100% Crabbet Arab Stallions at Stud
Articles written about us and our horses.
Crabbet feature: Seren Arabians by Alicia Quispe-Flores, written for the Crabbet & Russian edition of The Arabian Magazine, June 2007, and subsequently reprinted in the Crabbet Journal winter 2008 edition. Text © Alicia Quispe-Flores. Photos © Seren Arabians
A Brief history of Winged Saint by Alexia Ross, written for the website of Winged Saint's previous owners, Berryscroft Stud. Text and Photos © Alexia Ross.
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Seren Arabians
By Alicia Quispe-Flores
To me, a trip to Seren Arabians, nestling in the Lake District, was always
going to be a mixture of emotions. Having heard so much about him, I was eager
and excited to meet the resident 100% Crabbet stallion Hanson (Hanif x Sherilla).
But more poignantly, it also happens to be the stud that currently houses the
first ever pure-bred that led me into the Arabian world and community over 10
years ago. Shadowed Gold (St John x Magic’s Moonshadow), also 100% Crabbet
was, and is, unique. She showed me the contrast of the Arabian temperament and
took me through my first Arabian halter classes and the huge expanse of learning
that followed with dignity and patience. It is her I have to thank for being
so fully immersed in the Arabian – and particularly the Crabbet bloodlines
– ever since.
Having never been this far north previously, I was completely taken aback by
the sheer beauty of Cumbria. Driving up the M6 and following fabulous directions,
I gradually slowed as I reached my destination, partly with trepidation, but
equally with awe at the beautiful rolling hills and mountains that surrounded
me. Following the track that lead to Upper High House, the home of Seren Arabians,
I suddenly felt a strange peace wash over me, something that I have to say didn’t
leave me for the entire visit. The weather was ever changing and being surrounded
by sheep, I suddenly realised that the house was in view; my fixation on my
destination almost led me to miss my first encounter with the two horses I was
longing most to see. A quick glimpse to my right alerted me to some horses high
up a hill between some trees near a natural spring. The next thing that struck
me was that after coming through several gates, there was now no fence between
us and I was literally driving right through their grazing land. As I stopped
and looked, I could see an extremely content Hanson grazing with an easily recognisable
Shadowed Gold and Winter Queen (Silvern Idyll x Queen of Diamonds). They all
lifted their heads and gave me a glancing look to acknowledge my arrival before
returning to the more important business of grazing and I was left to continue
to the house.
A quick word on the history of the stud: Dom and his wife met through their
work with mountain rescue dogs and prior to meeting Jan, Dom had limited experience
with equines. He had been rolled on by a horse at riding school at the age of
five, but being the younger brother he had, at times, been in sole charge of
his sisters’ ponies, and this was the extent of his interaction with them.
Jan’s native Welsh upbringing was not a horsey one, but is where the stud’s
name comes from: seren is Welsh for star and following the theme, all Hanson’s
foals have been named after the brightest stars. Jan’s first horse was
bought as a 30th birthday present on taking up her first permanent classroom-teaching
job. The Crabbet/Polish Mare Blue Bandaila (Cally) by Banner of Blue (sire of
2005 HOYS winner Shadow Blue) and out of Daila (Haroun x Dyala) joined Jan as
a 15.1hh well-built three year old. Bred by Roger and Liz Titterington, Cally
was backed during the summer while Jan led an expedition to Iceland. Cally went
on to be successful in long distance rides, obtaining Grade 1 on all but one
ride. Cally still resides with Jan and has produced five foals for Seren Arabians,
three of which are by Hanson.
Cally’s first foal, Bandaius, was by the leased Crabbet/GSB Indian King
son Altius (out of the Blue Domino daughter Blue Gleam). Jan believes that for
most of his life, Altius had been a lead riding school horse in Wales. Jan leased
him for a summer and took part in some pleasure rides on him. He would happily
hack out in company, but only once Jan had worked out how to keep his bridle
on as he had a habit of waggling his ears and losing his bridle, something that
Hanson now also does. Altius ran out with Cally and a number of other mares.
It was Altius who aroused Jan’s interest in obtaining a Crabbet stallion
of her own and subsequently sent Jan on her search for a stallion who was bigger,
grey and straight Crabbet. A number of colts and stallions were viewed before
Jan arrived at Geoffrey Plaisters. In all that time, Hanson was the only one
that Jan had felt entirely comfortable with in a stable and he subsequently
joined Seren Arabians in 1994.
Dom and Jan had been devastated to read statistics a couple of years ago that
stated approximately 53 foals of pure Crabbet blood had been born in a five-year
period. In this same time span, 200 Arabians of pure Crabbet blood had died.
For Jan and Dom, this had been a wake up call. They were housing a very significant
100% Crabbet stallion that to date, and for various reasons including the foot
and mouth epidemic, had only sired six foals, just two of which were 100%. These
were out of Jan’s Hanif granddaughter, Hamatan (Silver Scimitar x Hamsfah),
whom Jan purchased from Anne Brown of the Gadebrook Stud in 1991. Being one
of 12 full brothers, Hanson had never had the chance to be bred from during
his time with Imperial Arabians. Jan gave up work in pursuit of the dream to
breed Hanson to 100% Crabbet mares; the minor problem was that they didn’t
have any of their own, following Hamatan’s death.
The interest in Hanson at that point had been low, given that he resided so
far north and associated cost implications of breeding with a stallion so far
away. He was also relatively unknown, having never been advertised at stud.
The search for suitable mares began. Being high percentage Crabbet and 100%
Old English and GSB, the now 18 year old Winter Queen was purchased in 2005
from Gaynor Hunt in Devon. Shadowed Gold (born 1991) also travelled up from
Devon on a breeding lease and these two mares are set to play an important role
in Seren’s influence in the future of Crabbet horses.
Pulling up outside the house, I was greeted by a crescendo of Labrador barks,
all seemingly trying to drown each other out. They proved to be much more effective
then any doorbell I have ever encountered and within seconds, I was greeted
by one half of Seren Arabians, Dom Atkinson. After being welcomed into the house
for much-needed refreshment, I think Dom could sense my eagerness and suggested
that we go and meet the horses.
I was certainly not born a natural athlete and originate from the flat landscape
of the south, so it was with precision and care that I followed Dom to the horses
in the field in front of the house. The first horse to spot us and come to greet
us was Winter Queen and Shadowed Gold was the next realise that she might be
missing out on some attention and meandered over to us. It was an emotional
experience for me and certainly raised the question of whether horses remember
us. She looked so relaxed and at home, with her vivid chestnut coat contrasting
against her beautiful flaxen mane and tail and white spots. After a brief re-acquaintance,
she continued on her journey to get a drink from the spring. In 2006, Shadowed
Gold was scanned in foal to Hanson, but unfortunately didn’t hold. She
has just been scanned in foal again and all fingers are crossed that she holds
her foal full term.
It was only after the girls had slightly distanced themselves that Hanson joined
us. To me, it was alien to see horses living in domestic herd arrangements and,
if I am honest, I was certainly dubious about the set up prior to my visit.
However the only thing that identified Hanson from his mares, apart from his
shear size and more masculine look, was a quick look underneath! He was calm
and relaxed, a striking fleabitten grey stallion with his trademark bloody shoulder.
He stood for a fuss before moving back for us to admire him. He was contentment
personified.
Hanson has always been a herd horse since joining Seren Arabians, where the
philosophy is for the horse to be comfortable with human contact while living
as much as the weather allows them in their natural surroundings. Having your
own land to manage is an obvious advantage when keeping horses in this way,
but both Jan and Dom were passionate that, for them, having their horses living
in herds meant that they were all very calm and grounded horses. Not only does
this make management of the stud less arduous at times, it definitely made for
a very harmonious existence for all the horses. Dom uses a dog whistle very
effectively, although not conventionally, as a call for the horses to find their
master and this makes it much easier to collect the horses when there is a howling
gale.
Stud management is practical, with Hanson being removed from a particular herd
when his tell tale calls announce an in-season mare, although Jan does add that
he quickly mastered the art of silent covering! Hanson can be put on a head-collar
and led away and is happy to settle into a herd with no breeding prospects when
the need arises.
Hanson has a striking resemblance to his paternal grandsire Silver Vanity and
certainly the well-documented temperament of Bright Shadow. He was bred by Geoffrey
Plaister of the Imperial stud and was purchased by Jan as a six year old. Jan
competed with Hanson in his younger days in long distance and it was usual for
him to finish the race with a lower heart rate then he had started. Jan still
hacks him out now and describes him as a joy to ride. Hanson can ride out alone
or in company, including with in season mares. With his calm and dependable
nature, he was regularly used by Jan to lead rein the children’s ponies
on the roads.
After standing and surveying Hanson and his girls, it was time for a trip back
to go and meet the second herd, which consisted of Cally and her two Hanson
sons. The eldest son, the seven-year-old gelding Seren Vega, was very impressive.
Standing at 16hh and a deep chestnut with a fabulous build to accompany his
frame, he created a very imposing picture. As with all the other horses we met,
he had a wonderful nature and thoroughly enjoyed being petted and admired. He
would make a fantastic ridden gelding and Jan said she would be happy to see
him produced in the future – a real gem for someone looking for a future
shining star. As a yearling Seren Rigel, Vega’s younger brother, was the
youngest horse at Seren Arabians. He will be grey and is very flashy and appeared
slightly more refined then his sibling. He was also full of cheek and made full
use of the rest of the herd being absorbed by visitors, running up behind each
one in turn and giving them a nip before scurrying off!
There were two other mares making up this herd. The only grey was Silver Flurry
by Silver Satyr and 97%+ Crabbet. Flurry was born at Seren Arabians in a snow
storm, hence her name. Her dam Sheer Bliss, from the Rodania Dam line, had come
to Seren Arabians with a filly foal at foot by Altius, Blissful Serenade of
India. Sheer Bliss lived out the rest of her days at Seren. Silver Flurry is
astonishingly typey and extremely feminine for such a high-percentage Crabbet
mare. She has yet to produce a foal for Seren Arabians, much to their disappointment.
She has been turned out with Hanson, but being raised alongside him seems to
think of him as more of a brother. This year, Seren Arabians are assessing the
demand for frozen semen from Hanson with the hope that Hanson can be made available
to the UK and Europe and the problem of travelling mares long distances can
be eliminated. Whatever the future holds, Seren Arabians will almost certainly
take a collection of semen from Hanson for their own future use and it would
be hoped that this could be used with Flurry.
The third mare was Silihah (Silver Fahd x Maliha), surprisingly chestnut considering
that she has three lines tracing to Silver Fire/Sobha and is also a Hanif granddaughter.
Silihah was also purchased in 2005 and is 100% Crabbet. She was successfully
covered by Hanson in 2006, but unfortunately was scanned to be carrying twins
who were aborted; she has been re-covered by Hanson again this year and has
been confirmed in foal.
The experience with Seren Arabians was very relaxed and time flew by. Just before
leaving them for the evening, Dom and Jan suggested they bring Hanson, Winter
Queen and Shadowed Gold in for a feed. This meant taking cover in their American
barn as the heavens opened and we were greeted by several squeaky yaps –
there were two stables of puppies in the barn. Unfortunately, I hadn’t
planned ahead and so didn’t have pockets big enough to hide one in!
With Hanson being led in from the field and his girls following, it gave me
time to really inspect them all. On level ground, Hanson was even more impressive.
Jan and Dom were eager for me to go into his stable with him if I wished. Being
in a stable opposite two mares, I have to say that I wouldn’t be happy
to wander into a confined area with every stallion, Hanson has to be an exception.
Dom recounted how his son, Sebastian, wandered out to the horses when he was
ten years old and put Hanson’s head-collar on before leading him in for
a feed. It was an emotional experience to see such a well-conformed, impressive
stallion with such fabulous manners being genuinely happy with life.
If you were to consider covering your mare with a 100% stallion, I would urge
you to take the time to visit this stud and certainly see this stallion. He
has produced quality, although limited, offspring. Seren Arabians are able to
offer your mare whatever routine will suit her including natural covering if
you would prefer. I defy you to find more welcoming people in a more wonderful
setting with more naturally kept, accepting and engaging horses anywhere.
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A brief history of Winged Saint by Alexia Ross
The first time I saw Winged Saint I ran the length of the Malvern showground at the 1992 UK Nationals to get a closer look at a spectacular moving chestnut. I had no idea who he was but he turned out to be the 100% Crabbet colt Winged Saint. On closer inspection he was pretty, as well as a great mover, and I was completely hooked. He moves as a true athlete should, lifting his front end and powering through his back so that he tracks up behind and is a picture of balance – so few really move this way. He bucked the trend that year, placing well in a large 2 year old colt class against a collection of already fashionable Egyptian and El Shaklan modern in-hand types.
Winged Saint was, I believe, the last Arabian to be actively campaigned in the show ring by the Wrights of the Moulton Stud in Norfolk. This supremely important Crabbet breeding programme was founded on the great mare lines of Silent Wings’ daughter Yemama, the rare Nizzam daughter Nishida and the Indian Magic mare Indian Starlight, all of them part of the great Crabbet “N” line family tracing back to Dajania Or.Ar’s daughter Nefisa. The Wrights’ key foundation stallion was the Blue Domino son Ludo, a superlative ridden champion who still underpins so much successful UK endurance breeding. Later a grandson of both Blue Domino and Silent Wings was added, the elegant grey Silver line stallion Silver Blue.
The Moulton Stud bred many great show champions and provided foundation stock for other breeders both at home and abroad. Winged Saint’s own sire was British National Champion El Santo, a son of Ludo and Nishida. Saint’s dam was the ever beautiful Silver Blue Wings. She made a huge impression the one time I saw her in the flesh, again at the UK Nationals, combining her sire’s scope and elegance with the style and movement of Yemama’s Dove family. In the Moulton Stud’s later years she did not get the chance to breed as many foals as her full sister Ivory Wings, dam of WAHO and HOYS champion Imad, but Winged Saint is a worthy successor.
For much of his life Saint has been inaccessible to breeders, running out with a few mares in Norfolk after the senior Wrights died. Nonetheless he has already sired a British National Ridden Show champion, in the form of the Straight Crabbet mare Silver Brocade, the consistent endurance mare Moonshell, and his son Moulton Millennium was exported to Denmark and has already sired some excellent stock of his own.
Winged Saint’s pedigree is quality through and through and he has the type and movement to pass the best of this on. He also inherits that lovely sweet Ludo temperament – this is a horse that is easy to live with. He is the result of a tried and tested Wright formula – use consistent mare families, then double up on Ludo for movement and temperament and add a dash of Silver for smooth strength and elegance. Time and again this formula produced top-class Arabians with the added bonus that generations of informed breeding also results in a genetic consistency that breeds on extremely well in all manner of combinations. Winged Saint is currently the UK’s only Straight Crabbet sire of 100% Moulton Stud breeding so I sincerely hope that we use him while we can.
At the grand old age of 18 years Saint is finally with an enthusiast who hopes to give him the chances at stud he deserves. He looks much the same as he did as a 2 year old and can still show off that movement with very little encouragement. I hope to be visiting again soon!
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