Horse Heaven

Unlike me, who falls utterly in love with every horse I encounter, my trainer Sara is a tougher customer.  She prefers to think of herself as more of a connoisseur, but still, her standards are very high.  (She will even say, out loud, that Skye is not perfect. So you see, she is tough.) So I was interested to hear what she considered her favorite horses. I expected her to say a Warmblood of some kind, as we will often admire Nigel together as Carey goes cantering past on him. Instead she said she likes Spanish horses, such as PRE's, Andalusians and Lusitanos. As it happens, I have also been reading various books on balancing your horse and improving your relationship through liberty work and several of the authors mention how much they love the Spanish type horses.

This is Rayo. He has the
classic Lusitano head. He has
tipped me over into loving
grey horses. He's stunning.

So I did a little searching to see where I might get to see some, and lo and behold there is a renowned breeder of Lusitanos in Siler City, North  Carolina. Even better, Siler City is between Charlotte and Raleigh, so I could stop in on my way home from taking the dastardly test in Raleigh last week.  So I e-mailed Victoria Morris of Don E Mor Farms, and she  said she would be happy to let me visit. I got there a little late because of a traffic tie up in Raleigh, but it was totally worth the drive.


To learn more about Lusitanos and see Don E Mor's  jaw-droppingly gorgeous website, go to:

www.donemor.com

While the farm and the horses are so impressive, Victoria could not have been more down to earth and welcoming. My Quarter Horse Appendix-owning self felt perfectly at home.


The farm itself was so beautiful, with post and rail fencing, rolling hill pastures and tall trees everywhere, and that's before you even get to the horses. If I were to run away from home, this is probably where you could find me.

It was cloudy, so the color isn't as vibrant, but it's just lovely.

Lusitanos are famous not only for being beautiful, but for their docile and friendly personalities, and I have to say, that was definitely evident in these horses. Victoria mentioned that temperament was one of her most important, if not the most important, consideration in her breeding program, and you could really tell. We visited pasture after pasture and each small herd would meet us at the fence, ready for affection. Kind eyes and sweet expressions on every one.

Look at those sweet eyes.
Not that I can be won over by that kind of thing.

I got to see a couple of her stallions, and I fell hard for her buckskin stallion Lavrador. Absolutely gorgeous color, beautiful conformation, and the same kind eye and affectionate personality. Granted, I'm such a horse lover that I'm easy to impress, but even the toughest customer would see he is something special. And his offspring carry his qualities forward, as the babies at Don E Mor are just  beautiful and sweet.

The welcoming committee!
Every herd was this friendly. I just love their personalities.

 I don't often wish for things I don't have (other than more free time) but I was wishing I had a horse farm and plenty of money to spend when I was there, as there wasn't just one but several horses I would have loved to bring home with me.

I'd be happy to take these two off her hands.
Because I'm generous that way.

Of course, who won my heart the most? Shocking news: a bay mare! After perusing the website before I went there, I thought I would come away dying for a buckskin gelding, as I have such a weakness for buckskins and I have this image of a Lusitano buckskin gelding in my mind . . . . But instead, I met this girl . . . .

This is Isabel. She loved me too; I just
know it. Look at that face.

Which of course reminded me that I am so lucky to have the horse that still makes me feel like I am rich, as I still haven't seen the horse that I like the look of better than that red mare of mine. Not that my head can't be turned by a buckskin baby or two.

His color is like burnished gold.

So the good news is, I know exactly where to go when I come into money and it's burning holes in my pocket!  Whenever I have visited a breeding farm and seen the breed, I've been impressed and able to see why the people fell in love with the breed they raise (such as Icelandic horses or Rocky Mountain Horses) but with these, I definitely became a believer. I just loved them.

Not as much as this girl though. There's no point in being silly.

She had me at "let me eat this grass."