Andalusian Horses Blog
up-to-the-minute resource from Spain

Updated as fast and as often as things happen. This is a pre-lim to a fullscale weblog. The page presents day to day happenings and observations as we work among the horses of Spain and shows you which areas of the site we've updated in the last week or two.

Aug 16, 2008, The Spanish Horse at play

As with most horse people, my ears are subconsciously attuned to pick up any out-of-the-ordinary sounds from outside.

I hear distinct galloping. This is at a hot-hot time of day, when the three PRE fillies are usually either standing placidly or laid flat out.

Straight to the kitchen window that looks out on the paddocks - my first thought is count the spanish mares and see if anyone is missing.

They are in the rectangular turn out arena, which has now become L-shaped as we added a small square second paddock. This second paddock is linked at a corner by a wide gateway, and has 7 trees in it, making it a completely shaded area.

The fillies are indeed galloping.

I watch. There seems no reason for fright.

Then I realise - they are playing follow-the-leader.

Believe it or not, but this is just as I saw it.

All gallop madly around the rectangular arena, in line. One breaks away, into the square paddock (which is quite small). She circles three trees, which are close together and form a triangle, then shoots off back thru the gateway into the bigger arena. Gallops around.

The other two do exactly the same.

On her next circuit, the lead filly circles four trees, then back to the arena.

The other two circle the same four trees.

Next circuit, it's three trees again, then four. They don't hesitate, and they don't miss it. Whatever the leader does, they copy.

I just love my babies!

Aug 10, 2008, Thoughts on Buying a Horse - andalusian or other

Many questions that come in to our Help Line are about buying an andalusian. Here's an article that will be incorporated into our Principles to Consider re andalucian horse sales.

The points relate to any horse purchase, I guess!

1. Before you go and see a horse, be sure you feel right with the person you re dealing with, whether it's a dealer or a private owner.

2. Ask the questions YOU want answers to. Be direct. Don't accept a fob-off, or a 'sideways' answer:

for e.g.. If you ask: Is he quiet in traffic? Then you want a definite 'Yes.'

If they say 'Well, he goes out with the other horses' - that is not telling you what you need to know.

If the answer is not favorable, then most people will try to avoid answering it, rather than lying outright.

3. Listen to that common sense voice inside!

4. NEVER be pressurised - if they say ' Oh, there's someone coming tomorrow' or 'there's someone else really interested' then tell them that's fine, the 'someone else' can have him! We breed and sell, and in one case we exchanged more than fifty emails over 3 months before the sale was completed.

5. Re buying from a website: It can be done with confidence - and equally you can end up with an expensive mistake. Be sure of the person at the other end: a flashy website with lush pictures and dreamy descriptions is no guarantee of a sound horse or an honest dealer. It could just mean they have a good website designer! This is where word of mouth recommendations help a lot.

Jun 24, 2008, Spanish chaps Full chaps

Spanish chaps are a part of traditional wear. Leather, plain or embossed and decorative. Hand made full spanish chaps for feria and display. Also working chaps, polainas, half chaps. Hand made to measure by Ramon.

May 24, 2008, Horse Paintings - Andalusian

Horse Paintings and Equine Art works from Lisah Pakulah. Oils and acrylics, paintings and images of horses that flow from the canvas with energy and life

May 20, 2008, How do I build a website

How do I build a website that works, makes money, brings visitors, gets good rankings, lets me share my passion, gets talked about, means I can work from home. I did it, you can.

May 13, 2008, Spanish Tack Vaquero Saddles

Handmade doma vaquera saddles, comments from the craftsmen. Traditional spanish tack, Spanish saddles, bridles and accessories. Terms and translations, questions invited.

May 9, 2008, Farrier, hoof care, horse shoeing

From the Farrier - Horse Shoeing and Hoof Care. Principles of good horse shoeing . Work with the horse's conformation. Shoe for the work. Questions invited. Shoeing the Andalusian Horse. Laminitis.

May 9, 2008, Andalusian Stallion - Mare, Gelding. Purebred Spanish Horses

Andalusian stallion - classic image of the Andalusian horse. PRE's in Spain and Lusitanos in Portugal. What are the advantages of riding stallions, mares, geldings.

May 9, 2008, Cremello Lusitano-PSL

Registered Lusitano - PSL - known in the US as Andalusians, the Portuguese Lusitano horses produce some spectacular unique colors - like this pearl cream cremello, 4 years old.

May 9, 2008, Chestnut Andalusian - Pure Spanish horse

Now permitted in the Spanish Stud Book of the Pure Spanish Horse - the PRE - a chestnut andalusian attracts attention. 3 for sale. Andalucia, Spain

May 9, 2008, Andalusian horse videos

Andalusian horse videos. Pure Spanish horses high school and dressage. In the country. Real life Spain - horses as they are. From top performance to safe pleasure horses.

Apr 30, 2008, Poetry of Jeannette Barnes

The Poetry of Jeannette Barnes reflects the heart of the author. Laughter, love, deep insight and magical word play. Multiple literary prize and award winner shares her work with fellow horse lovers

Apr 29, 2008, Poetry - Battle-Piece

Poetry - Battle piece to remember. Confederate monument, Ocean Pond, Olustee, Florida, 1864

Apr 28, 2008, Half Chaps Polainas

Called half chaps by many, known as polainas in Spain. Essential part of spanish rider's kit. Made to measure. Simple and hardwearing to beautifully handmade and elaborated. Direct from saddlemaker in Spain.

Apr 24, 2008, Andalusian horse with Long Mane

An Andalusian horse with long mane is the classic picture people carry. A horse, Purebred Spanish or any other breed, with a long mane and tail requires care and attention. How to do it. Photos

Apr 19, 2008, Quarter crack in the hoof of the horse

Treatment and repair: photos, farrier analysis, supportive shoeing, natural balancing. Quarter crack: Bleeding, infection, lameness from fissure through hoof wall into sensitive laminae.

Apr 15, 2008, Sigh - My PC finally gave up

Alas poor PC, I knew it, dear friends; computer
of infinite bytes, of most excellent casing: it has
borne me on its screen a thousand times: and now, how
distant in my imagination it is! My voice berates
it. Where be those keys that I have tapped I know
not how oft. Where be your clicks now? your
letters? your i-tunes? your flash-player merriment,
that was wont to stop the program at a whim? No more
now, of 'file deleted', grinning at my rage?
Now get you to the eco-chamber, I tell you, let
the recyclers strike, to this ending you
must come; ah, but you served me well

Apr 1, 2008, Andalusian Horses for Sale Spain Portugal

Range from dressage to safe and enjoyable pleasure horse. Choice of age, colour, size, temperament. Andalusian horses for sale spain portugal. PRE, lusitano and spanish horses for sale. Photos.

Mar 30, 2008, Poetry Mare

Poetry Mare by Jeannette Barnes

Mar 30, 2008, Poetry Instruction to Colts

Poetry Instruction to the colts in summer. Another of the horse poems of Jeannette Barnes

Mar 30, 2008, Poetry To the Garter Snake

Poetry To the Garter Snake by Jeannette Barnes

Mar 30, 2008, Poetry WHAT I WILL GIVE YOU

WHAT I WILL GIVE YOU Poetry of Jeannette Barnes

Mar 22, 2008, Poetry - Turkish Lilacs

My Mother's Turkish Lilacs are Cut Down - finalist for the Ruth Stone Prize for Poetry

Mar 22, 2008, Poetry - Dysplasia

Dysplasia - poetry of the heart for a dog well loved

Mar 22, 2008, Horses in Poetry

Our emotional contact with one horse or with many, makes horses in poetry a part of our integral being. Works by JB

Mar 22, 2008, Horse poetry - more than mere words

by award-winning JB de Meter. Horse lover, wordsmith and poet. Horse poetry is so inadequate a term to describe what JB writes. Heart of the horse, heart of the rider, heart of the country and countryside she loves.

Mar 20, 2008, Iberian Horse Worldwide Publishing

Iberian Horse Worldwide Publishing compiles and publishes the collective works of the Yahoo group IberianHorse-Worldwide

Mar 4, 2008, Spanish andalusian mare

Registered pure Spanish andalusian mare for sale. Bay, grey, chestnut p.r.e. mares. Yeguada Militar, guardiola, escalera, Some in foal. From 10 000 euros. Our own pura raza fillies - direct.

Mar 2, 2008, Andalusian Horses

Andalusian Horses - Variety of PRE and PSL horses for sale. Resource site - detailed articles, photos,videos. Insight from Spanish Horse experts. Experience in buying Andalusian Horses.

Feb 24, 2008, IberianHorse-Worldwide

IberianHorse-Worldwide is the Yahoo Group for iberian horse lovers world wide. Co-hosted from Spain and America., iberianhorse-worldwide unite writers, photo-film artists, etc. Works published.

Feb 24, 2008, The Site-lift

Well, I said I was going to do it, and the first step in the re-vamp site-lift is taken. After nearly 3 years with the orange-based colour scheme, the site colours are changing to parallel those of our sister site www.pure-spanish-horse-spain

The colour re-do is not complete yet - a bit more work is needed on the menu navigation bar , so hang in there with me.

Check it out - not the same!

Feb 24, 2008, iberianhorse-worldwide-moderators

iberianhorse-worldwide-moderators - who we are, what we do

Feb 23, 2008, Stories about Horses

True stories about horses that will never be forgotten. Stories about horses that were famous, and horses that are special to one person. Stories of Andalucia and Spain.

Feb 16, 2008, Andalusian News Spain - quick look

There is always something happening here - andalusian news from spain is a collection of brief newsy items from the PRE heart of andalucia.

Feb 16, 2008, Andalusian Horse Group

One thing that flourished last year was the andalusian horse community group - IberianHorse- Worldwide.

More than a quick chat forum, it has become a meeting place for Iberian horse enthusiasts worldwide. We talk there of our own horses, of riding experiences, of problems and solutions we have found.

There are a number of equine artists and authors in the Group - we enjoy the sharing of creativity.

The rules are simple: good manners and good coffee - and everyone signs their letters with a geographical location. We are truly an international group, and learning about the Iberian horse in other cultures is part of the fun we have.

Feb 3, 2008, Andalusian Horse for Sale - Spain data

Buying strategy - how to judge facts when looking at an Andalusian Horse for sale. Youngstock from private yard in Spain.

Jan 28, 2008, Garlic in Spain

Spain is known for it's wonderful food - and rightly so. An essential ingredient here is garlic: correctly used it is a culinary marvel indeed.

Well, according to Krystie, who wrote to us from New Zealand, there is more to garlic than just flavour. Her comments:

Hi I'm from NewZealand and its quite a damp place at times. A few years ago i had a beautiful white part spanish horse and he had the white-line disease I was just reading about on your website. His hooves were like sponges to look at and I thought that I'd never be able to ride him again.

I made up a concoction of chopped up garlic , with crushed salt and boiling water,shaken up in a bottle. Once it was cool I used it to wash his feet thouroughly everyday. I kept his feet wrapped in bandages, with garlic packed inside and kept him in the dry. He only had it for a few weeks but I think I cured it. : Krystie

Jan 6, 2008, Black Andalusian for sale

Black pure spanish horse - PRE. Photos and videos of our true black andalusian stallion. Also colts to 5 years

Jan 6, 2008, New Year - New Things

There is a saying - and I think it is Spanish in origin: Be careful what you wish for - you may get it.

Well, when we started the second website in about May last year, our wish was for the same sort of fun we had had with this one.

Wish granted - together with more rapid growth than we could have have ever imagined.

We began making videos of the andalusian horses here in Spain. Videos from the PRE studs and the spanish horse breeders. Videos of pura razas in dressage training, and of our own spanish stallion as he progressed.

The second site grew - and the work kept pressing. End result was that I simply didn't have 36 hours in the days. On evaluation, it was as though the new site were a green plant, still needing much attention and support. This site was the more established, with roots already firmly in its terrain.

Now the second site has found its identity, and this month I am concentrating on pruning and nourishing the andalusian. Expect action!

And to see what the other site has grown to - including nearly 40 top notch videos - click the link below. Then remember to come back here and see what's happening - there will soon be a new daily feature up and running.!

Nov 27, 2007, Andalusian Horse Books - owning, training, shoeing.

Books are like chocolate - everyone has their preferences. Here's our choice of Andalusian horse books, horse subjects in general - nb shoeing - and other reading related to Purebred Spanish Horses.

Nov 16, 2007, Dream Ride on the Beach

A dream ride on the beach - the andalusian and I gliding across the sun-kissed sands, hair and mane flowing in the wind. I must have had too much benedryl

Oct 24, 2007, Spanish Walk

Spanish horses presenting spanish walk. Spanish Walk - paso espanol The dramatic, rhythmic and elegant free movement is typical of a correctly trained andalusian horse. Training video.

Oct 19, 2007, Braid Andalusian Mane

When you braid an andalusian mane or tail - plait the mane and tail of spanish horses - the results are elegant and flattering. The traditional braids, plaits and tail knots can be learned.

Oct 15, 2007, Vaquero saddle handmade in Spain. Photo record, details, doma vaquera saddle.

Traditional spanish tack, Handmade doma vaquera saddles, comments from the craftsmen. Vaquero saddle. Spanish saddles, bridles and accessories. Terms and translations, questions invited.

Oct 15, 2007, Buy Spanish Tack Spain

To buy spanish tack in spain it helps to know what the spaniards consider correct in spanish tack and spanish dress. And to know where they buy their handmade saddles and bridles. Photos.

Oct 15, 2007, Buy a Vaquero Saddle from Spain

Buy a vaquero saddle from Spain and you buy a saddle with a built in history. The vaqueros of Spain have ridden in these saddles for centuries. Details, specialist supplier.

Oct 4, 2007, My Horse My Friend

The story of Juan Paco and Brujo is documented in the joy and affinity that sparkle out of their video - link to that below

Juan Paco is one of ‘Jo’s Boys’, the precious shining young riders I film - and sometimes feed -, smile at and love. They are the heart of Spain, the guarantee of a future for our horses. The ones who rise at three to clean stables and ride, as Juan Paco; commit to four years of hard work and study at the Escuela, as Emilio and Abel; determine to be the best groom in Andalucia as Carlos, or a handler with tact and lightness as is Lazaro.

They are the youth who give us grace, who do not despise our years and slower steps. The ones who ever have time to bend and greet with a kiss, to pause in their routine to talk of new discoveries, who smile tolerantly at my camera and go out of their way to help in a shoot, who never fail to give the hug that says we are one in our love of the horse.

Today my heart breaks for one of ‘my’ boys.

Brujo is dead. A colic, and Juan Paco has lost the friend he worked with, cared for, made his mistakes with and loved.

Pause for a moment when you go to your horses, and think kindly of Juan Paco tonight.

reproduced from my Group letter.
Link below to the video of Juan Paco and Brujo:

Sep 27, 2007, Spanish Cobra Collar

The spanish cobra collar is traditionally used in showing pure spanish mares in the cobra. A spanish delight to see the line of mares moving in harmony. Handmade cobra collars from Spain.

Sep 27, 2007, Doma Vaquera Stirrup

Ever wondered how to fasten the vaquero - doma vaquera stirrup leather? Photos and explanation of two methods.

Sep 27, 2007, Spanish Saddle

Handmade spanish saddle, traditional, from Spain.