOTE]
^^ I agree with Penny, it is the individual,not the breed. And very often how the horse is raised and treated.
We have had numerous discussions of temperament and what is a good temperament- I think it is different things to different people.
I agree with notagain, we should not confuse libido with temperament.
I think what is important is how the horse behaves when he is asked to do something, when the situation is different, how he responds to stress, and what does he do in an upsetting situation.
A stallion can be very quiet at home - but can he show?
Can he handle the other horses, the confusion, the activity, the noise?
Can he trot around a ring in a class or warm up ring full of mares( or Heaven forbid, ponies!!) and just go in the ring and get the job done?
What does he do in an emergency when all hell is breaking loose when you really NEED him to behave and listen?
For me, those are the things that truly demonstrate a ‘good temperament’.
I love the Sir Wanabi video - very sweet, thank you for posting, and I too hope the little girl has a full and complete recovery.:yes:
Love the Ironman story too Nancy, no one could doubt what a great temperament he has. Such a lovely horse! :yes:
And I also agree with Maggie F and DQ - it is also important what kind of temperament the offspring inherit (keeping in mind the mares contribute a lot too.)
My stallion, Lansing, has a wonderful temperament. He has had a long career including GP jumper and with me as adult amateur and now he’s retired on my farm. I have a coming 2 year old filly by him and he gives her his bravery and confidence, and I can’t wait to see her jump! She also has a lot of her dams characteristics but he definitely “stamped” her, she even has his same markings.
He and I are now doing some clicker training to keep his brain engaged and he loves it. He has such a great personality and can be such a ham. He loved showing, he would always strut his stuff and love to see everything going on around him. In his last year of showing I would just haul in and show from my trailer and he would wait patiently on the trailer or hanging out by the ring. Such a good boy!
I think as long as you treat them the same, just being very aware that they are still stallions, you are ok.
Sir Sinclair
First of all, I am not a breeder and have no desire to be. That said, I think Sir should be added to the list of stallions with good temperaments. I bred my mare to him in 2006 based on his current offspring at the time and also knowing him personally. He was located 15 minutes from me, so I could watch him train and visit him in his stall. I watched him in an under saddle class for stallions at DAD as a 4 or 5 year old where the stallion next to him blew, flipped, dumped his rider and took off. Sir just stood there on a loose rein. His offspring are friendly and smart as well as having excellent temperaments. Of course temperament is not all of it. The nicest stallion in the world should not be bred just because they have a nice temperament. I really like the dutch horses and IMHO the KWPN is the toughest registry out there. I believe that they really look at everything including temperament when approving their stallions. Getting back to Sir Sinclair, many ammys have them and they seem to be very versatile. Boyd and Silva Martin have one for sale on their website who just seems like the nicest horse with the best temperament. Bottom line is that when evaluating a stallion the offspring need to be evaluated as well. IMHO of course.
Another vote for Ironman. Nancy was very generous when I was out visiting her farm in the dead of winter and allowed me to have a ride on him a few years ago. His changes were easy through 2’s and he is a blast to ride with smooth gaits and a wonderful calm demeanor. Lovely stallion IMO.
I am particularly fond of Waldaire and his offspring but as I am his owner and ride tons of his offspring… I am probably a bit biased. But from the first ride he was/has been a horse that works for you rather than using his power for untoward purposes. Adamant was also one who passed an exceptionally forgiving temperament to his offspring. They consistently regard riders as their ‘package’ and take very good care of them. In many ways they have a ‘responsibility gene’ built in. But like Waldaire - I’ve had lots of exposure to his get and am in no way impartial.
OP - if you are considering a stallion, do yourself a favor and track down riders who have worked with his offspring. Get their candid opinions!
Good luck with whichever stallion(s) you choose!
Wow
Just looked at the video of Sir Wanabi
What a good boy - he looked after her so well every step of the way. Loved the change she got with him and the jumping footage was fabulous
How is she doing Sandra?
I’ve followed Sara’s story - she’s a spunky little girl - and bought a breeding to Sir Wanabi for, among other obvious attributes, his super temperament. Landkoenig and Rubignon are others I’ve bred mares to for all of their talents but also for their good temperaments. I know there are many other good stallions who seem to pass on the good nature including Amazing and Escapade since I can vouch for their get that I know. My As di Valentia young stallion has a super quiet and affectionate temperament, too, and I so much appreciate that!
As a teen, I rode two TB jumper stallions with amazing temperaments.
Not just a good disposition but Landkoenig has a phenomenal disposition. I met him several years ago out in his pasture along with a friend of mine. Edgar called him and ‘Landi’ came running up. We fed him carrots sans even a halter admiring him all the while.
Beyond gentle, quietly charismatic. I knew then I wanted to own a Landkoenig. As luck would have it, I soon became the owner of a Landkoenig.
I do think the dam (and damsire) of our boy has also had an influence on his disposition/personality. Also, I have yet to see a Landkoenig offspring that cannot ‘jump’. Our boy loves to jump and schools to 1.4M now.
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