Gypsy Vanner Horse Owners I need your knowledge

[oldchickenlady]

Putting in my two cents here...Yes, the gypsy vanners/drum horses are STUNNING! But, being the owner of 2 paint horses already, I know that gorgeous hair is a LOT of work to maintain! WAAAAAY more work than I have time to do to maintain all that beauty! All those fabulous pics of windblown manes, tails, and feathers takes HOURS of washing, combing, conditioning, and drying. Unless you keep this beauty in a stall ALL the time, those beautiful white feathers and tails are going to be dirty, muddy, and tangled in about an hour or less! Yes, I would love to own one, but not unless I win the lottery and can afford the perfect barn, land, and the ability to hire someone to do all that bathing, bleaching, conditioning, braiding, combing, etc etc. LOL Even on my 2 regular horses, it is very disheartening to spend all day bathing, combing, braiding, etc etc, just to see them lay down and roll in the dirt 45 seconds after they are turned out! Gypsy vanners/drum horses are very high maintenance if you want them to look pretty.

 

[patandchickens]

Really? Hm. Could be I suppose; but they had a bit of a fad already back in the, what, sometime in the 90s. I suppose maybe they could come back "bigger".

I have seen some decent ones, but the only ones I've known and worked with, i.e. owned by normal average people, were either waaaaay to mentally-complicated for normal average people to mess with (and of course, those were the mares that then were retired to breeding duty, ahem), or were pretty good solid horses upstairs but difficult to ride in a way that did not get them to lock their backs and turn into big heavy sewing machines.

I dunno though, the Lusitano fad never really went anywhere either.

Pat

 

[EweSheep]

I remember the Andalusians was popular when Bo Derek was riding one or was it Dean Martin?

Beautiful as they are but they want MORE challenging roles and training, pretty much like the Lippizaners. If they don't get the mental challenge, they get bored easily and they would go sour on you. Keep them active, physically and mentally, they are happy horses.

I personally love to watch bullfighting because of the beauty despite of the cruelty associated with it. I am hoping one day no more blood would be shed by the bulls, and horse and bull still can play in the arena with the color and gracefullness it captured the hearts of anyone who likes this kind of events. The Muinro bulls are MADE and BRED for bullfighting and they do it well. So I am hoping the horse and bull ballet dancing will still go on when the laws of Spain changes that no bloodletting will be done. Yes there are risks involved, not anymore so than car racing.

Andalusians are popular now, seeing more Anglo-Andalusians popping up and I know a few Paso Fino breeders are crossing them to increase size and looks that the PF was lost in the last decade or two because of the hype of crossing Colombians and Puerto Rican bloods together and only go for the gait not the universal look of each origin plus gaits. Today I would be hard pressed to find some real good old classic PF.

The Gypsy Vanners reminds me of a Fresian crossed with Pinto. Beautiful as they are but I agree with Pat, if you wanted a horse, you certainly can get one similar to Gypsy Vanners until you can afford one. I swear the British or whomever was importing them in the US, is still laughing to this day. If one can do a DNA on the Gypsy Vanners, I am sure you can make your own Gypsies right here in the US for fraction of the cost but take a little more time.

 

[michickenwrangler]

Quote:
LOL

So true, WC, so true

Breeds come and go in trends and whatever breed happens to be in vogue is ALWAYS advertised as calm, quiet, smooth, versatile and with a romantic past. I've heard people who want to buy Andalusians say, "I want one so I don't have to work at getting it on the bit. It's always on the bit."

One of my friends is looking into buying an Andalusian. She rides Training and First Level dressage and also accompanies me on my endurance conditioning rides and many Andalusian breeders give her odd looks when she says, "I want something I can do lower level dressage with, but I also want something I can trail ride on." One even told her that her Andalusians "are NOT trail horses. Get a Quarter Horse if you want to trail ride. MY horses are for dressage and doma vaquera!" This breeder also gave me a dirty look when I told her that her one gelding's name wasn't a real word in Spanish. I can't remember what it was, something like Romallo or Faramallo. When she asked me how I would know, I told her, "I teach Spanish. I spend my days correcting bad Spanish garmmar and pronunciation."

My friend is not buying a horse from her. But she did find another breeder who has 2 young horses for sale. This breeder was very adamant that the young horses not be broke until they were 3 and not compete until they were 4 and "While I personally don't trail ride a lot, I think it's good for the horse and glad you [my friend] isn't the type of rider that will school a horse to death in the arena."

 

[EweSheep]

Quote:
LOL

So true, WC, so true

Breeds come and go in trends and whatever breed happens to be in vogue is ALWAYS advertised as calm, quiet, smooth, versatile and with a romantic past. I've heard people who want to buy Andalusians say, "I want one so I don't have to work at getting it on the bit. It's always on the bit."

One of my friends is looking into buying an Andalusian. She rides Training and First Level dressage and also accompanies me on my endurance conditioning rides and many Andalusian breeders give her odd looks when she says, "I want something I can do lower level dressage with, but I also want something I can trail ride on." One even told her that her Andalusians "are NOT trail horses. Get a Quarter Horse if you want to trail ride. MY horses are for dressage and doma vaquera!" This breeder also gave me a dirty look when I told her that her one gelding's name wasn't a real word in Spanish. I can't remember what it was, something like Romallo or Faramallo. When she asked me how I would know, I told her, "I teach Spanish. I spend my days correcting bad Spanish garmmar and pronunciation."

My friend is not buying a horse from her. But she did find another breeder who has 2 young horses for sale. This breeder was very adamant that the young horses not be broke until they were 3 and not compete until they were 4 and "While I personally don't trail ride a lot, I think it's good for the horse and glad you [my friend] isn't the type of rider that will school a horse to death in the arena."

I am going to LOVE that breeder!!!!!!!!!!

For that snottyness of the original breeder that Andalusians are strictly for dressage and doma vaquera.....

Andalusians can do anything that a QH can do, a horse is a horse, will act and eat like a horse!

 

[michickenwrangler]

She's an example of how people can be "overly romanticized" about a certain breed.

"TRAIL RIDING??!! THAT'S for peasants! MY horses are descended from Spanish nobility! You certainly won't put a WESTERN saddle on my horses!"

"Actually, the western saddle used in the United States in Spanish is called a silla tejana--a Texas saddle. The western saddle is a variation of a medieval Spanish war saddle, used toward the end of the Middle Ages as the caballeros or knights turned their warhorses into ranch horses. Please stop flailing your arms at me at the suggestion of Andalusians working cattle like a Quarter Horse and that Quarter Horses might actually be descendants of Andalusians."

 

[EweSheep]

 

[welsummerchicks]

Andalusians ARE used to work cattle and were for a long time - but they don't do it the same way as in the US. They do well and are built for the Spanish way - using the pole, though I'm sure not all cow work was all dashing around, probably a lot of miles covered too. They were also supposed to be a 'multi purpose horse' - do a little this and that. What did that originally mean? Probably ride around, go visit friends, be ridden in their pageants and festivals, prance around, look pretty. To be sure, the distances are not short in Spain (or S. America) and I'm sure the horses are hardy.

But they weren't specialized for speed, jumping or like that. Not really the type for the FEI riding sports. Not eventing at Thoroughbred speed, show jumping huge jumps like a show jumper, or flowing through a dressage test.

But they are getting more and more popular in dressage, and are being selected more for looser, more flowing gait. There have always been some lines that made nice dressage horses, and that is coming up more. Some breeders have been selecting for a more flashy staccato, tense, short stride, and that type has limited success at sport.

I love all of the related breeds - Alter Real, Lusitano, Andalusian. They are usually beautiful animals and they often are very, very eager and light to ride. They are usually very upheaded and light in the mouth, quite often very quick and very, very sensitive to the slightest move in the saddle or twitch of the rider's heel, and move very 'up', lifting their knees right up. Not all, but most. I think the average American rider would be completely freaked. Just too used to the very laid back, low headed, slow, slow jog, and the ground scraping motion of the Quarter Horse.

And....I ADMIT - I love the hair.

 

[michickenwrangler]

I saw Andalusians and Lusitanos working cattle on RFDTV once and watching a big Andalusian cut cattle like a stocky little foundation QH was a sight to see--and that mane and tail flying!

I have noticed from watching Rafael Soto e Invasor que (sorry starting to think in Spanish) that the Andalusians do not extend as well as a Trakehner or another light warmblood but watching Invasor do canter pirouettes and his passage ...

They are beautiful horses indeed.

This woman, again, was overly romanticizing the breed and probably pictured them a la Lord of the Rings or Grand Prix dressage and the thought that someone might want to "trail ride" in a synthetic western saddle and nylon bridle most likely offended her sensibilities.

She struck me as the type to say, "I wish I had been born in the Renaissance ..."

No you wouldn't have. Would you like to die at 25 in childbirth or an infection resulting from it? Freeze in the winter and swelter under wool clothes in the summer? Have rats and toads sharing your house if you live in the country or have open sewers in front of your house if you live in the city? Would you want to never bathe?

My friend kept giving me this look like "Shut up. She's ignorant, just ignore her."

 

[EweSheep]

I would not even WANT to live back in the CW days either even I am a Civil War reenactor but I'm too spoiled, rather have modern stuff going on in my everyday life except for those weekends of "roughing" it. That I don't mind but not 24/7!

Sure they did stink back then but perfume was the rage!

I am very certain that Andalusians were MADE for herding cows from pasture to pasture and all the good stuff. Also they have been crossbred in different breeds to get refinement and proud stance as well as vertisiality (sp). I do realize that the Andalusians do not over extend like the warmbloods do but crossing them give them the best of both worlds.