dancing horses

dancing horses

Sunday, October 1, 2017

Blessed Be the Broodmare

Blessed are the broodmares in the field,
Patiently carrying their heavy load
Without complaint waiting for the big day,
When they, without a sound, lay down in the straw
~EMS~ 

Carmen with her dam, Adurina
Carmen's dam, Adurina, passed away this week from a twisted bowel. She was one of three mares imported from Spain as part of a group of Cobra mares.  I remember meeting Adurina when I was in Virginia to try out Carmen. After we had reached a deal and I was getting ready to head back to the hotel I went into the paddock to see Carmen again. I was greeted at the gate by a mare who was clearly in charge. She was not aggressive or even pushy. She simply looked at me calmly and wanted to know who this person was coming into her herd. I gave her a greeting and, after a sniff, she let me go by and watched as I went to greet her daughter. I remember thinking at the time that I hoped Carmen developed this same level of confidence and presence.

We often talk of stallions but the mare is as important, if not more, as the stud. She not only needs a good conformation and movement but she needs to raise her baby as well. I know that many believe that the mare passes along her temperament. I am not a breeder so I do not know if that is true or not but it seems that a mare is critical to having a quality horse.

This video is a sale video for Carmen (Charlante is her registered name). You can see that Adurina has quality movement.




Karen, Adurina's owner is understandably devastated to lose her mare. Not only was she a foundation of her breeding program, she loved her. These horses, they work their way into our hearts and leave such a hole when they go.

God speed Adurina. I will be forever grateful for the gift you gave me.

25 comments:

  1. How sad, but what a lovely mare. How blessed you are to have part of her legacy.

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    1. She really was lovely. Easy to overlook because of her colouring but watching her move- wow.

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  2. Never easy to lose a horse, especially such a good producer. Can see where Carman gets her fancy from there.

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  3. Sad news :( You are so right about the mares being SO important, and often so underappreciated. A good dam can really improve a breed. She was beautiful <3

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    1. She was beautiful. Fortunately she has an owner who did all the right things to limit her suffering. Her foal is doing well too.

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  4. Both Tesla and Porsche are just like their Mums - mares are definitely are the cornerstone of bloodlines. Glad you still have a piece of Adurina in Carmen <3

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  5. So sad to hear but cute to see baby Carmen :)

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  6. What a beautiful mare she was and Carmen is gorgeous like her mom. You can see where Carmen gets her movement and looks from. Mares are so important in a breeding program and i think responsible for some of the inherited temperament of their foals. I loved watching Carmen stay close and emulate her mother. So sad to lose a wonderful mare like Adurina to something so stupid like a twisted bowel. They are such fragile beings.

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    1. They are fragile indeed. Carmen does have the same floaty movement.

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  7. What a presence she had. I'm so sorry for her passing.

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  8. I'm so sorry to hear about Carmen's mom. She was lovely. And baby Carmen was adorable.

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  9. Oh, so sad to hear. Prayers for them. It is hard loving these animals sometimes. I love that she left that impression on you. I agree, the mares are equally important. Breed great to great. I wouldn't care if the mare was amazing and had won a bunch of trophies and ribbons, if she is bad natured and ill tempered, I would not want her raising a baby, or even passing those genetics on. That is just me. Not my definition of great.

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    1. Yes. Why have an ill-tempered mare bring in more ill-tempered horses?

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  10. What a beautiful mare!! And, obviously a good mama, judging by Carmen’s strength and confidence around her. I read that in wild herds, the lead mare passes on her strength and wisdom to her foals, and her fillies will often be lead mares later. There was one example where, in a heavy drought year, the lead mare led the herd to a rare watering hole. Years later, after she’d passed and her foal taken her spot as lead, there was another deep drought year and that mare was also able to take the herd to the same watering spot.

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  11. Bebe Carmen is so cute!!!


    So sorry to hear about her momma though :(

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    1. She was totally adorable. I am sorry about her mom too.

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  12. That mare was a beefcake. Wow, what a nice mare. So sorry for her loss.

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  13. How sad to lose such a nice mare well before her time.
    Mares absolutely pass on temperament because foals are very monkey see, monkey do, but usually you'll see something from the stallion as well.

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