Our TB stallion, Challenged is by Unbridled’s Song out of an AP Indy mare…he has been sold, but he was a very civilized stallion to live with…all of our foals are out of Puchi’s Rambo (Puchilingui) mares and are fantastic!! Super movers with terrific, user friendly minds!! We have a 2 yr. old colt by Challenged who is over 16.2 at 24 months and he is sweet as a puppy…very athletic and a fabulous mover, but the manners and attitude of an old QH gelding!!! It still takes two good parents to produce one good foal!!!
C’mon, Ibex - you are, of course entitled to your opinion…but Final Pool had a legion of fans up and down the west coast and some on the east coast. Known for his temperament. His looks, movement and being able to do the GP at places Like Spruce, World Cup Qualifiers against the likes of Big Ben - this DESPITE his amateur owner’s riding.
If you knew a bat-shit crazy one (or more), look to the mare, look to the owners, handling, or individual horse who was tough or a nut. The stallion cannot do it all. His presence has come down through to his granddaughter.
Well, my opinion is based in personal experience of multiple horses from various mares and breeders, so I think there’s something to that. I also knew FP in his old age and he was a grouchy old b@stard, but that’s not uncommon with older stallions.
I think FP was probably the best the region had to offer back in the day.
I was going to say Fappiano as well. >.>
I’ve had mine since he was 4 and he’s 17 now. From right off of the track, you could put anyone up on him saddle-less and bridle-less and let them mosey around in an open field together. The BO’s non-horsey husband used to do it all of the time. You can still do the same even if he hasn’t been ridden in 6 months. He’s such a great horse.
Now after reading what people have said about quirks in these horses, I can admit that my guy has his as well. He likes things same same same. Feed at the same time, nap at the same time, chase dogs at the same time, etc. He is also one where you need to make anything challenging seem like it’s his idea or he will fight to the death, for 10 seconds, then he just gives up and does it anyway.
I had him at a busy lesson barn 2 years ago and he did not do well in that environment. They couldn’t even bring him in to feed because they said he acted up so badly and he wouldn’t tie for them and was bad with his feet. I was pretty shocked to say the least. This is a horse that I pretty much walk anywhere without the need for halter or lead, even though I put it on. The same horse that I treat, medicate, re-dress, out in the pasture without a halter and lead. The same horse that my vet was gobsmacked about when I asked for a little ace to help him load into a strange trailer (he likes a stock due to a trailer accident). The vet kept saying, “Your horse? #####??” over and over…lol. Heck, he did surgery on my guy’s foot out in the pasture once.
So yeah, I think they are great horses and I think they have a quiet temperament, but there are trade offs. My guy would never runaway or buck or rear or kick or any of that, but if you don’t pet him and talk to him before you start tacking him up, be ready for a bad attitude for the whole ride. lol Bad attitude= ears back, swishy tail, not exactly listening to all the cues exactly when you want them executed, but will do it grudgingly.
Final Pool- he had had a bad trailering accident and could no longer mount mares - it was likely he was in pain - but I saw so much of him, I really stand by him for his widely known reputation and performance, (saw him both in action and breeding). In fact, his handlers in Arlington said they guarantee his temperament above all…I researched before using him and think I lucked out with the offspring. He bred five full brothers and sisters out of a Holsteiner mare (Special Effects, I think) and they ended up champion hunters in California and the east coast. Special Event was his stallion son, as I recall. Anyway, I would not knock him as a stallion.
His biggest problem was his owner did not keep his registrations paid up and owners were stuck with not being able to register the progeny. BUT Final Pool was the first TB stallion in North America qualified as a Dutch Warmblood - meaning if you bred a Dutch mare to him, the offspring would be eligible to be registered Dutch.
I have always heard that about the Storm Cats but the kindest horse I ever owned was a Giant’s Causeway (and to hear tell, he was the worst of the Storm Cat sons). The big red guy is now happily packing around his kid in the pre-children’s. 
LOL, I have a gelding that I got in November. Storm Cat on top and Slew on the bottom, and so far (knock wood) he is an angel!
[QUOTE=bornfreenowexpensive;8684737]
I’ve also met some lovely easy ammy ride Bernardinis (including one still intact)…so it just shows that it really depends on the horse.[/QUOTE]
I totally agree with this one, good brains & looks, I can spot a Bernardinis offspring a mile away.
I have a Bernardini stallion in my barn right now who also has a fabulous temperament. Love everything about him, very kind and genuine.
I don’t always argue!
Sure - Bernadini is a good bet…his sire A.P.Indy (Slew) and Quiet American
(Fappiano) on the bottom.
Ooooh I was definitely blaming Halo/Sunday Silence for Lani’s temperament. His dam was also well-known for being a “problem child”.
As to the Storm Cat vs Deputy Minister, I think Deputy Minister makes a much nicer sport horse in general. Particularly if they’re through his son Dehere. Just all-around put together better and not phased by much.
I have found Storm Cat’s super close relatives to be overly flighty and hot for sport, including immediate daughters. Just not my preference, although I know some swear by 'em.
I DO like Giant’s Causeway for UL sport, I’ve got to say.
One line I haven’t seen mentioned is Pleasant Colony. Sweet as pie, the lot of them, and all look almost exactly alike - gigantic, gangly, uphill brown/bay horses with minimal white and “bonnet ears.” I’ve met a few ditzes. Great great great movers, even if they look awkward as all get out as youngsters.
My personal horse is by Alleged out of a Roberto mare. He is honest as the day is long (sometimes too honest). Acts like a total grumpy pants until you fuss a bit over him then he’s lovey. I’ve had for nearly eleven years, and he’s never bucked, reared, bolted, or really put a foot wrong. He’s just not “easy” and was much happier cross-country or foxhunting than anything in the ring.
Not that you’ll find a lot of them in North America, but the Ahonoora/Indian Ridge horses are a nice tempered lot.
Little Stumpy Bighead is by a Slew stallion out of a Topsider mare. He may be funny looking, but he is quiet and willing, a great work ethic, and TB smart. He is kind in the barn, too, with a sweet nature.
[QUOTE=K~2;8688073]
Not that you’ll find a lot of them in North America, but the Ahonoora/Indian Ridge horses are a nice tempered lot.[/QUOTE]
I totally agree!
I think the variety of responses, often about the same lines, same horses, indicates that this is not a simple question.
Partly, I think because ‘temperament’ is subjective, and can’t be measured in the same way that jumping ability can, for example.
I happen to like smart, level-headed, sensitive, thinking horses.
My own stallion, A Fine Romance exemplifies this. I have owned him since his birth 25 years ago, and in that time, he has never shied or spooked at anything.
His offspring often have that same smartness and self-confidence, the ability to assess a situation and deal with it.
He had a long career both showing and breeding, and was able to go directly from the breeding shed into the show ring, often on the same day, without ever putting a foot wrong.
I have told the story about my truck breaking down on the highway coming back from breeding the stallion. He was on the trailer at the side of the road, being buffetted by transports and gravel trucks for over an hour while we waited for help. He was loose in the box stall of the trailer.
When my friend arrived, she pulled her two horse ahead of us on the shoulder. I had to unload and lead him on the highway without even inches of margin of error. If he turned even slightly, spooked, shied, or acted up we could have been hit and killed. He didn’t turn a hair just unloaded, walked directly onto her trailer without hesitation, traffic roaring past.
When I got into her truck I burst into tears.
His full sister was also one of the most level-headed, most intelligent horses I have ever known.
In terms of pedigree, he is 4x4 Nasrullah, 5x5 Princequillo, and one often reads that Nasrullah was “brilliant but tempermental”.
My understanding however is that this is in reference to his racing career, and that he did not appreciate being hit.
His sire, Brave Shot (GB) (Bold Bidder - Gay Missile/Sir Gaylord) was known for siring hard knocking race horses who often went on to excellent careers in the show ring.
One of our top hunter riders had many of them and he said " they are beautiful, can all jump, and they have great minds". The former captain of our jumping team made a point of picking up Brave Shots off the track. His female family (Gay Missile/Missy Baba) is the same family as Lemon Drop Kid and A.P. Indy.
Here is the pedigree: http://www.pedigreequery.com/a+fine+romance
As others have pointed out, our knowledge of certain lines temperament is often 2nd or 3rd hand, and is subjective and may not be an accurate portrayal of the horse.
So, I agree with the others who have said judge the horse in front of you, with the understanding that the handling the horse may have received will shape how they may appear.
Good luck!
Interesting about Nasrullah. One of my all time favorite horses and now one of my broodmares is line bred to him. One of his decedents (What a Pleasure) is one of my favorite lines to see in a horse. http://www.pedigreequery.com/charm18
And yes…I’d describe my mare similar to Fred as well as her offspring. Rarely a spook, smart, thinking and level headed. She can have had 2 years off having babies, and I can tack her up, swing leg over and go out on a lovely hack without thinking twice. BUT she wouldn’t have been the right match for just any rider. She never put a foot wrong but I wouldn’t say she was easy to ride either.
I personally love smart, forward and sensitive rides…in other hands, people might drive the same horse nuts. So easy to see how people can blame bad temperament on what is really just a bad match.
I’ve always looked at horses as individuals but I will say that every horse I was drawn to when volunteering at a track were Slew horses.
The Thoroughbred I ended up getting from the track is a Slew grandson. Very professional horse. Sweet but cuddly on his own terms, terrific manners. Raced 67 times and almost to his eighth year and retired sound. Love the Slews.
[QUOTE=bornfreenowexpensive;8688271]
I personally love smart, forward and sensitive rides…in other hands, people might drive the same horse nuts. So easy to see how people can blame bad temperament on what is really just a bad match.[/QUOTE]
Agreed… This is why I try to pop in threads when I see popular sires like Storm Cat being smeared… bad temperament is easily blamed when the two are just not a suitable match; that is okay, but it means you just need to find your ‘type’.
Me, I like forward thinking and sensitive - so most of the names on here that I know are a little spicier are okay with me. I love a good SC ride; same with Dixieland Band - they are smart as a whip but SO very sensitive… Nasrullah horses (linebred) are usually noble but very, very brilliant if you have a good partnership with them. They can be very challenging if you do not.
I do tend to look at the horse first and the pedigree second, but there are certain horses my eyes are always drawn to. The one thing I’ve noticed along these horses is that they usually have an absolutely inordinate amount of Teddy and Bold Ruler up close.
Sounds like you are describing our Slew too! He raced 73 times until he was 11… wonderful horse, made a wonderful event horse for several young riders and I would not trade him for anything.
I rode an Unbridled Song gelding and he was SO wonderful, kevel headed, athletic if you asked him to… really nice guy.
The horse I just lost was by Caller I.D. [Phone Trick] and he was like an STB… level headed, sweet, athletic with big movement. Just a great guy.
I would be interested to hear if that is par for the course with that stallions get or if that was just Melvin.
I also new another Phone Trick stallion, who’s name I forget, who was equally easy going, mellow and handsome.
