The Friesian is a very special breed of horse, renowned for its luxurious appearance, friendliness, intelligence, adaptability and an enormous willingness to work.

It is for all these reasons and more that these horses have captured our hearts, imaginations and lives. Our horses are outstanding examples of the breed and our Friesian family has grown steadily over the years. The individual horses are described in greater detail in the links above but for those interested primarily in our driving horses, please visit the pages for Hidde, Droomwals and Hoitze.

When Rynardt and I decided to import and start breeding the Friesians in the UK we knew it was our responsibility to stay true to the breed and respect the generations of people who had dedicated their lives to “protecting” these wonderful horses

These horses are what they are today only because of the dedication of the people of Friesland, the northern province of the Netherlands from where the Friesian horse originates. The official Friesian studbook (Het Friesch Paarden-Stamboek) was established in 1879 at a time when the breed was close to extinction. By 1913 there were only 3 studbook stallions that remained and by developing a clear, controlled strategy the people of Friesland saved the breed so that we are able to enjoy them today.

We do not believe in indiscriminate breeding. There are too many horses that have been born as a result of thoughtless breeding who ultimately have no purpose. The Friesian horse has changed over the years in order to adapt to the ever changing demands of the equestrian world. Had the KFPS not recognised this the Friesian would still be a “heavy horse” on the “rare breed” register along with our other much loved heavy horse breeds round the world. We want to do our part to help develop the Friesian and as such have a clear breeding goal. By using top quality mares and FPS approved stallions (of which there are none in the UK) we aim to produce not only superb looking horses but also horses that are able to perform primarily in dressage but also in some of the wide variety of equestrian sports that are open to us today.

Our foundation mare, FEMMA L was bought in 2005, we singled her out in a show field of horses at a Studbook inspection in the Netherlands. We knew very little about the breed at the time but knew she was something special. Our instincts were confirmed when she was given entry to the Studbook with a 1st Premie Ster. Once back home she produced a beautiful filly, VELA, by Jasper 366 in early 2006.

Because of our belief in FEMMA, we sent her back to the Netherlands to be trained for an IBOP test with Sybren Minkema and Jolanda Schreuder. She needed a score of 77 or above to allow her the opportunity to be assessed for the ultimate title a mare can receive, Model. Femma scored an incredible 80 points for her driving and 81.5 points for her dressage. In 2008, the inspectors from the Netherlands came over to the UK inspections where they not only awarded her BEST IN SHOW but also the prestigious title of MODEL. To put this into context, only a handful of Friesian mares throughout the world receive this title each year and Femma is the first mare to be awarded the title in the UK.

We are honoured to have Femma and her daughter Vela in our equestrian family and look forward to telling you more about their offspring in the years to come. In the meantime if you are interested in purchasing an embryo from Femma, please contact us directly to discuss availability.

From time to time we may have one of our home bred horses for sale. However, thanks to the network of connections we have developed in the Netherlands, we are also proud to offer a small selection of top quality imported horses for sale. These horses are hand picked by myself and Rynardt, bought back to the UK for assessment and only offered for sale when the right home comes along for them. When we buy horses, we buy what we like – horses that we would be happy to own and work with – simply look at the quality of our own horses and you will get an idea of the type of horse we are likely to have for sale.

Our stallions are kept busy with their driving work and do not stand at stud. Although we appreciate it can be difficult and expensive to import the semen of approved stallions from abroad we would always encourage Friesian mare owners to breed with approved stallions if they possibly can. If this really is not an option, at least use a Ster Stallion but do your research first to make sure they are not too closely related.

Finally, please feel free to call or email us for further advice about the breed or on purchasing your friesian. Help and guidance is also available through the Friesian Horse Association of GB & Ire website www.fhagbi.co.uk

The Black Horses Blog

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  Droomwals

   

  Droomwals (Nanno) Stallion - 16.1hh (b.2001)

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  Femma L

   

  Femma L (Teunis 332 xOege) Stb MODEL Mare - 16.3hh (b.2001)

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  Hidde

   

  Hidde (Jasper 366) STER Stallion - 15.2hh (b.2002)

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  Hoitze

   

  Hoitze (Tetse) Gelding - 16.2hh (b.2002)

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  Vela

   

  Vela (Jasper 366 - Teunis 332) Filly - (b.2006)

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  Sold

   

  A selection of horses we have sold